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Tragedy on board flight 93
UNITED 93 - Directed by Paul Greengrass
Certificate 15
CLEARLY this is not an easy topic to make a film about. And having to side step the collective grief of a nation has left director Paul Greengrass with little scope for manoeuvre.
But this adds to this story of one of the hijacked planes on September 11. It describes the events on the flight which was heading for the White House but whose passengers managed to force it down in a field in Pennsylvania.
Greengrass’s film credentials show he is not afraid of making films about tragedy, they include the memorable Bloody Sunday and the made-for-TV documentary, The Murder Of Stephen Lawrence.
Greengreass uses his documentary making skills to tackle the story of Flight 93, and the result is a frightening but watchable story.
This film does not rely on the claustrophobic footage of those on the flight coming to terms with their situation and then working out how best to deal with it – although the tension and chaos on board are detailed. It works well because we are shown how 9/11 started off as an ordinary day. We are given a view of passengers and crew arriving at the airport. We are transported through the mundanity of the check-in, of the ground staff clocking in.
The hi-jackers are shown as ordinary looking people, saying their morning prayers. But perhaps the best aspect of Greengrass’s film is how he doesn’t look for answers. His camera films in the cold light of day, avoiding clichés about heroism or evil deeds – and the result is a painfully truthful look at a day which is remembered by all, and is a fitting tribute to those who perished on the doomed flight.
Under Greengrass’s careful direction the political questions are left well behind, and the human tragedy is brought home with a force that is hard to forget. |
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