So it had been a few days since I had seen The Descent so I needed to see some quality filmmaking. Oliver Stone is a good movie guy and the reviews for World Trade Center were pretty good. So I ventured to the movies by myself (not a good movie to go, “Hey wanna go see World Trade Center?”

I also brought a turkey sandwich and green tea with me because I did not feel like WTC was a “popcorn movie.”

The first half of the film was very tough to watch, knowing what happens. It was pretty scary to see it collapse from the inside, but I thought the direction was pretty tasteful. The second half of the film is what bothered me. And once again, in a summer of DaVinci Code, the scariest person for me in this film was not a terrorist. It was a Catholic (so he appeared – though he may have just been Christian).

There is a dude who goes to Ground Zero (apparently the guy who discovered Nicholas Cage and William Pena’s real-life counterparts) because he believed it was his God-driven mission. Now he may be right – and how can he be proven wrong, after all, he did discover 2 of the last 3 survivors of 9/11 at the World Trade Center. Sort of like telling John Brown, who believed himself to be an avenging angel from God, that he was wrong, even though he helped begin the end of slavery in America. But still the portrayal of my fellow Catholic was too spooky and here are some of the reasons:

1) He looks like the lead singer of 3 Doors Down

2) He dresses up in Marine gear.

3) He doesn’t let anyone refer to him by his name, without his title, even though he is not in active duty.

4) He never smiles, even when he finds survivors.

5) He fought 2 tours of duty in Iraq after 9/11, even though they didn’t attack us on 9/11. Ooops.

The most moving part of the movie I thought was seeing the hundreds of workers helping the two guys out of the rubble. Nicholas Cage gives his best performance since Kiss of Death (phenomenal from 1994) and the movie is pretty good overall (B+). I am just tired of every critic calling the movie great. It was not great.

It is as if the movie critics have been taken over by politicians as well. Like if you criticize a film about 9/11, you criticize America and as a result you DON’T SUPPORT THE TROOPS. Well, go see it, but it is not great, it is just good.

Besides the best picture of the year will be Babel (based on previews).