It’s amazing how exactly I can remember details about what I was doing on September 11th. The one thing I can recall with the most clarity, however, isn’t a particular event, it’s a recurring theme. I remember all of the confusion about what was happening. When the North Tower was hit, nobody had a clue what had happened. Some news sources said it was a small prop plane, others said it was a large commuter plane. Some were already calling it a terrorist attack and others were calling it an accident. Then the second tower got hit and everyone got on the same page. Definite terrorist attack. Then the pentagon was hit and the confusion started again. Some said missles. Others said plane. Others said explosion. Then flight 93 went down in the field in Pennsylvania. Then the south tower collapsed. Then the north tower. Boom Boom Boom. Then World Trade Center 7 collapsed. Reports started coming out about fires breaking out uncontrolled all over Washington D.C. Then someone on CNN reported that the CDC in Atlanta had been hit. Lots of different people on the news just started reporting whatever unsubstantiated rumors came into them. And I recall, very clearly, how frustrating it was to not be able to know exactly what the hell was going on.
World Trade Center brought back to me the most painful parts of that day. And you should really see it only if you think you’re ready to go through that again.
For me it was the confusion. For others it will be the way it came out of nowhere. A still larger majority are going to get waylayed by the endless walls of missing posters. The way the dust and smoke made everyone look like ghosts. Everyone, no matter how hard hearted, is going to get suckerpunched in some way by how accurately World Trade Center conveys the emotions of that day.
The movie follows two Port Authority police officers (William Jimeno and John McLoughlin) as they get up and go to work in the early morning hours of September 11th. They get their showers and drive into Manhattan from New Jersey. They go through their normal routine as they get handed their daily duties. They go out and start patrolling their normal routes. Officer Jimeno rousts his favorite bum from Jackie Gleason’s statue. It’s in these early scenes that the movie does an amazing job of reminding you how no was prepared for what was about to happen. How even when it does happen no-one expects what happens next or what happens after that. No-one was capable of comprehending just how bad things were going to get.
When the north tower is hit all of the Port Authority officers are recalled to the station to prepare for rescue attempts. It’s truly depressing to see these men prepare for their rescue attempt. Not only because we know that they aren’t going to make it, but because their plan would never have succeeded anyway. It’s so disheartening to see these men put their blind faith in their Sergeant (Mcloughlin) because he came up with the plan for evacuations after the ‘93 attacks. And even though he truly did know more about the buildings than almost anyone else save the architects, it would never have been enough. It’s very disturbing to see how the best and most capable men we had, the ones who were the MOST prepared, were basically slaughtered.
I could go on like this for page after page but I think you get the idea. This is not a lite afternoon at the movies and it requires a heavy emotional investment out of you. I still don’t know if I’m glad I sat through it or not. Because even though we’ve had time to let our wounds heal, those wounds were very deep and very sore when they were created. Alot of people have just now got them bandaged up. It’s up to you to decide if you’re ready to tear all of those injuries open again.
9/10
