Rating: Summary: Excellent, but, much too short and too limited focus. Review: "In Memoriam" is a 1 hour HBO documentary about the 9/11/01 terrorist attacks on NYC. It has former mayor Rudolph Giuliani talking about what he and his co-workers did that day, and for a few days afterwards. There is a lot of camera footage showing the planes crashing into the World Trade Centers; people falling to their deaths, and the buildings coming down. There is film of "ground zero", (where the WTC came down), and the numerous funerals that followed. The personal loss of 9-11 is shown when numerous friends of his, as well as the husband of a female assistant, are among the 3000+ killed. Almost nothing is said about the Pentagon, or Shanksville, PA. There is no footage of the empty pit where the WTC used to stand. Extras are limited to a map of lower NYC, where various events took place, and not much else. Nothing is said about an apparently accidental plane crash that occured in Rockaway, NYC in Oct. 2001, which also affected relatives of the victims of 9-11. No metion is made of the anthrax attacks on the USA, either. I do recommend this video, but, I feel it is much too short to do 9-11 justice. The ideal 9-11 documentary should be at least 3 hours long, and have a lot more information. This is more of a personal recollection of 9-11 by Mr. Giuliani, and how he, (and some others in NYC), reacted to the 9-11 attacks.
Rating: Summary: FIRST HAND ACCOUNTS OF THE 9/11 ATTACKS Review: A blow by blow account of went went on in lower Manhattan the morning of 9/11. In Memoriam includes lots of never before seen footage of the attacks and the collapse of the World Trade Center. Also included are messages left from people trapped inside the towers trying to reach their loved ones. The way In memoriam is put together, without a narrative adds to the production because in some ways, you fell like you're experiencing the events. My only complaint was the the documentary is way too short and could have gone into more depth or included more footage.
Rating: Summary: 9/11 Happened; This video is too important to ignore Review: A very good documentary of the horrible events without the typical newcast spin.I know some people deplore the idea that this was documented on DVD, but I just have to say that those people need to wake up and face reality. While no doubt many people are using 9/11 to make money and exploit citizens, it is not the case with this documentary. September 11th happened, people. Yes, it was bad. It was horrible, and this video is difficult to watch. But you know what? Nazi Germany was horrible and Schindler's List was released. Pearl Harbor and Titantic were blockbuster movies documenting (and even distorting) true horrific events. I believe it is great that 9/11 is documented in this way -- we need to remember it, our children need to remember it, and our grandchildren need to be aware of its implications. This is not something we can will away, so the only alternative is to make sure it lives on -- so that we know our vulnerabilities and so that we recognize we are susceptible to this stuff -- not just now, but in the future. HBO is not making money on a blockbuster movie, and they are not selling the DVD promoting "great picture and audio quality" -- to reviewers who made these accusations, it is obvious they never took the time to watch it. This is serious, heart-wrenching, and VERY important. Whether or not you want to watch something like this is up to you -- but if you claim that every single documentary about 9/11 is just wrong, you obviously think we are still living in a fairy tale land. And if you did take these events seriously and recognize the profound implications and lessons to be learned and remembered, I highly suggest this documentary over anything else. And yes, I knew people who perished in New York too. That is why I am so adament about this. If nothing else, 9/11 needs to be remembered and recorded in this brutal, unbiased way IN MEMORY OF THE VICTIMS -- before Hollywood distorts it and future senerios weaken its impact.
Rating: Summary: Therapy and painful Review: After several months, this was the first video of any kind I picked up to relive my personal trauma of that day. Having been in NYC and deep in the thick of the events, I was unable to process much. The reality of several events- one after the other- caused me to shut down. This video offers as close as you can get glimpse of what I and others experienced on that day. The photography is unfiltered and offers the best commentary/description of events on that day. Some things are not done justice if put to word. I have asked friends who wanted to know what I experienced to watch this, if but only to give them a fraction of the intensity. I would not recommend this to those easily upset...some frames contain what I thought as I was there to be debris, but instead are people jumping/falling.
Rating: Summary: Memoriam? Review: Although the footage of 9/11 on this DVD was moving, shocking, and heartbreaking, I wouldn't go so far as to call it a documentary. Yes, it did show the footage of the attacks and the aftermath, but not once did it show the psychotic lunatics who did this to us. It did not show them smiling and bragging about how many Americans they incinerated. A little less Guiliani, and a little more firemen could have helped also. This film was made out by critics to be some sort of a historical document, however, much like our war on terrorism, it is incomplete.
Rating: Summary: Moving Review: As a New Yorker that lived through Sept. 11th, I didn't allow myself to grive after the attack, I work two blocks away from the WTC but months after the attack I still didn't allow myself to grive for the loss. I refuse to watch anything that had to do the 9/11, but i did watch this HBO special. I felt like I was back again to that morning, I cried, I let myself feel what i try to block. This is a tribute to our unique city, our brave police officer and firefighters, and the everyday heroes that band together to over come the worse day of our lives.
Rating: Summary: NEVER FORGIVE - NEVER FORGET Review: For all those people who think of September 11, 2001, as something that has now passed and should be let go of, this is the DVD for you. It brings back all the pain, the anger, the shock and helplessness, this country felt. It will make you cry and it will make you want to jump up and scream "We're not going to take it anymore" (to borrow a line from the film "Network"). It will also serve as a learning tool for your children, your children's children and generations for years to come.
Rating: Summary: The Last Word Review: For those that gave this important film anything but a 5 Star rating are missing something. This is it, the last word. This a MUST HAVE. Let me repeat, A MUST HAVE. If you have children, grandchildren or friends. This is the document for all eternity.
Rating: Summary: One of the Best 911 Videos Review: HBO searched out the best video from 9/11 including some of my video, and put it together in this moving historic documentary. This is a video that memorializes our darkest day for future generations. My video, "WTC 9-11-01 Day of Disaster", which is now available at Amazon.com, is another video that preserves the history of 9-11-01. I highly recommend both videos.
Rating: Summary: From the city itself... Review: I figured that maybe I'd include a review of this program , being that I'm someone who actually lives in the city. I was watching the horror from my terrace, fourteen floors up. I don't know if I can convey to you how horrible it was to actually see it with my own eyes but I'm sure you can guess. Watching this program makes you damn proud not just to be a New Yorker but just to be an American. The program was tastefully done and was not an in your face production, even though there were shots of the planes hitting that I had never seen before and somehow they were worse than any before them. Mayor Guiliani acts as a nararrator of sorts and after watching this, my respect for the man was tripled. All in all, I think this might be worth purchasing. Only because it didn't feel like it was made to cash in. It replicated for me the feelings I felt that day and yet managed to cast hope. You can practically feel the emotions in every frame, from beginning to end. Definitely worth seeing, at the least.
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