Sometimes films are put out that are difficult to accurately assess due to the strong emotions tied with the release. Such is the case with Oliver Stone’s World Trade Center, which has recently been released to DVD.
This movie follows Will Jimeno (Michael Peña), John McLoughlin (Nicolas Cage), and their families on September 11, 2001. Jimeno and McLoughlin are Port Authority police officers working in midtown who get called downtown following the first plane striking the Twin Towers. Jimeno and McLoughlin become trapped beneath the rubble and the rest of the film plays out as they await, and pray for, rescue.
For a moment, let’s put aside the reality aspect of the picture. It’s a difficult thing to do with such a catastrophic event in our history and one occurring so recently, but crucial to attempt.
Strictly in terms of filmmaking, World Trade Center is a well constructed, well acted film. There are moments when the film’s pace slows to something less than a crawl, but on the whole it does a good job exploring not only the emotions and actions of the two trapped Port Authority police officers, Jimeno and McLoughlin, 
but those of their family and loved ones as well. Many of the scenes between are very claustrophobic and disorienting, which is, assuredly, the feeling Olive Stone wanted to create, but after seeing them for the third or fourth time sitting in there in the dark, those scenes begin to drag down the forward momentum of the story.
Again, I reiterate, this is looking at the film as simply a film, and not as a message. One or two of these scenes are absolutely crucial, but after that, they don’t add to the desperation the audience feels, they simply serve to pull the audience out of the film. The excessive darkness and lack of movement, which must have been quite true to life, begins to hurt the storytelling and emotional force.
Despite whatever small issues the filmmaking itself may have, the story, for being based on actual events, is quite powerful. Stone eschews recreating the planes striking the World Trade Center and the collapse of the towers. He instead focuses on the police officers doing their jobs at these times. By doing so Stone not only avoids numerous complaints that would undoubtedly be issued for recreating such tragic occurrences but also creates a stronger sense of fear and wondering. Not having a clear timeline of what is occurring on a macro scale, we are left to wonder what exactly is taking place once the officers arrive on scene at the Trade Center. There are rumblings and noise and confusion as the officers themselves don’t know what is taking place and simply do their best to handle whatever arises. It is a wise decision on Stone’s part to not recreate the plane impacts and the falling of the towers and certainly makes for better storytelling.
Article comments
1 - Connie Phillips
T&FG - Thanks for this review and the way you separated the technical aspects from the unavoidable emotions.
Despite being a huge Cage fan and being interested in the topic, I have avoided seeing this for the very reasons you suggest someone might want to. (A friend of mine lost her life in the tragedy.) Personally, I don't think I could sit through it -- yet -- but it's good to know it was well done.