There have been a number of defining moments in the world just within my lifetime alone. You know… the type that make you remember where you were when it happened. It started just a few short months after my birth with the assassination of John F. Kennedy, which admittedly I really don’t remember. Then there was the killing of the athletes in the Munich Olympics… the same Olympics I was on my way to see when I lived in Germany. Of course most of us can also remember the fates of the Space Shuttles Challenger and Columbia. And even on a smaller scale there was the death of Elvis and the murder of John Lennon. It was an average morning for me and most of the rest of the world on September 11, 2001. I work in a downtown office building, and that morning I happened to walk through our copy center and overheard some co-workers talking about an airplane having crashed into one of the World Trade Center buildings. Since it is typical of the media outlets to overreact, generally reporting the news without fact checking, I though it was some kind of exaggeration.

But then I walked into our break room and joined a group of people who had gathered around the TV and watched as smoke and flames poured out of the top of one of the towers. Then minutes later I witnessed the second plane hitting the other Tower, telling us once and for all that this was no accident.

Over the course of the next few days, the news outlets were filled with every conceivable version of the incident and it would be months before we knew the whole truth. But the one thing we learned immediately was that there are some brave souls in this world… some of whom are no longer with us. Firefighters, police and even members of the Port Authority rushed into the buildings, risking their lives for people they didn't know.

Over the past several years, 9/11 was a subject that was broached mainly in the realm of documentaries. No one dared attempt any kind of re-enactments. But perhaps enough time has passed that some of us can allow ourselves to see a dramatized version of some of the events of that day. There are currently two films about Flight 93, both of which are powerfully emotional. Earlier this year, director Oliver Stone opted to give us his vision of the day, or rather the vision of two Port Authority officers, John McLoughlin and Will Jimeno who were amongst those who went in. The two found themselves trapped under tons of rubble following the collapse of the buildings, neither knowing if they would make it out alive.

In "World Trade Center", McLoughlin is played by Nicolas Cage (who just can't seem to be in enough movies) and Jimeno by Michael Pena. We see how their rather ordinary lives started that day (much like mine) and how the events of madmen thrust them into the dangerous role of rescuers and eventually, rescuees. We re-live the events of the day through their eyes, the eyes of their wives and the countless other heroes who rose to the level of ultimate sacrifice.

Stone's film has been accused of being pretentious, preachy and clichéd, but I cannot disagree more. The dialogue at times might seem a little corny, but when faced with this kind of adversity and the possibility of imminent death, it is not unusual for people to reflect on their lives and engage in deep conversations. There was nothing wrong with the dialogue in the film and there is no reason not to make an emotional situation even more so.

I missed the film in theatres, but after watching Paramount's DVD release this week I wish I hadn't. Seeing the Towers again, or at least this representation of them reminded me of the times I visited New York and was floored by their massive size. It was also nice to see them in a film again after they were so unceremoniously (and idiotically, I might add) removed from so many films that were readying release. They should have been kept in movies that year as a proud statement of our strength and solidarity against the terrorists who took them down.

Paramount is releasing the DVD in two formats, a single disc set with few features and a two-disc set full of additional features. Fortunately I was able to check out the latter. The two-disc edition contains a commentary with Stone as well as a second with the real Will Jimeno, who is joined by some of his rescuers. The Stone track is okay, but the one with Jimeno is as emotional as it is fascinating to hear from someone who lived through the ordeal. There are also a handful of deleted scenes and extended scenes with optional commentary as well as four featurettes. "The Making of World Trade Center" is as it sounds and offers a look behind the scenes, it's not really as fulfilling as I would have liked, but it serves its purpose. "Common Sacrifice" takes a closer look at the real McLoughlin and Jimeno and how the experience has changed their lives. "Building Ground Zero" gives the viewer an opportunity to see how the production designers were able to re-create the area, while "Oliver Stone's New York" allows the director a chance to talk a bit about his life growing up in the Big Apple.

"World Trade Center" is not a movie to simply watch, the idea is to experience it. A lot of people have said it was too soon to make a movie like this, but again I disagree. No matter what we are led to believe, the solidarity we felt as a nation after the attack did not last. Flags flew on cars, people in this country were nicer to one another, and for a brief period we were citizens of the country that our forefathers imagined. Alas, it was gone even before Brittany Spears had her first child. I use this as an example because we are now collectively far more interested in the life of a no-talent celebrity than we are in the lives we are losing on a daily basis in a war being fought 'supposedly' in retaliation for an attack that is in reality unrelated. I think this is a perfect time to remind us of who we really are and who we should be.

Directed by: Oliver Stone
Starring: Nicolas Cage, Michael Pena, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Maria Bello, Stephen Dorff, Jay Hernandez, Jay Shannon
Extras: Commentary and Q&A with Director Oliver Stone, Commentary by Real-Life Rescuee Will Jimeno and Rescuers Scott Strauss, John Busching, Paddy McGee, Deleted and Extended Scenes with Optional Commentary by Oliver Stone, The Making of World Trade Center, Common Sacrifice, Building Sacrifice, Oliver Stone's New York
Specifications: Widescreen, Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound, Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround Sound
Studio: Paramount
Release Date: 12/12/2006
Region: 1
MPAA Rating: PG-13 (For Intense & Emotional Content, Some Disturbing Images & Language)
Website

We'll give World Trade Center a B+.