South Boston Online has never combined a film review with an editorial, but there are always exceptions to any rule, especially informal rules.  We believe there are several reasons that “United 93” is a must-see (!) movie.

      The first is the quality of “United 93”.  It is nothing short of a four-star film.  The screenplay flows seamlessly from the opening shot of the hijackers at prayer until the desperate endgame played by the passengers, after they realize that they are doomed.  We all know what happened on United 93 that sunny September 11, yet the suspense as the film unfolds is gripping to the point of being unbearable.

     Paul Greenglass is both the director and the screenwriter of “United 93”.  “Bloody Sunday” is among his prior film credits, but “United 93” exceeds anything Greenglass has ever done in the past.  The dialogue among the air traffic controllers (many of the controllers are played by themselves) as the morning of September 11 progresses is so real that it’s uncanny.  The action scenes within the fuselage of the aircraft are among the best ever filmed.  The final, poignant telephone calls from the airplane are heartbreaking. 

     Cinematographer Barry Ackroyd catches scenes through the heat-distorting exhausts of the jet planes on Logan Airport’s runways.  The lighting in the air control towers is surreal – almost dreamlike – and the interior shots of United 93 are perfect.  The music by John Powell and the performances by the relatively unknown cast are flawless.

     But there are other reasons to see “United 93”.  The four hijackers are just one tiny part of the enemies arrayed against America.  We realize that may sound exaggerated to our readers, but it is unfortunately the truth.

     Furthermore, the hijackers were firmly convinced that they were right.  They prayed at the beginning of the film, and invoked the name of their God at its end.  Powerful stuff, indeed!  We can only assume that there are many, many more terrorists out there, who believe in sacrificing their lives for the sake of their “cause”.

     Watch “United 93” and witness the inability of our government agencies to act.  No one could get a grip on things.  No one was minding the store.  That included the military.  Three years later, Hurricane Katrina only confirmed that we citizens are caught in bureaucratic incompetence at city, state, and federal levels.  As voters, we must make our displeasure felt.  Perhaps “United 93” will shame officials at all levels of government – we are not prepared, even now.

     Another reason for seeing “United 93” is to keep the memory of 9/11 fresh.  We must not forget it.  It was the greatest single war disaster ever inflicted upon the U.S. since the Battle of Antietam in the Civil War.  And that one we did to ourselves.

     Perhaps the most important reason for seeing “United 93” is to commemorate the passengers.  Despite gut-wrenching fear and an ultimate loss of hope when they figured out what was happening, they rose to the occasion.  In a transcendent act of bravery, they succeeded in thwarting the plans of the hijackers – the hijackers who believed that their American captives were too soft to act.  We should be proud if what they did.

     By contrast, we now complain of increased security at airports, arenas, and other places of assembly, because it’s inconvenient.  Some of us, especially in the media, are complaining about having our phone calls monitored.  Well, go see “United 93” and get a life.

     One final recommendation:  when “United 93” comes out as a DVD, buy it or rent it, and then show it to your family and friends every year on September 11 – starting this coming September.