World Trade Center (2006)

Paramount Pictures presents an Oliver Stone film, starring Nicolas Cage, Maria Bello and Maggie Gyllenhaal. Written by Andrea Berloff. 125m. PG-13 for intense and emotional content, some disturbing images and language.

3.5 stars

An auteur, whose legacy lies in his provocation, is entrusted with the first big-budget film depicting America’s most gut-wrenching day. Yes, I was a bit unnerved by the idea of an Oliver Stone film about the Sept. 11 attacks.

What I found instead was a story with great heart and even greater restraint. “World Trade Center” does not regurgitate the dizzying din of the 24-hour news networks, opting instead to focus its insular attention on a pair of unlikely survivors.

Stone starts us in the break room of the Port Authority Police Department on Sept. 11, 2001, where early indications suggested this would be another routine Tuesday. While patrols man the busy bus terminal at around 8:45 a.m., the first plane strikes the north tower.

For Stone, who has both horrified and titillated audiences with grotesque shows of humanity at its most depraved, depicting the plane’s impact only in shadow and sound represents a true break from expected convention. I’m not privy to his ultimate motivation, just merely thankful that he spared us a recreation of that traumatic moment.

Of course, this act of self-editing lends credence to the film’s underlying mission. We’re suddenly reassured that Stone will not build the fertile foundations of “World Trade Center” with another ill-conceived conspiracy theory.

Through the PAPD patrolmen, we’re doused in the confusion that trailed the attacks. With the 110-story building burning in their midst and business documents showering their every step, the men are asked to accompany Sgt. John McLoughlin (Nicolas Cage) on a rescue mission. Of the four men who ultimately volunteer to go inside the towers, only Will Jimeno (Michael Pena) and McLoughlin initially survive the collapse of both towers.

The narrative is then reoriented, alternating between the trapped men and their respective families, who impatiently await word amidst the mass confusion. In separate parts of suburbia, both Donna McLoughlin (Maria Bello) and Allison Jimeno (Maggie Gyllenhaal) wonder: Did my husband go into the towers this morning?

With the film leaning heavily on the collective performance of the four main leads, Cage, Pena, Bello and Gyllenhaal studied their real-life counterparts to lend an authentic feel to their cinematic representations.

The sorrowful undercurrent is first apparent with Bello, who knows her husband’s extensive knowledge of the towers makes him a logical choice to lead a rescue mission there. Gyllenhaal reflects the torture of uncertainty, knowing that her husband isn’t at his usual post but not initially resigned to believe he entered the building.

Cage, who has perfected the uninhibited, jittery scoundrel in films like “Wild at Heart” to “Lord of War,” gives a decidedly more muted performance here. Pinned beneath hundreds of pounds of rubble and obscured by the chiaroscuro, Cage is compelled to create his character’s harrowing fears with only the use of his eyes. I was moved to tears several times as McLaughlin’s hope for survival slowly drained out of Cage’s baby blues.

There are heroes on the other side of the rubble as well. Dave Karnes (Michael Shannon), a retired Marine, watches the attacks unfold in Wilton, Conn. The film suggests he found an intensely spiritual call to help, donning his old Marine uniform and driving all day to reach Ground Zero before nightfall.

When 7 World Trade Center collapsed during the evening of Sept. 11, first responders were called off from coordinated searches of the nearby towers’ rubble. But Karnes maintained a low profile as he countermanded orders to abandon hope, with faith that there were still survivors. Although the film makes him out to be a religious zealot, albeit with deeply patriotic roots, Karnes is likely the film’s biggest hero.

The impact of the Sept. 11 events was diminished almost immediately by our government, who responded to the nation’s collective grief by launching into an invasion of Afghanistan. As the years pass, how we felt on Sept. 11 has mutated into how we feel about the unending war on terror.

“World Trade Center” is a good way to refocus that perspective. While the day will always be remembered for the evil that unfolded on our favorite morning news program, Stone successfully argues it should be remembered more for the heroes that emerged from the rubble.