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The Movie: Everyone remembers where they were on 9/11 and how the chaos and tragedy of the morning unfolded. The hurt and devastation of the events of the morning are still fresh in the minds of many years later. For many people, it's still too early to relive the events of the day on film. Still, "United 93" (and also, "World Trade Center") unfolded on big screens over the Summer. "United 93" is a very difficult picture to watch, but director Paul Greengrass has made a very powerful film that chooses to portray the events of the day in docudrama form. "United 93" offers fairly little dialogue, only occasional hints of music and never manipulates or underlines anything, simply letting the events play out under a feeling of overwhelming dread. Early in the film, the terrorists are preparing to board United flight 93, although the plane soon gets backed up in traffic, with many planes ahead of it. Meanwhile, flight traffic controllers have lost contact with one flight after only getting a brief moment of garbled yelling. While one controller suspects a possible hijacking, his supervisors initally disregard it until they get further information. Pieces of information start coming together, but the controllers are stunned to soon find that the plane has gone off the radar somewhere over Manhattan. Moments later, the air traffic controllers soon stare in shock as smoke is soon spotted coming from one of the towers of the World Trade Center. While it was reported that a small plane had flown into the tower, the controllers quickly realize that it was the lost jet they had been tracking. It's not long before another flight stops communicating and air controllers nearby suddenly spot the plane, watching in horror as it hits the second tower. Controllers frantically try to contact planes and try to determine their status, eventually confirming that two other planes have been taken over, one hitting the Pentagon. Elsewhere, the military has become aware of the events unfolding and tries to scatter fighters, but a few fighters that were available were unarmed and others were sent in the wrong direction. Military officials awaited a response from higher-ups on whether or not to engage, but time passed with no word. The last third of the film has the terrorists take control of Flight 93. Passengers make phone calls to loved ones, who inform them of what has gone on while they're in the air. Passengers soon learn from the flight attendants that the pilots are dead and feel the plane change course. They soon realize that, in order to survive, they must take action. While the passengers do band together and storm the cockpit, the plane cannot be righted and crashes. Again, "United 93" rarely uses music and presents the events in a completely straightforward, documentary-style manner - passengers on-board before things happen largely read, sleep or look out the window. No recognizable actors are used. It does not give any further detail to the people shown, does not provide any "Hollywood-ized" elements and simply puts us into the middle of the nightmare that occured. Making the film feel even a bit more accurate in its attempts to show what happened is the fact that some of the real people involved when the events happened - including Ben Sliney, the FAA head who made the decision to ground all flights - play themselves. The movie does not attempt to go into any background on the events, as it takes place entirely on 9/11, as the events are happening and those on the ground are trying to figure out how best to respond to something they, at first, didn't and couldn't believe was happening. This is a difficult and heartbreaking picture that takes viewers into the middle of the confusion, chaos and sorrow that occured on that dark day. The film pays tribute to the innocent victims who lost their lives on 9/11 and lets us know to never forget them. Note: to learn about the Flight 93 National Memorial, visit http://www.honorflight93.org The DVD VIDEO: "United 93" is presented by Universal in 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen. The presentation, aside from a few minor concerns, is largely stellar. Sharpness and detail are exceptional, as the picture remained sharp and well-defined throughout, with small object details often clearly visible. Aside from some slight artifacting on a couple of occasions, the presentation remained crisp and clean. No edge enhancement was seen, nor were any print flaws. Colors remained subdued throughout, but appeared accurately presented. SOUND: The film's Dolby Digital 5.1 presentation is straightforward, not using the surrounds for anything aside from some ambience on occasion. Audio quality is fine, with clear, crisp dialogue and music. EXTRAS: Commentary from director Paul Greengrass is included, as well as memorial pages for the passengers and a trailer for the short film, "Twin Towers". Also included is the nearly hour-long documentary, "Flight 93: The Film and the Families". The documentary visits with family members who lost loved ones on the flight and who gave approval to the filmmakers. The documentary is extremely powerful, saddening and difficult to watch, as the family members show photos and home video footage of the loved ones they lost. They also talk about their memories of the day and their memories of the people who were taken from them on 9/11. This is an absolutely heartbreaking piece. The 2-DVD Limited Edition includes the above features along with the additional 47-minute documentary, "Chasing Planes: Witnesses to 9/11". Final Thoughts: A respectful and deeply powerful attempt to recreate the events of 9/11, "Flight 93" pays tribute to the innocent victims who lost their lives on 9/11 and lets us know to never forget them. The DVD edition provides fine audio/video quality and a few strong supplemental features. Recommended for those interested in viewing the film. 
Film Grade The Film A DVD Grades Video 92/A Audio: 89/B+ Extras: 91/A |