rmick

Anyone know any good articles or blogs discussing the controversy over this film? After the news coverage today about the trailer being pulled, I had a heated discussion with my mother and grandmother over dinner, and just want to read up on anything and everything about this. Verification that the families have approved of the film, donations from the box office, the debate about whether this is too soon or not for a film about 9/11, etc.

I guess I'll throw my two cents in. Having only read about Bloody Sunday, I still have to assume that Greengrass knows what he's doing, and this won't be an exploitative overly heroic action movie, but instead a thoughtful portrayal of what might have happened. Dragging Loose Change into the debate about the film just seems unnecesary. If you really buy Loose Change, which some of it was pretty convincing, then Flight 93 either didn't happen, or simply disappeared. Personally, it's not too soon for me for a film like this. Maybe my expectations of the intelligence of the film are too high, but I think that it could spark interesting discussion about 9/11 rather than result in flag waving furor against our enemies.

SeekOnce

To the people who say that it's not too soon for this movie to be released, I'm curious to know if you've seen the trailer on the big screen. Seriously, it was a whole different experience watching it in a theatre full of people. And when it was over, I thought there was no fuckin' way that I was going to see this movie.

Pointyskull

Same here. That trailer just brought tears to my eyes again thinking about that day, and the thought of plunking down $8 to watch a dramatization just isn't going to happen for me.

It's not like I really need to be "reminded" of it.

raven56706

well..... i am curious to see this movie. i think that it will show on a national side the way these people fought.....and with the consent of the families of the victims of the crash, i am ok with it....

that was the only obstacle i see..... if the families didnt want the movie then why support it.... but they were ok......

toddly6666

United 93 and World Trade Center are both totally tasteless for being made so soon. If anything the movies should be about the screw-up of the govt or the secrets of the govt. It's totally depressing, cheesy, scummy and tasteless to make a movie about the "heroes" or the "victims" so soon. It's as bad as those USA military commercials before movies in the theater or on tv, emphasizing the "respect, honor, and being heroes" aspect of joining. It's fucking sick and totally brainwashing. These movies are at the same level of this mass "hero crap" talk

The Bus

Any interest I have in seeing the film is to see how they handle the material and what is the popular response to this. Actually seeing the film for its subject matter, storyline, or any of its own merits outside of social impact is incomprehensible to me.

Mad Dawg

We get it. The calls from the "victims" were faked (a conclusion based on flimsy science and laughable conjecture). The "heroes" are on a desert island somewhere or something offensive and insulting (one of the things your favorite movie doesn't bother explaining). It's all a sham. We shouldn't believe the official accounts that we are spoonfed by the media and government. Rather, we should believe the "evidence" that we are being spoonfed by crap like Loose Change.

And I'm sure that there are plenty of us that would be happy to debate that "important" film in one of the existing threads that is actually about it.

The fact is that what we know of this movie and its content is limited, and the Stone movie even moreso, so it's probably a little early to make statements about how sick or brainwashing they are. Everything is based upon a 2:30 trailer, and that doesn't show very much. Too soon? That's debateable, and I think it may be too soon for many of us. Making money off a tragedy, possibly so. But whether or not this film is shameless propaganda or a thoughtful telling of a painful chapter in the country's history remains to be seen.

Mordred

While watching the trailer gave me chills, I'm still on the fence about this one. It doesn't feel quite right to be making it this soon, but I think I may want to see it. I know the familes approved, and that should probably be good enough for me, but I'm not sure it is.

My wife just about flipped out though. I've never seen her (anyone) get so pissed off at a trailer before. I'm guessing she's not alone though by some of the responses in this thread (the non crazy people responses).

JayDerek

10, 20, 50 years from now people would be crying 'too soon! too soon!'

This is being supported by the families, so in my mind, i'm OK with this.

~jason

inri222

If you think this movie is too soon :

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0035298/

Secret Agent of Japan (1942)

THe movie went into production the night of 8 December 1941, one day after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. 20th-Century/Fox head Darryl Zanuck wanted his studio to be the first to deal with the Japanese sneak attack on film. Within a matter of weeks, the film was in theaters where it became a box office smash, much to the dismay of critics.

RockStrongo

Yeah, im kinda pissed at this...BFD that Universal is giving 10% of the money to charity...they should give all the profit to charity!

No business should be making money like that. It just doesnt seem right. It reminds me of the street peddlers out by ground zero selling their 9/11 books with photos and such...profiting off the tragedy.

awmurray

I don't think it is too soon. I think some people do need to be reminded of exactly what happened.

The real clincher is that the families are on board with it... I heard the widow of one of the pilots of one of the planes (I believe it was flight 93) say that she won't be able to watch it because it shows the graphic murder of the flight crew. But she thought it needed to be seen because there are people who need to remember.

Then there are the people who think the whole thing was a conspiracy (heard Martin Sheen saying that for example )...

Groucho

I think it's Charlie Sheen who's going around spouting conspiracy theories.

Ginwen

They showed the trailer at a movie I saw last weekend. I didn't like seeing the trailer (looked away mostly), and would not see the movie.

If footage of the planes hitting comes on the TV, I always change it. I just don't need to see that ever again.

So it's way too soon for me.

clemente

Maybe I'm heartless, but September 11th didn't affect me in the least. It was a tragedy, but aside from some extra security at the airport, its had no effect on my life.

Will I watch this movie, no. As a movie, its doesn't seem that compelling and in the most crass thing I will say...I know how it ends.

Artman

I think the film looks good, not sure if I'll catch it in theaters but certainly on DVD. I think it'd work best at a short length of 90 minutes...hopefully that'll be the case.

awmurray

You must have hated Titanic .

RUSF18

A massive, coordinated attack on Americans, on American soil, didn't affect you? Yep, you're heartless.

david12

Bloody Sunday was really stark and emotional for me and I knew little about that history. Very much like Saving Private Ryan in the way that the violence isn't styalized, but lifelike and real. You know what is going to happen. You know that half the people you have grown to love while watching the first half of the film are going to die. You know it will be painful to watch. But we watch it anyways, and in the case of Bloody Sunday it felt like a real wakeup call for me to at least open my eyes to some other things that are happening around the world.

After 9/11 everyone said they loved each other more, said that they were changed forever, and that nothing would be the same. But I don't see any of that anymore. People put their flags away, returned to their old ways and I personally don't think much truly changed for most Americans. 9/11 stories don't really mean anything more than telling people where you were when it happened.

So to me, saying it is to early is like saying that you never forgot and that it is constantly on your mind. And for most people, except for people personally affected, I don't think that is true. I read some of these quotes from people who watched the trailer and made comments. Things like "I didn't expect it to be there and I hated it...I've tried so hard to forget." Why forget? If it affected us so much, why would we want to put it out of our minds. However painful.

And while I don't intend on seeing it in the theater (rarely see anything there) I believe that what we are seeing in the trailer and what the film is going to be are completly different. I believe the director will approach it like Bloody Sunday...i.e. a docudrama. Told as though it is real. People will get stabbed, murdered, etc and it will be very 'real' That is what I truly don't think most people are ready for. But Private Ryan made 200+ so who knows.
W

Eric D.

I don't really see the point in this film being made. It's not like people are unaware of what happened that day, or need to be reminded of it. Watching all the 9/11 footage on tv as it happened was more then enough for me. I don't need to see any big screen dramatizations of stuff that I wish I could forget.

ivelostr2

Discover or Scientific American did one one as well...

toddly6666

According to the press,
The widows of two Port Authority Police officers killed on 9/11 are angry that director oliver stone is making a movie about their husbands deaths and that two officers who survived are making money off the film. Two of the widows Jamie Amoroso and Jeannette Pezzulo are angry with Paramount Pictures, saying they don't want their children to see how their fathers died and to share the last seconds of their husbands lives with millions of moviegoers.

I have a feeling that a lot of family members involved feel the same way. Just because a couple families give the okay to make UNITED 93 or WORLD TRADE CENTER, does not make it okay to be made. It's sick and it will make money for producers and film investers.

mrgerbik

debunk the debunkers...

Just one of the many sites doing so:
http://911review.com/pm/markup/index.html

(If you can go through that whole PM article, as I have, then you can read through this one as well)

...

Ok, yes I am trolling.
But no, I am not a loony "conspriacy theroist", or someone "pushing an agenda".
Nor am I aligned with any particular political party, "left" or "right".
Let me say I am someone who is deeply concerned with the offical account of that horrible day.
The deaths of all those innocent people need proper justice. Because on that day, there were just too many coincidences, improbable events and connections that trying to ignore the glaring holes in the official conspiracy theroy (because the offical line is just that - an attack perpetated by Al Queda which hasnt been proven - hence a conspiracy theory), that trying to ignore them all is a exercise in futility.

Anyways, not to take any more of your good peoples time, I would strongly suggest any of you with any doubts about that day take a look at the growing body of evidence that keeps mounting.

a good start:
http://www.911review.com/

zekeburger1979

James Berardinelli's Review of United 93

I know Jeff Wells at Hollywood Elsewhere has raved about it.

Ebert and Roeper gave it 2 big thumbs way up on their last show. Roeper called it the best movie so far this year.

I'll probably see it Friday afternoon or evening. I'm looking forward to seeing how Paul Greengrass handles the subject matter. What I'm not looking forward to is the emotional impact.

I agree with you there. It was more of a temporary interruption than a catalystimic change to their lives.

silentbob007

I still don't really want to see this film, but given the reviews, I might end up going ... I'll probably give it a few weeks, however.