Truth be told, United 93 is a very respectful retelling of the events of that day, as we surmise they happened. The movie plays out, more or less, in real time, as the planes hit the trade center and the people on the fated flight quickly realize what is going on. The movie jumps around, from the plane, to the numerous air traffic controllers trying to figure out what is going on. The movie is careful not to exploit its subject matter, presenting the information from the perspective of what we knew that day. It knows nothing more and nothing less.
The movie also doesn't develop any of the passengers on board the Flight, and we observe them as if we too were a passenger on that flight. You really don't get to know people on your flights too well, and no unnecessary backstory is given to anyone. There are no Hollywood actors, and many of the air traffic controllers are portrayed by their real life counterparts. Director Paul Greengrass, who is known for the last two Bourne films, could have easily fallen into action movie clichés, but doesn't. These people are not action heroes, but they are heroes in their own rights, especially the passengers on the plane who fought the terrorists and brought the plane down. Even the terrorists are presented with a sliver of humanity, which is a risky thing for Greengrass to do. It reminds us that not everything is clearly black or white, and no one is truly evil.
I understand many people didn't see this movie because they felt it was too soon for Hollywood to be making 9/11 movies, and I respect people's decisions to not see the film. It is a tough experience, and certainly not entertaining by any stretch of the imagination. But it accurately captures a moment in history, the attitude, the confusion, the sadness, and will be something for our grandchildren and their grandchildren to watch and really understand what happened that fateful day in September.
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