Sargeant John McLoughlin and William J. Jimeno were two officers assigned to New York City's Port Authority who were working their beats on a quiet day in early fall when they received an emergency call. The day was September 11, 2001, and McLoughlin and Jimeno were among the policemen who attempted to evacuate the World Trade Center towers after they were struck by airliners piloted by terrorists. Both McLoughlin and Jimeno were inside the fifth building of the World Trade Center when the towers fell, and were two of the last people found alive amidst the wreckage. As McLoughlin and Jimeno struggled to hold on to their lives as rescuers sifted through the rubble, their spouses - Donna McLoughlin and Allison Jimeno - clung to the desperate hope that their husbands would survive and be found. As the McLoughlin and Jimeno families waited for word on the fate of the two men, they watched as a city and a nation came together with strength and compassion in the face of a tragedy.
This is a very difficult film to watch, but it is also an excellent piece of work. When the real events happened, I watched all the news reports along with everyone else in disbelief. It was such a horrific act that it was tough to comprehend what exactly happened. Maybe it's a coping mechanism, but my mind couldn't wrap around the fact that over 2,700 people died that day in New York. This film does a nice job of taking a bite size chunk of that day to make it more comprehensible. In a way, it was almost tougher to watch the movie than the real thing because the movie only focused on a couple of families instead of the overall tragedy. This made it very personal as you saw each family member dealing with the potential loss of a loved one in their own way. It also highlighted the rescue workers who put their lives on the line to save others from the aftermath. This is not an enjoyable film to watch, but it makes it easy to put life's little hiccups into perspective.
Rating: 4 of 5 stars
Would I watch it again: No
Starring: Nicolas Cage, Michael Pena, Maria Bello, Maggie Gyllenhaal
I typically watch movies on Monday, Wednesday and Friday while riding the ACE Train from Tracy to Santa Clara. The opinions expressed are those of me, myself and I.
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1 comment:
This one was certainly a different view of the events on 9/11. And although a good movie, this one was certainly difficult to watch.
With that said, I would express that "United 93" was better. This one dug further into the lives of just a few men in the tragedy, but I was more a fan of the overall coverage of United 93. Maybe the fact that United 93 didn't get so personal with the characters made it easier to digest.
World Trade Center really does a good job of covering a very difficult and touchy event. Good job!
Rating: 3.5 of 5.
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