World Trade Center (www.the-usher.com)

"There no plan for something like this"

It was just like any other Tuesday morning for the Port Authority Police Department. Sgt. John McLoughlin (Cage) takes role call and issues assignments for September 11th, 2001. As the morning shift starts reports start to come in of a plane hitting one of the twin towers of the World Trade Center. With all of the Port Authority officers recalled and assigned to help with the evacuation but as they start work on the concourse in building five, the first tower starts to collapse and Sgt. McLoughlin and the rest of his men become trapped under the rubble.

Five years after the events that changed the world on September 11th, Hollywood sees this as the right amount of time to wait before producing a movie but is it?

Director Oliver Stone has never been a director that has shied away from controversy but by taking on the first big budget Hollywood movie to tackle the terrorist attack on New York might even be a little too far for even him. Any film covering this subject is bound to cause far to many painful memories for those who lost loved ones on that terrible day, so if you are going to release a movie about what happened on that day you have to approach it with the utmost respect and compassion. The good news is that Oliver Stone and his production team have produced a movie that does just that.

It would have been so easy for this movie to be overly patriotic, sentimental and interjected with flag waving moments that justified the 'War on Terror' retaliation. Instead the film concentrates on the human story of that tragic day. The film follows a group of Port Authority police officers as they enter the World Trade Center to help in the evacuation. After the towers collapse it becomes a story of survival and courage as Sgt. John McLoughlin and Officer Will Jimeno struggle to stay alive as hope starts to disappear.

By concentrating on these two men's fight to stay alive, the film moves away from dramatising the terrorist act itself, the US and international reaction and any depiction of Osama Bin Laden or al-Qaeda. It is the story of how the people of New York came together and overcame this terrible atrocity that is the heart beat of this movie. Everything is put aside as the rescue and armed forces come together to try and find the thousands of people trapped in the rubble after the towers fell. It is this that makes the movie so moving and fills you with hope because the good that came out of such a horrific act of evil. Watching real stories of courage and people risking their lives for perfect strangers will make you realise what is best about human kind, even in the wake of such evil.

Bringing this important story to the silver screen are some exceptional and respectful performances. Nicolas Cage is an actor who can be either totally enthralling or completely annoying. For every 'Leaving Las Vegas' you have a 'Wicker Man' but this is one of his better performances. As Sgt. John McLoughlin, he provides one of his most restrained performances to date, capturing this career police officer perfectly. After appearing on the small screen in some huge shows, Michael Pena's major break came with his exceptional performance in the Oscar winning 'Crash'. As Will Jimeno he plays the rookie Port Authority police officer with great gusto and the utmost respect.

The story is not just about the officers however, we also see how this affected the families of the two men. The always-excellent Maria Bello plays Donna McLoughlin and the brilliant Maggie Gyllenhaal plays Allison Jimeno. Both of these actresses portray the stress and emotion that any of us would go through if any of our loved ones where caught up in a situation like this. There is one problem however. For some reason Mario Bello wears blue contact lenses to portray the sergeants wife but they make her look very strange, distracting from her excellent performance. There are also some good supporting performances from Michael Shannon, Stephen Dorff, Frank Whaley and Jay Hernandez.

'World Trade Center' might be a little too soon for some but this is a movie that treats the tragic events of September 11th, 2001 with the utmost respect. By consentrating on the story of the two trapped police officers, Oliver Stone and his creative team have produced a story of courage and everything is positive about the human spirit.

PICTURE & SOUND

Presented in Anamorphic Widescreen 2.35:1 with Dolby Digital 5.1, the presentation is good.

BONUS FEATURES

Disc 1

Commentary by director Oliver Stone
The acclaimed director takes about passionately about telling a human story of courage during a day of tragedy. He talks about the film's approach and getting Will Jimeno and John McLoughlin involved with the development of the script to make it as realistic and as honest as possible. He also talks about the amount of respect they gave the survivors and the people of New York. As always Oliver Stone provides an excellent commentary about a film he feels very passionate about.

Commentary by Will Jimeno, Scott Strauss, John Busching and Roddy McGee
The survivors and rescue workers from 9/11 talk about the movie and reliving that day for the film. The group talk about how it felt arriving on the scene and how knew it was different from the previous attack on the World Trade Center in 1993. They talk about how emotional it was to revisit that day in the minds during the development of the script and while watching the movie. This is an extremely good commentary and an emotional and powerful accompliment to the movie.

Deleted and Extended Scenes (17.34 mins)
Entitled 'Extended locker room', 'Extended roll call', 'Concerned business woman', 'Fireman Johnny', 'Original hole 2 though', 'Alison making lunch', 'Judy gets word Jay is Ok', 'John's ghost', 'Barbeque flashback' and 'Paramedic tends to John', these deleted and extended scenes are accompanied by commentary from director Oliver Stone.

Trailers
Previews of 'Dream Girls', 'Babel', 'The Last Kiss', 'The Inconvenient Truth' and 'Reds'

Disc 2

The Making of World Trade Center (53.37 mins)
Director Oliver Stone, producers Stacey Sher, Moritz Borman and Michael Shamberg, director of photography Seamus McGarvey, executive producer Donald J. Lee Jr., stars Nicolas Cage, Michael Pe�a, Maria Bello, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Jay Hernandez, real life World Trade Center survivors and family members John and Debra McLoughlin and Will and Allison Jimeno and NYPD ESU Scott Strauss, take you behind the scenes of the making of 'World Trade Center'. Here we discover how they approached such a sensitive issue and how they wanted to tell a survivor's story and not one of terrorism or politics. They talk about the book on which the story was based and the inclusion of John McLoughlin and Will Jimeno in the development process. We also learn more about the casting, recreating that dreadful day, shooting in New York and working with the Port Authority. This is an excellent behind the scenes featurette that tells you everything you need to know about the movie.

Common Sacrifice (54.43 mins)
John McLoughlin and Will Jimeno are joined by family members, colleagues and rescue workers to talk about September 11th 2001. This emotional documentary allows the two courageous survivors to tell the story in their own words, as we discover how it felt for them, their family and the people who knew them and worked with them. We also discover details of their recovery from their injuries and what has happened since that fateful day.

Building Ground Zero (25.09 mins)
Production designer Jan Roelfs, art director Richard R. Johnson and previsualization supervisor Ron Frankel reveal how the hole and the enormity of Ground Zero were recreated as a set in Los Angeles.

Visual and Special Effects (12.09 mins)
Visual effects supervisor John Scheele, previsualization supervisor Ron Frankel and special effect supervisor Gary D'Amico reveal how New York was recreated before, during and after the attack on September 11th. Here we discover how the Ground Zero set was extended, the Towers were recreated and how the concourse collapsed.

Oliver Stone's New York (24.42 mins)
The director takes you on a tour of his favourite places in the city of his birth and talks passionately about how it has changed dramatically for the better since he grew up there. This is a nostalgic trip for Oliver Stone but it is one that he relishes and wants to share.

Q&A Oliver Stone
As part of the BAFTA David Lean lecture series, host Mark Kermode talks to the director about 'World Trade Center'. Questions include asking him about the role of the movie as a healing force, the positives and negatives from the film, the decision not to confront the politics, his vision and its place in movie and social history. Theatrical

Trailer and TV Spots
Watch the promotional trailer for 'World Trade Center'

Photo Gallery
View behind the scenes images and publicity shots from the movie

OVERALL

Paramount has done an outstanding job with his special commemorative edition of 'World Trade Center'. The commentaries are exceptional good and the documentaries are both informative and emotional, cover every aspect of the story, the production of the movie and the people involved. This is fine example of how a DVD should be put together and one of respect to the people who last their lives on September 11th, 2001.

DVD

United 93

The Usher Home | Hush, Hush... | The Big Story | The Usher Speaks

Stuck @ Home | Coming Soon | Links | Contact the Usher

2006