World Trade Center

World Trade Center (2006) starring Nicolas Cage, Michael Pena, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Maria Bello. Directed by Oliver Stone. Tightly focused film looks at 9/11 from the point of view of two Port Authority police (Cage and Pena) who are trapped under tons of rubble when Building 5 collapses. Gyllenhaal and Bello provide the counterpoint as the men's wives, who agonize over whether their husbands will come home alive or not. Although calling the movie World Trade Center seems a bit grandiose to me, the film still succeeds in its main story-telling task, and the viewer does find him/herself caring about the people involved. The movie has the virtue of being based on the true story of two port-authority cops, John McLoughlin and Will Jimeno. (Subtitles for the hard of hearing are available, as well as closed captions.) Grade: B