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 WORLD TRADE CENTER
(2-DISC COLLECTOR'S EDITION) |
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| Featuring: Nicolas Cage, Maria Bello, Michael Peņa, Jay Hernandez |
| Director: Oliver Stone |
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Studio: Paramount |
| DVD release: 03 June 2008 |
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Runtime: 128 minutes (2 discs) |
| Format: AC-3, Color, Dolby, Special Edition, Subtitled, Widescreen, Blu-ray |
| DVD features: Audio tracks (Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround - English, French, Spanish), Subtitles (English, French, Spanish), 1080p/MPEG-2, Commentaries (director Oliver Stone; survivors Will Jimeno, Scott Strauss, John Busching and Paddy McGee), Deleted/extended scenes, The Making of World Trade Center, Common Sacrifices, Bulding Ground Zero, Visual and special effects, Oliver Stone's New York, Q & A with Oliver Stone |
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With almost any Oliver Stone movie, you know some sort controversy will be attached to it, and World Trade Center is no exception. There are so many factors involved with this movie that you could go on ad infinitum. But the biggest question is: Is it the appropriate time to make a movie a mere five years after the 9/11 tragedy? After Paul Greengrass's United 93 , it seemed like Hollywood was ready whether the public outcry was there or not. The knee-jerk reaction for Oliver Stone making the film would be a political conspiracy angle a la JFK . Instead, whether it was good, bad, or indifferent, Stone took a more sentimental approach with his thematic vision: in the face of adversity, tragedy, and evil, the human spirit is capable of much good.
The story centers on Port Authority Police Officer Will Jimeno (Michael Pena) and John McLoughlin (Nicolas Cage), who, amid the confusion and chaos of lower Manhattan that day, go into the buildings to save whomever they can. Ultimately, they - and the other men in their unit - are caught in the collapse of buildings one and two, where the story shifts to their rescue. Obviously, it is difficult to
compress twenty-four hours into a two-hour movie that tells a story with a specific arc, but Stone does a decent enough job of condensing time and characters.
Politics aside, World Trade Center probably won't be considered the definitive, all-encompassing theatrical story of 9/11, but it doesn't try to be. Its intention (flaws and all) is to pay tribute to the courage and sacrifices people made on that day. The film works as a gripping, emotional drama that brings a tear to your eye. The musical score is extremely effective and the CGI amazingly realistic. The DVD is light on extras: extended/deleted scenes and two commentaries, one from director Oliver Stone and the other with Will Jimeno and rescuers Scott Strauss, John Busching, and Paddy McGee, which is worth the price of the DVD alone - their personal insights are tremendous. A worthy effort from Oliver Stone (with his first PG-13 rated film) who is best known for his intense filmmaking style in movies like Platoon , Born on the Fourth of July , Natural Born Killers , and JFK.
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