Friday, September 18, 2009

Movie #131 - The Siege


"On November 6th our freedom is history."

I recently caught this 1998 film by Director Edward Zwick, and I noticed how prophetic this film was. Released three years before September 11, 2001, a day in which similar attacks on the U.S. was orchestrated by terrorists, Zwick's film discusses a number of major issues related to government policy and reactionary measures made during the fictional terrorism threats to New York City.

The reason this film was so compelling was that I watched it in 2009, during the post 9/11 era. Looking back, the reaction of the government and the paranoia that ensues in the film is quite similar to what the U.S. and other first world countries decided to do in order to combat terrorism.

Martial law was a very close reality for Americans and the threat that they faced in the days, weeks, and months after 9/11 were real. Zwick's commentary to how society would crumble and the removal of constitutional rights and freedoms on its own citizens due to racial profiling is still abundant today, albeit to a lesser extent. However, shortly after 9/11, this was a reality for many people and thus, this film is a must see for how accurate the commentary truly was.

Although the action sequences, suspense, and acting of this film are top notch with roles portrayed by Denzel Washington, Bruce Willis, Annette Benning, and Tony Shaloub, the movie takes some wild turns in the end, almost like a rush to finish the film. Throughout the movie, you are compelled to find out what happens - but in the end, you are left wanting more.

If you ever want to see a fictional 9/11 story, this is one to watch. There have been many 9/11 films documenting the heroic stories of the passengers of the planes and the World Trade Center victims, but this film looks at a fictional representation of what could happen if the terrorism threat in the U.S. becomes real.

Looking back at recent history, Zwick's predictions and conclusions aren't off base and it shows that fiction can become reality at times. I won't use this post to comment on my personal views of the state of society in relation to 9/11, but I urge readers to seek out this film to see its fictional parallels to the events that followed this important time in our history.


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