Re: United 93
 

good point, should have looked into those before... haven't seen any of em though. gritty war/political films seem to be his cup of tea then

Re: United 93
 

One thing that occurred to me is how increasingly these days the line between fact and fiction is less clear cut than it used to be - something that's really been highlighted with the way 9/11 is presented.

Personally I'm more uneasy about the emotionalising (dare I say sentimentalising) of 9/11 in factual output like documentaries and news reports than I am about it in a film that sets out with the honest upfront aim of appealing to the emotions.

News reports don't need to be dressed up, they shouldn't require mood music, soft focus, reporters trying to mimic movie voiceover artists... they just need to tell us the facts in as objective a way as possible. The huge influx of "human interest" into news and the emotionalising of every issue is, to me, far more unsavoury than the idea of making a film based on absolutely anything.

Re: United 93
 

What interests me, and what might ultimately fuel my curiosity enough to rent it perhaps, is the way that the whole situation is presented. Who are the leads? It's going to be difficult to suspend disbelief and get the same kind of visceral sympathetic response if the actors are ones that we've seen a thousand times before. How are they going to present the shift from paralyzing fear to determination to take action? How far are they willing to go to show two groups of people, one group determined to die to complete their mission, and another group reconciled to death to stop them? And finally, how will it end? What's the most respectful way to end a movie about people that we know died horribly? It's this presentation which will determine whether or not I fall into the same line of thinking as Paul. To be perfectly honest, I have no emotional reaction to the fact that this movie is being released at all. When it finally comes out, I'll probably start forming an opinion about it, but I think that the movie could swing either way. If presented correctly, this movie could be a rather beautiful memorial about ordinary people who were forced to choose between two horrible destinies.

Re: United 93
 

Bang on post. Human interest trends in news make me angry. You should see some of the "newspapers" we have here...but then you probably have them everywhere. And people prefer them.

*infinite sighs*

Re: United 93
 

From what I understand from tv and radio reviews, they deliberately chose relatively unknown actors in order to give as much the sense of "ordinary people doing something extraordinary" as they could.

As for the other questions you ask here, these are the very reasons I would like to see the movie too, I think.

Re: United 93
 

From the one review I've heard of it, the movie tends to be more like a documentary than a dramatization. Like this happened, then this, then this, then boom, the movie ends, discuss. Also, ten percent of the profits are going to the memorial fund that has been stagnated for a while. While I don't believe that'll drive anyone to the theaters, that could ease some of the anxieties people have about paying money to see it.

Re: United 93
 

Here's a good review from The Onion, that brings up a lot of points being discussed here. It sounds like it's not entirely a popcorn movie, and probably one you have to see to make up your mind about.

http://www.avclub.com/content/node/47860

Re: United 93
 

10 percent of the profits for opening day will go to the memorial fund.. after that, its all money in the bank.

Re: United 93
 

i have no interest whatsoever in seeing this. we all know what happened, we (in my local area) all know someone that was completely fucked up over this whole event, why on earth would i want to relive that horrible day even again? and moreso, why would i want to see a dramatization of the events?

the documentaries from firefighters and the likes were enough for me. this film, as documentary as it could ever hope to be, will still use guesswork and creative license to fill in the gaps between the 4 or 5 cellphone calls and cockpit recorder information that they have.

i dont mean to say that i dont think people should go see this, nor that it isnt well made, but i myself dont feel the need to see it.

Re: United 93
 

whats the point of this movie? so we never forget? i dont understand. the family members helped because its the last thing they can do for their loved ones that died aboard or in the towers. but its a wildly unnecessary film, dontcha think? i think it might be tastefully done as i cant imagine this movie would get made otherwise. but its not like F911 in any way, shape or form. F911 made allegations and drew conclusions, F93 does not and cannot. Its just gonna make people depressed and sad again, and i cant tell you how much i dont want to go back in that direction.

never forget. hell, im trying to forget this event, i dont want to be reminded of it in dramatic fashion.