World Trade Center (film)
Encyclopedia
World Trade Center is a 2006 American disaster-drama film directed by Oliver Stone
Oliver Stone
William Oliver Stone is an American film director, producer and screenwriter. Stone became well known in the late 1980s and the early 1990s for directing a series of films about the Vietnam War, for which he had previously participated as an infantry soldier. His work frequently focuses on...

 and based on the September 11 attacks at the World Trade Center
World Trade Center
The original World Trade Center was a complex with seven buildings featuring landmark twin towers in Lower Manhattan, New York City, United States. The complex opened on April 4, 1973, and was destroyed in 2001 during the September 11 attacks. The site is currently being rebuilt with five new...

. It stars Nicolas Cage
Nicolas Cage
Nicolas Cage is an American actor, producer and director, having appeared in over 60 films including Raising Arizona , The Rock , Face/Off , Gone in 60 Seconds , Adaptation , National Treasure , Ghost Rider , Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans , and...

, Maria Bello
Maria Bello
Maria Elena Bello is an American actress and singer known for her appearances in the movies Coyote Ugly, The Jane Austen Book Club, Permanent Midnight, Thank You for Smoking, A History of Violence, Payback, and The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor. For television she is known for her role as Dr...

, Michael Peña
Michael Peña
Michael Anthony Peña is an American film and television actor. He is probably best known for his roles in the films Crash, World Trade Center, Observe and Report, 30 Minutes or Less and Tower Heist...

, Maggie Gyllenhaal
Maggie Gyllenhaal
Margaret Ruth "Maggie" Gyllenhaal born November 16, 1977) is an American actress. She is the daughter of director Stephen Gyllenhaal and screenwriter Naomi Foner Gyllenhaal and the older sister of actor Jake Gyllenhaal. She made her screen debut when she began to appear in her father's films...

 and Michael Shannon
Michael Shannon (actor)
Michael Corbett Shannon is an American stage, film, and television actor. He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role in Revolutionary Road...

. The film was shot from October 19, 2005 - February 10, 2006 and released on August 9, 2006. World Trade Center is one of two films released in 2006 involving the 9/11 disaster, the other being United 93
United 93 (film)
United 93 is a 2006 fact-based historical drama film written, co-produced, and directed by Paul Greengrass that chronicles events aboard United Airlines Flight 93, which was hijacked during the September 11 attacks...

.

Plot

On September 11, 2001, Port Authority Police
Port Authority Police Department
The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey Police Department, or Port Authority Police Department , is a law enforcement agency in New York and New Jersey, the duties of which are to protect all facilities owned by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, and to enforce state and city laws...

 officers John McLoughlin
John McLoughlin (World Trade Center attack survivor)
John McLoughlin is one of two Port Authority Police Officers who survived after being trapped in the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center...

 and Will Jimeno
Will Jimeno
William J. Jimeno is a Port Authority Police officer who survived the September 11 attacks. He was buried under the rubble for a total of 13 hours, but survived, along with fellow Port Authority officer John McLoughlin....

, who are patrolling the Port Authority Bus Terminal in Midtown Manhattan, see a plane fly dangerously low overhead. As all of the police officers return to the station, they see on TV and that the North Tower of the World Trade Center
World Trade Center
The original World Trade Center was a complex with seven buildings featuring landmark twin towers in Lower Manhattan, New York City, United States. The complex opened on April 4, 1973, and was destroyed in 2001 during the September 11 attacks. The site is currently being rebuilt with five new...

 has been hit by a plane. Sergeant McLoughlin assigns many of the officers to assist in an evacuation attempt of the still undamaged South Tower and they board a commandeered Metropolitan Transit Authority
Metropolitan Transportation Authority (New York)
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority of the State of New York is a public benefit corporation responsible for public transportation in the U.S...

 bus. On the bus, they hear report
Report
A report is a textual work made with the specific intention of relaying information or recounting certain events in a widely presentable form....

s that the South Tower has also been hit.

When they arrive at the World Trade Center, they realize the extent of the disaster and see one of the first victims to jump out of the towers to certain death. The men proceed to get safety equipment and enter the concourse between the towers. The group consists of McLoughlin, Jimeno, Dominick Pezzulo
Dominick Pezzulo
Dominick A. Pezzullo was a Port Authority Police Department officer who died in the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001...

 and Antonio Rodrigues. An officer named Chris Amoroso appears to inform them of other events, such as the attack on the Pentagon and the second plane's hit on the South Tower, though the group does not accept this. As the men prepare to enter the North Tower, the buildings begin to rumble. McLoughlin realizes that the South Tower is collapsing onto them and that their only chance of survival is to run into the service elevator shaft. Chris trips and does not have time to get up. Rodrigues is unable to get to the shaft in time. McLoughlin, Jimeno and Pezzulo manage to escape the huge amounts of dust and rubble flying down from the South Tower. However, as the rubble continues to crush the elevator shaft, the three are trapped.

As the cascade of debris subsides, Pezzulo realizes he can free himself and manages to move nearer to Jimeno who, along with McLoughlin, is pinned under rubble and cannot move. Pezzulo tries but fails to shift the debris covering Jimeno's legs and is told by McLoughlin not to leave. As Pezzulo becomes optimistic that they will live, the rumbling begins again as the North Tower starts to collapse. Although Jimeno and McLoughlin are not further harmed, Pezzulo is fatally injured. After he fires a gun through a gap in the rubble to try to alert rescuers to their position, he dies.

Jimeno and McLoughlin spend hours under the rubble, in pain but exchanging personal information. McLoughlin is particularly anxious to keep Jimeno from falling asleep and Jimeno also realizes that by straining to grab a metal bar above his body, he can make a noise that rescuers might hear. Two United States Marines, Dave Karnes
Dave Karnes
David W. Karnes is a retired U.S. Marine, who with Jason Thomas located and helped rescue two police officers trapped in the rubble from the September 11, 2001 attacks at the World Trade Center.-During the 9/11 attacks:...

 and Jason Thomas
Jason Thomas
Jason Thomas is a former U.S. Marine who located and rescued people after the September 11, 2001 attacks in New York City. With David W...

, who are searching for survivors, do hear it and find the men, calling for help to dig them out.

Jimeno is rescued first, and then hours later McLoughlin is lifted out of the debris, barely alive. They are then both reunited with their distraught families at the hospital.

Cast

  • Nicolas Cage
    Nicolas Cage
    Nicolas Cage is an American actor, producer and director, having appeared in over 60 films including Raising Arizona , The Rock , Face/Off , Gone in 60 Seconds , Adaptation , National Treasure , Ghost Rider , Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans , and...

     as John McLoughlin
    John McLoughlin (World Trade Center attack survivor)
    John McLoughlin is one of two Port Authority Police Officers who survived after being trapped in the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center...

  • Maria Bello
    Maria Bello
    Maria Elena Bello is an American actress and singer known for her appearances in the movies Coyote Ugly, The Jane Austen Book Club, Permanent Midnight, Thank You for Smoking, A History of Violence, Payback, and The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor. For television she is known for her role as Dr...

     as Donna McLoughlin
  • Michael Peña
    Michael Peña
    Michael Anthony Peña is an American film and television actor. He is probably best known for his roles in the films Crash, World Trade Center, Observe and Report, 30 Minutes or Less and Tower Heist...

     as Will Jimeno
    Will Jimeno
    William J. Jimeno is a Port Authority Police officer who survived the September 11 attacks. He was buried under the rubble for a total of 13 hours, but survived, along with fellow Port Authority officer John McLoughlin....

  • Maggie Gyllenhaal
    Maggie Gyllenhaal
    Margaret Ruth "Maggie" Gyllenhaal born November 16, 1977) is an American actress. She is the daughter of director Stephen Gyllenhaal and screenwriter Naomi Foner Gyllenhaal and the older sister of actor Jake Gyllenhaal. She made her screen debut when she began to appear in her father's films...

     as Allison Jimeno
  • Michael Shannon
    Michael Shannon (actor)
    Michael Corbett Shannon is an American stage, film, and television actor. He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role in Revolutionary Road...

     as Marine Sgt. Dave Karnes
    Dave Karnes
    David W. Karnes is a retired U.S. Marine, who with Jason Thomas located and helped rescue two police officers trapped in the rubble from the September 11, 2001 attacks at the World Trade Center.-During the 9/11 attacks:...

  • William Mapother
    William Mapother
    William Reibert Mapother, Jr. is an American actor and former teacher, perhaps best known for his role as Ethan Rom on the television series Lost.-Personal life:...

     as Marine Sgt. Jason Thomas
    Jason Thomas
    Jason Thomas is a former U.S. Marine who located and rescued people after the September 11, 2001 attacks in New York City. With David W...

  • Stephen Dorff
    Stephen Dorff
    Stephen Dorff is an American actor, best known for portraying Stuart Sutcliffe in Backbeat, Johnny Marco in Somewhere, and for his roles in Blade and Cecil B. DeMented.-Early life:...

     as ESU Rescueman Scott Strauss
  • Frank Whaley
    Frank Whaley
    Frank Joseph Whaley is an American film and television actor known for his roles in independent films.-Personal life:Whaley was born in Syracuse, New York, the son of Josephine and Robert W. Whaley, Sr. He is half-Irish and half-Sicilian and grew up in Syracuse. He has two sisters and an older...

     as Paramedic
    Paramedic
    A paramedic is a healthcare professional that works in emergency medical situations. Paramedics provide advanced levels of care for medical emergencies and trauma. The majority of paramedics are based in the field in ambulances, emergency response vehicles, or in specialist mobile units such as...

     Chuck Sereika
  • Wass Stevens as Officer Pat McLoughlin
  • Armando Riesco
    Armando Riesco
    Armando Riesco is a Puerto Rican film and television actor and voice artist.-Biography:Riesco was born in Mayagüez, Puerto Rico to Cuban immigrants who resettled there. He was raised in San Juan where he attended Colegio San Ignacio de Loyola. Riesco then attended Northwestern University...

     as Officer Antonio Rodrigues
  • Jay Hernandez
    Jay Hernandez
    Javier Manuel "Jay" Hernandez, Jr. is an American actor.-Early life and career:Hernandez was born in Montebello, California, the son of Isis , a secretary and accountant, and Javier Hernandez, Sr., a mechanic. He has a younger sister, Amelia, and two older brothers, Michael and Gabriel. Hernandez...

     as Officer Dominick Pezzulo
    Dominick Pezzulo
    Dominick A. Pezzullo was a Port Authority Police Department officer who died in the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001...

  • Jon Bernthal
    Jon Bernthal
    Jonathan E. "Jon" Bernthal is an American actor, best known for his role on the AMC television series The Walking Dead.-Early life:...

     as Officer Christopher Amoroso
  • Nicholas Turturro
    Nicholas Turturro
    Nicholas Turturro, Jr. is an American film, television and prolific on-stage character actor, perhaps best known for his role as James Martinez, on NYPD Blue from 1993 to 2000.-Early life:...

     as Officer Colovito
  • Danny Nucci as Officer Giraldi
  • Ned Eisenberg
    Ned Eisenberg
    Ned Eisenberg is an American actor known for his recurring role on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit as Roger Kressler....

     as Officer Polnicki
  • Dara Coleman
    Dara Coleman
    Dara Coleman is an Irish actor. He was made famous as the redcoat sergeant defying Mel Gibson in the 2000 movie The Patriot by shouting "This is the King's highway, and I'd advise you to make way! Ready arms! By twos!"...

     as Officer Boel
  • Nick Damici as Lt. Kassimatis
  • Jude Ciccolella
    Jude Ciccolella
    Richard Jude Ciccolella , better known as Jude Ciccolella, is an American character actor.-Biography:Ciccolella graduated from Brown University, class of 1969 where he acted in student productions. He studied at Temple University with a Master of Fine Arts degree in theatre...

     as Inspector Fields
  • Arthur Nascarella as FDNY Chief at Ground Zero
  • Donna Murphy
    Donna Murphy
    Donna Murphy is an American stage, film, television actress and singer.Murphy has won two Tony Awards for Best Actress in a Musical for her roles in Passion as Fosca and in The King and I as Anna Leonowens...

     as Judy Jonas
  • Patti D'Arbanville
    Patti D'Arbanville
    Patricia "Patti" D'Arbanville is an American actress and former model.-Early life:D'Arbanville, born May 25, 1951 in New York City, New York, is the daughter of Jean , an artist, and George D'Arbanville, a bartender, and attended PS 41 on Eleventh Street...

     as Donna's friend
  • Viola Davis
    Viola Davis
    Viola Davis is an American actress.Known primarily as a stage actress, Davis won a Tony Award for Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Play and a Drama Desk Award for her role in King Hedley II . She won a Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Play for her role in the...

     as Mother in hospital
  • Will Jimeno
    Will Jimeno
    William J. Jimeno is a Port Authority Police officer who survived the September 11 attacks. He was buried under the rubble for a total of 13 hours, but survived, along with fellow Port Authority officer John McLoughlin....

     as Port Authority Police Officer

Box office

On opening weekend it made approximately $18,730,762 in the U.S. and Canada. In total, the film has made $70,278,893 at the North American Box-Office, and over $162,000,000 worldwide.

Critical response

The film received generally positive reviews from critics, with a 69% "Fresh" approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...

  and a 66% metascore at Metacritic
Metacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...

.

The producers of the film met with all of the relevant 9/11 groups before production began to inform them of the intention of the film. After its release, they and the NYPD and FDNY were very pleased with it. Former mayor Rudy Giuliani
Rudy Giuliani
Rudolph William Louis "Rudy" Giuliani KBE is an American lawyer, businessman, and politician from New York. He served as Mayor of New York City from 1994 to 2001....

, then Governor George and then Fire Commisisoner Nicholas Scopetta, as well as representatives from the NY Port Authority, were at the premiere of the film at the Ziegfeld Theatre
Ziegfeld Theatre
The Ziegfeld Theatre was a Broadway theater located at the intersection of Sixth Avenue and 54th Street in Manhattan, New York City. It was built in 1927 and, despite public protests, was razed in 1966....

 in Manhattan.

Participation of those involved

The Port Authority police officers who are played by Cage and Peña, John McLoughlin and Will Jimeno, and their wives, played by Bello and Gyllenhaal, were involved with the writing of the screenplay and the production of the film. McLoughlin and Jimeno wanted to have a movie made to honor their rescuers and comrades who died on 9/11, not for personal gain.

McLoughlin's wife Donna has said: "We got involved because we felt it needed to be done accurately. We wanted to do the right thing and I think the filmmakers wanted to do the right thing too." Both John McLoughlin
John McLoughlin (World Trade Center attack survivor)
John McLoughlin is one of two Port Authority Police Officers who survived after being trapped in the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center...

 and William Jimeno appear at the end of the film during the barbecue scene.

The real ESU (Emergency Services Unit) police from New York who are depicted in the film—Scott Strauss and Paddy McGee—were on set as technical advisers. In addition, the firemen in the film were played by real FDNY members who served on 9/11. All of them enthusiastically supported the film and its intention to accurately portray the rescue of McLoughlin and Jimeno.

Jeanette Pezzulo, the widow of Port Authority police officer Dominick Pezzulo
Dominick Pezzulo
Dominick A. Pezzullo was a Port Authority Police Department officer who died in the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001...

 (who died on 9/11 and is played by Jay Hernandez
Jay Hernandez
Javier Manuel "Jay" Hernandez, Jr. is an American actor.-Early life and career:Hernandez was born in Montebello, California, the son of Isis , a secretary and accountant, and Javier Hernandez, Sr., a mechanic. He has a younger sister, Amelia, and two older brothers, Michael and Gabriel. Hernandez...

 in this film), has expressed anger with the film, criticizing McLoughlin
John McLoughlin (World Trade Center attack survivor)
John McLoughlin is one of two Port Authority Police Officers who survived after being trapped in the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center...

 and Jimeno
Will Jimeno
William J. Jimeno is a Port Authority Police officer who survived the September 11 attacks. He was buried under the rubble for a total of 13 hours, but survived, along with fellow Port Authority officer John McLoughlin....

's participation in its production. She's quoted as saying, "My thing is: this man died for you. How do you do this to his family?" Staten Island
Staten Island
Staten Island is a borough of New York City, New York, United States, located in the southwest part of the city. Staten Island is separated from New Jersey by the Arthur Kill and the Kill Van Kull, and from the rest of New York by New York Bay...

 resident Jamie Amoroso, whose husband also died during the rescue operation, has also expressed her anger over the film and said she did "not need a movie" to tell her "what a hero" her husband was.
There were initial concerns this film would examine 9/11 conspiracy theories
9/11 conspiracy theories
9/11 conspiracy theories are theories that disagree with the widely accepted account that the September 11 attacks were perpetrated solely by al-Qaeda. These theories arose because of what proponents of the conspiracy theories believe to be inconsistencies in the official conclusions or some...

 because director Oliver Stone
Oliver Stone
William Oliver Stone is an American film director, producer and screenwriter. Stone became well known in the late 1980s and the early 1990s for directing a series of films about the Vietnam War, for which he had previously participated as an infantry soldier. His work frequently focuses on...

 is known for examining similar theories in his films (JFK
JFK (film)
JFK is a 1991 American film directed by Oliver Stone. It examines the events leading to the assassination of President John F. Kennedy and alleged subsequent cover-up, through the eyes of former New Orleans district attorney Jim Garrison .Garrison filed charges against New Orleans businessman Clay...

in particular), and some 9/11 conspiracy websites are promoting the idea that the film does contain hints of the conspiracy. Stone and the producers, and the real McLouglin and Jimeno, however, have said the film is a simple dedication to the heroism and sadness of the day with little-to-no political themes.

The film has been accused of not providing a fair portrayal of the character and motives of rescuer Dave Karnes
Dave Karnes
David W. Karnes is a retired U.S. Marine, who with Jason Thomas located and helped rescue two police officers trapped in the rubble from the September 11, 2001 attacks at the World Trade Center.-During the 9/11 attacks:...

 and paramedic Chuck Sereika. They did not participate in the making of the film and felt their roles of being the first rescuers to reach the trapped men did not receive enough screen time. Sereika began treating and extricating Jimeno a full 20 minutes before officers from the New York City Police Department
New York City Police Department
The New York City Police Department , established in 1845, is currently the largest municipal police force in the United States, with primary responsibilities in law enforcement and investigation within the five boroughs of New York City...

's Emergency Services Unit arrived.

DVD format

The Region 1 DVD was released on Tuesday, December 12, 2006 with the Region 2 release following on January 29, 2007. A special 2-disc set was also released, which includes the following bonus features:
  • Disc one
    • Commentary by Oliver Stone
    • Commentary by Will Jimeno and rescuers Scott Strauss, John Busching and Paddy McGee
    • Nine deleted/extended scenes with optional audio commentary

  • Disc two
    • The Making of World Trade Center
    • Common Sacrifices
    • Building Ground Zero
    • Visual and Special Effects
    • Oliver Stone's New York
    • Q+A with Oliver Stone
    • Theatrical Trailer
    • 5 TV Spots
    • Photo Gallery


A 3-Disc Deluxe Edition was produced exclusively for Target stores. The third disc came with "In Their Own Words," a 75 minute series of interviews, including survivors John McLoughlin
John McLoughlin (World Trade Center attack survivor)
John McLoughlin is one of two Port Authority Police Officers who survived after being trapped in the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center...

 and Will Jimeno
Will Jimeno
William J. Jimeno is a Port Authority Police officer who survived the September 11 attacks. He was buried under the rubble for a total of 13 hours, but survived, along with fellow Port Authority officer John McLoughlin....

, their spouses, and other survivors and rescuers.

Blu-ray and HD DVD versions

  • Disc one
    • Commentary by Oliver Stone
    • Commentary by Will Jimeno and rescuers Scott Strauss, John Busching and Paddy McGee
    • Nine deleted/extended scenes with optional audio commentary.

  • Disc Two
    • The Making of World Trade Center HD
    • Common Sacrifices HD
    • Building Ground Zero HD
    • Visual and Special Effects HD
    • Oliver Stone's New York HD
    • Q+A with Oliver Stone
    • Theatrical Trailer
    • 5 TV Spots
    • Photo Gallery


Although Paramount initially dropped its support of the Blu-ray format, it is now supporting Blu-ray again with HD DVD's demise. This movie re-appeared on Blu-ray in May 2008.

The 2-disc HD DVD and 2-disc Blu-ray sets have the same bonuses as the 2-disc DVD set. The Target 3-disc Deluxe Edition has more extras than any other release, including the HD DVD and Blu-ray versions.

See also

  • List of artistic depictions of September 11 and its aftermath
  • World Trade Center
    World Trade Center
    The original World Trade Center was a complex with seven buildings featuring landmark twin towers in Lower Manhattan, New York City, United States. The complex opened on April 4, 1973, and was destroyed in 2001 during the September 11 attacks. The site is currently being rebuilt with five new...

  • September 11 attacks
  • Collapse of the World Trade Center
    Collapse of the World Trade Center
    The twin towers of the World Trade Center collapsed on September 11, 2001, as a result of al-Qaeda's September 11 attacks, in which terrorists affiliated with al-Qaeda hijacked four commercial passenger jet airliners, flying one into the North Tower and another into the South Tower...

  • Will Jimeno
    Will Jimeno
    William J. Jimeno is a Port Authority Police officer who survived the September 11 attacks. He was buried under the rubble for a total of 13 hours, but survived, along with fellow Port Authority officer John McLoughlin....

  • Dave Karnes
    Dave Karnes
    David W. Karnes is a retired U.S. Marine, who with Jason Thomas located and helped rescue two police officers trapped in the rubble from the September 11, 2001 attacks at the World Trade Center.-During the 9/11 attacks:...

  • John McLoughlin
    John McLoughlin (World Trade Center attack survivor)
    John McLoughlin is one of two Port Authority Police Officers who survived after being trapped in the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center...

  • Dominick Pezzulo
    Dominick Pezzulo
    Dominick A. Pezzullo was a Port Authority Police Department officer who died in the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001...

  • Jason Thomas
    Jason Thomas
    Jason Thomas is a former U.S. Marine who located and rescued people after the September 11, 2001 attacks in New York City. With David W...

  • United 93
    United 93 (film)
    United 93 is a 2006 fact-based historical drama film written, co-produced, and directed by Paul Greengrass that chronicles events aboard United Airlines Flight 93, which was hijacked during the September 11 attacks...

  • List of firefighting films


External links

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