United 93 (2006)

Extremely harrowing account of what is believed to have happened on one of the four planes hijacked on September 11th, 2001. Whereas the other three reached their targets, this Boeing 757-222 was downed in a Pennsylvania field on its way to Washington, D.C. after the passengers confronted the Al-Qaeda terrorists who murdered the pilots.

It’s filmed in a “documentary” style that’s horribly convincing. It’s to the great credit of writer and director Paul Greengrass that he doesn’t sensationalise the events. Nor does he create “hero” characters among the doomed passengers or flesh them out with speculative material. Instead, the narrative stays faithful to what little is known about what actually took place. The air-traffic control personnel are also portrayed well, and it’s grimly compelling as we observe them realising that events are spinning out of control.

The tension is almost unbearable. You feel what you are seeing is real, which makes you ask yourself why you are watching it at all. The closing minutes are incredibly dramatic and painful to watch.