Reviews of United 93

In memory of those who died. United 93.

Posted : 3 weeks, 6 days ago on 27 November 2009 06:35 (A review of United 93)

''We have to do something, they are not going to land this plane.''

A real time account of the events on United Flight 93, one of the planes hijacked on 9/11 that crashed near Shanksville, Pennsylvania when passengers foiled the terrorist plot.

Paul Greengrass: Director of Flight 93.

Paul Greengrass's bold dramatization of the horrific events of September 11th 2001 was one of the biggest undertakings taken in cinema in the first few years of 21st century. The importance of the event was undeniable, but the emotions which it had naturally aroused in those personally involved in the story and the vast majority of the world's public made this subject incredibly delicate. However, with United 93, Greengrass met the many obstacles that came with the project; thus establishing himself as one of the most talented and important filmmakers out there.

The power of United 93 comes almost entirely from the genius of Greengrass; the script, the style and his execution of a brilliant and sensitive piece of film-making. The film is not a simple documentary drama.
It is a true to the events but takes the steps necessary to turn it in to a story with intelligent perception of what happened and helps us connect with all the people involved; which isn't just everyone on the plane. Bravely, however, this film takes on the subject of the hijackers without reducing them to inhuman psychopaths but portrays them as misguided human beings. Before one boards flight 93 to carry out their terrible plan; he uses his phone and simply says "I love you"; a touch of genuine class from Greengrass whom shows us the tragic humanity of the hijackers yet cleverly never sides or goes against them; this is a genuine account of what happened from various sources.
Starring many unknowns, and even some of the real people involved at the airport, including Lewis Alsamari as Saeed Al Ghamdi, J.J. Johnson as Captain Jason Dahl, Gary Commock as First Officer LeRoy Homer, Trish Gates as Sandra Bradshaw, Polly Adams as Deborah Welsh, Cheyenne Jackson as Mark Bingham, Opal Alladin as CeeCee Lyles, Starla Benford as Wanda Anita Green, Nancy McDoniel as Lorraine G. Bay and David Alan Basche as Todd Beamer. The real events inside the plane will never be known, but the authentic feeling aroused in United 93, from the phone calls made by the doomed passengers, is convincing, gripping, moving and dignified, a magnificent drama. It was nominated the Oscar for Best Editing, and it won the BAFTAs for Best Editing and the David Lean Award for Direction for Greengrass, and it was nominated for the Alexander Korda Award for Best British Film, Best Cinematography, Best Original Screenplay and Best Sound.

Due to Greengrass's sensitive handling of the story it is not hard to see why it won so many Awards and Nominations, he is to be praised (he only proceeded with the film once he had gained the consent of all the families of United 93, whom co-operated with his research),but his realization of the story on screen is the real triumph. His hand-held style, which is exhilarating in the Bourne series; a style he contrasts with the scenes on the ground where the chaos is viewed through a far more stable and controlled environment. The sheer lack of order and control that occurred on the ground that day with the air-traffic controllers and the federal government is brought to our eyes effectively; with some of the crucial real life figures re-enacting what happened that day.

All of this would still have been rather pointless had it not been for the power of the story being told. The courage of the passengers is incredibly powerful and a testament to the human spirit which seemed so absent that day. The final part of the film in which the passengers fight back happens is a glorious piece of cinema. Moving, chilling, haunting; it is an absolutely perfect ending to an important reminder and recording of events.

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Unfathomably powerful...a brilliant movie!

Posted : 1 year, 7 months ago on 25 May 2008 06:09 (A review of United 93)

"Tell them our time has come! Our time has come!"

It is not too soon for United 93; this powerful, brilliant and emotional drama that recounts the tragic events that occurred on that day in 2001. This film is not a Hollywood production, this film is not an action film, this film is not one that you just watch and enjoy...this film is a realistic, emotional and plausible depiction of that day. The film does not depict the terrorists as villains - there's no need to do that. Like everyone else in the movie they are people of ordinary appearance, going about their business. United 93 is incomparably more powerful because it depicts all of its characters as people trapped in an inexorable progress toward tragedy. The movie contains no politics. No theory. No personal chit-chat. No patriotic speeches. We never see the big picture.

We begin our story when the passengers of United Flight 93 board the plane, not knowing of the impending danger upon them. We travel through the stages in control towers from the beginning of the threat when the hijacking of the first plane was a mere myth - no-one believed it. Then as time moves on they watch the television as the heart-wrenching events unfold, and the hijacked planes hit the World Trade Center. When they show the footage on CNN of the second plane hitting the WTC I felt like I was back in that day again when for the first time I heard about the events. The horror and terror that struck me at that moment when I heard about the tragedy. The film flies (no pun intended) from the plane to air traffic control towers and military firms and shows the conflicting views that came in and confused the US public.

The director Greengrass has made a terrific decision to deliberately use almost complete unknowns as the part of the passengers, so instead of using a well-known actor, he uses unrecognisable ones. And that is the touch that makes the film so special. The way the film is made puts us directly in the events. The lighting, the camera angles, the depiction of the characters, the editing, the sound mix, the rare usage of music; all these assist in the allusion that we are there on that day again. And to achieve that in a film is nearly impossible, but Greengrass has done it perfectly.

Like I have already said this is not a mindless Hollywood action film. Hollywood is overzealous and unbelievable; this film is just realism and doesn't stretch the truth to make money and to make a film to watch over and over. The only other films that do this properly are mainly Spielberg films. Look at Schindler's List or Munich; they are both films like this - they tell true stories and do not exaggerate the true events of what happened. Of course what the people did aboard the plane to fight the terrorists was made up, and they had to guess what happened; but they made it plausible, extremely possible. It's not like one of those silly films when they just chuck in a few things just to make it look cool and to sell popcorn, it's one that throws out a completely plausible guess of the events aboard the plane.

Overall this is a terrific film, one that should not be missed.

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Not really a movie

Posted : 2 years, 11 months ago on 8 January 2007 10:04 (A review of United 93)

My wife and I watched 911 and walked away feeling it was less like a movie, more like a documentary. It was very hard to "enjoy" but in it's own unique way was excellent.

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