Sunday, May 07, 2006

Just in case you need to see what total chaos and true tragedy is: "United 93"

You know, we watch movies like "Meet the Parents" and call some scenes "painful." Or we see that part of "Swingers" when Jon Favreau's character keeps calling the girl's answering machine and tell people it's "agonizing."

We're idiots.

You're not truly uncomfortable and anguished until you've seen people do things that make your life seem tiny and meaningless. Oh, you gave a homeless guy a buck? You yelled at someone who was being mean to someone else? Feel good about yourself, do you? Now consider whether you would sacrifice yourself to save the Capitol from hijackers.

As you might guess, "United 93" is not for everyone, especially those still having trouble with 9/11. But as strange as it seems to say this, I couldn't wait to see this movie. (This is where I considered making a joke about "Snakes on a Plane" -- something about that being a more anticipated movie that takes place on a plane -- but I don't have it in me.)

While I was in New York on 9/11 -- had moved there only three days earlier -- the story of the plane that didn't reach its target has always intrigued me. As we all know, the passengers, after learning by phone that planes had hit the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, tried to take back the flight. In response, the hijackers crashed the jet into the Pennsylvania countryside, killing everyone.

The courage it took for those passengers to act ... thinking about it always puts a lump in my throat. Seriously, we'll never know for sure what happened on that flight, but the outcome strongly suggests that at least a few people knew they had to do something, and then were brave enough to actually do it.

That's what director Paul Greengrass thinks, and he does an amazing job making "United 93" seem like an accurate account all the way through. Like I said, some stuff we know -- what happened to the plane, what happened in New York and Washington, what happened in various air traffic control and military offices. But beyond the accounts from those who spoke with Flight 93 passengers before the crash, we can't know what happened in the air. You wouldn't know it from this movie, though, in which the handheld cameras and lack of big-name actors give it a distinct documentary feel.

Those handheld close-ups misfired in "The Bourne Supremacy," but they were perfect for "Bloody Sunday." "United 93" is essentially the same kind of movie -- different perspectives of various parties as they head toward a tragic end. In "Sunday," you saw the buildup to a fatal riot. Here, it's the few hours leading up to Flight 93's crash. What's great is that we see everyone, from the hijackers to the flight crew to the passengers to the air traffic controllers to the military. Nobody is the lead; it's an ensemble cast in its truest form.

Helping this greatly is that lack of famous faces. Indeed, some guys are playing their real-life roles, most notably head air traffic guy Ben Sliney and military honcho James Fox. (They're pretty good, too.) On the flight itself, we get nobody I can recall seeing anywhere, and no one passenger or crew member ever becomes the center of attention. It really is quite an impressive accomplishment by both the director and the actors.

Those actors also do a good job showing the gravity of the situation. One character in particular, Mark Bingham, especially seems to represent what these people are facing. They know they have to act, but they almost certainly are going to die. Good lord ... how do you psyche yourself up for that? No wonder he was pacing and punching walls in the back galley before the counterattack.

I'm starting to ramble here -- starting? -- but just believe me that this is an incredibly well-made movie that, while hard to watch, is sensitive and appropriate. The hijackers are part of the story, but there are no excuses for their actions, just the basic point of view that they're carrying out a mission. The confusion in air traffic control offices and military command centers is captured, but nobody is blamed; this simply is something that few if anyone could have conceived, and it happened so quickly.

Finally, the chaos on Flight 93 before it crashed is vividly portrayed -- the cramped quarters, the crush of people rushing the hijackers, the assault on the cockpit. But again, there is no one hero, nor are there any scenes that some might call emotionally manipulative, i.e. voices of loved ones on the other end of phones, or -- and this is important -- post-crash wreckage. The movie ends when the flight ends. The passengers' heroism, however, will live on.

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