Oliver Stone pushes buttons.
He doesn’t tug on the heartstrings.
But that’s exactly what he does with World Trade Center.
Stone’s fact-based 9/11 tear-jerker recalls how two Port Authority cops survived being trapped under the rubble of the collapsed towers. Despite its brief but unsettling reenactment of the terrorist attack, WTC unfolds as an unusually subtle, emotional and ultimately uplifting account—by Stone’s standards, that is—of Sgt. John McLoughlin and Officer Will Jimeno’s harrowing experience. Stone also reveals how their wives grappled with the possibility that their loved ones had perished in the line of duty.
This is not the 9/11 drama anyone would expect the native New Yorker to make.
The director who willingly pointed fingers with JFK refuses to assign blame, promote a political agenda, or lend credence to the various conspiracy theories surrounding that terrible day’s events. Unlike the nerve-racking United 93, WTC mostly recreates the bloody mayhem through the ominous use of sound and shadows. That doesn’t mean Stone shies from showing death and destruction; he just chooses to be uncharacteristically restrained. And even like an obvious Stone-ism—a vision of Jesus, holding a water bottle—is based on what Jimeno says he saw during his 13-hour ordeal.
“The worse thing that I could do … is to let the character called Oliver Stone come between the audience and the film,” Stone tells The Bottom Line. “It would be a disservice to the people in the film.”
Jimeno feels Stone properly honored his fallen comrades and rescuers by ensuring WTC “is not exploitive.” His wife, Allison, praises Stone for telling “the straightforward truth.” Maggie Gyllenhaal, who likely will receive an Oscar nomination for her portrayal of a pregnant Allison Jimeno, adds that, “Our intentions were good, but Oliver was the one who insisted on.”
OK, we’ve established Stone’s motives. And Paramount deserves praise for handling WTC with great sensitivity. WTC opens Aug. 9, which is probably as close as Paramount can open the film without facing accusations of exploiting the fifth anniversary of 9/11. Having already held free preview screenings for police and firefighters, Paramount will distribute 10 percent of WTC’s first five days of ticket sales to four 9/11 charities.
Still, this doesn’t make WTC —priced at $63 million, per Stone—any less of a financial risk. WTC can’t succeed unless it convinces a war-weary nation it’s not too soon to relive 9/11.
Consider the cool reception accorded United 93.
Director Paul Greengrass’ tribute to the crew and passengers who sacrificed themselves on that ill-fated flight made just $31.4 million this past April. Sure, that’s twice as much as United 93 cost, but its underwhelming showing at the box office revealed that most Americans were reluctant to witness an excruciating detailed reconstruction of that hijacking.
So are audiences ready for an inspirational—though still painful—film about 9/11?
“I can’t tell you that,” Stone says. “I can only tell you we’d better be because the consequences of that day are far worse than what happened on that day.”
Jimeno puts forth the best argument as to why WTC will win over wary minds.
“This is telling you the good of the day,” he says.
Crash’s Michael Pena, who stars as Jimeno, echoes those sentiments: “I know it would have lifted my morale to see these two guys … eventually rescued.”
With its apolitical stance, non-confrontational approach, and stirring message of hope, WTC should succeed where United 93 failed.
WTC is not a cold, just-the-fact history lesson. It puts a human face on 9/11, and that should make it palatable to those who could not stomach the uncompromising United 93. And by wisely keeping the proceedings within the confines of PG-13 territory, Stone guarantees WTC as wide an audience as possible.
The wounds from 9/11 have not fully healed, and WTC doesn’t offer closure. But it’s certainly a cathartic experience, just as Stone’s Platoon was for many Vietnam veterans who felt alienated by their fellow Americans long after that war ended.
The Bottom Line
“If you’re not ready to see this film, don’t go see it,” Jimeno says. WTC is not easy to watch, even with Stone pulling his punches. How can it be? But Stone’s concern and compassionate shines through, and that should allow WTC to lend some comfort to those who live with the pain and agony of 9/11 daily. Only someone as heartless as Anne Coulter won’t find meaning and relief in WTC.
