#34 World Trade Center
Year: 2006
Director: Oliver Stone
MPAA Rating: PG-13
MPAA Rating: PG-13
Epic Co-stars: Michael Pena (no, that's not Yatzee), Maria Bello
Running Time: 129 minutesCage Time: 80%
Cage Kills: 0
Cage Flip-outs: 2
Skyler's Review: I must admit that it was difficult to get to writing this review, as I have been buried in work, but here goes...
Viewing this film on the 11th anniversary of the tragedy of 9/11/12 made us feel the gravity of the situation on that day. The film begins with Nicolas Cage setting the foundation of the story as a cop for the NYPD, whose face is covered with mustache. After a short scene about confusion when the towers were hit, the movie gives way to the second phase of the film: Nicolas Cage buried under piles of rubble.
Seeing Cage completely immobile and covered, completely demolishes any preconceived ideas of what that day was like for first responders. Your heart crumples as you think about all of the people that were affected. As if the screen is portraying one buried man, to show how gruesome it was for the 1000s that were trapped.
Then suddenly, any realism collapses and the plot breaks down into a fantasy story. Some marine feels the weight of the situation and decides to drive to ground zero and walk into the rubble. He then proceeds to fall directly onto the location of mustachio'd Nic Cage. It is also likely that there were hundreds of other marines that tumbled into NYC, walked into the rubble, covered some ground, and found absolutely nobody. Mentioning these marines would have broken the suspended reality, I guess, so they are ignored.
The film then breaks way to the final section of the film. The part seems to drag on, and on, and on, as your attention span crumbles into pieces. You want to collapse in your chair and fall asleep, due to the length of the film. Then you feel this crushing guilt for not being able to stay up and watch this tribute to the day the towers were not able to stay up. Why was the movie so long; why were the towers so long? In a way, that is what they director wanted: to simulate completely the feeling of being trapped and fighting to stay conscious. The only thing keeping this smash hit from completely paralleling the Twin Towers is that there isn't two of them; there is no sequel.
Movie Quotes:
Viewing this film on the 11th anniversary of the tragedy of 9/11/12 made us feel the gravity of the situation on that day. The film begins with Nicolas Cage setting the foundation of the story as a cop for the NYPD, whose face is covered with mustache. After a short scene about confusion when the towers were hit, the movie gives way to the second phase of the film: Nicolas Cage buried under piles of rubble.
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| Nicolas cage has a dirty mustache. |
Then suddenly, any realism collapses and the plot breaks down into a fantasy story. Some marine feels the weight of the situation and decides to drive to ground zero and walk into the rubble. He then proceeds to fall directly onto the location of mustachio'd Nic Cage. It is also likely that there were hundreds of other marines that tumbled into NYC, walked into the rubble, covered some ground, and found absolutely nobody. Mentioning these marines would have broken the suspended reality, I guess, so they are ignored.
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| Most of the film is in this dark underground set. |
Movie Quotes:
- "How'd it get burned? How'd it get burned? How'd it get burned? How'd it get burned?"



