'Flight 93' is a very sobering slice of modern American history, as the heroic passengers & crew of United Airlines Flight 93 fought back at the terrorists who had seized control of their aircraft. By forcing the plane to crash in a Pennsylvania field, away from more densely populated areas, they saved the plane from reaching its likely target, either the White House or Capitol Building in Washington, D. C.
One of two versions of this intense true story (the other being the theatrical release "United 93"), I felt that this was reasonably involving, provoking the viewer into pondering how they would have reacted and acted in such a dangerous, untenable situation. While it does deliver some good scenes of tension, it doesn't forget to include the much-needed element of *humanity*, as various passengers get in touch with their loved ones & friends (and others as well) on the ground, either saying their goodbyes, or receiving words of encouragement, as characters like Tom Burnett (Jeffrey Nordling, '24', 'Big Little Lies') decide that they will rush the cockpit.
Granted, this probably does come off as more nondescript than "United 93" (which I still need to watch), given that it was made for the medium of television, but to say that there's little to no impact when all is said & done is just wrong. The only thing I'd have to say is that in a film of this kind (it runs 90 minutes without commercials), we don't exactly get to know any of the characters that well.
But it's still suitably interesting, and well directed by veteran journeyman director Peter Markle ("Youngblood", "Bat*21"). It DID give A & E the largest audience in the history of the network.
Seven out of 10.
One of two versions of this intense true story (the other being the theatrical release "United 93"), I felt that this was reasonably involving, provoking the viewer into pondering how they would have reacted and acted in such a dangerous, untenable situation. While it does deliver some good scenes of tension, it doesn't forget to include the much-needed element of *humanity*, as various passengers get in touch with their loved ones & friends (and others as well) on the ground, either saying their goodbyes, or receiving words of encouragement, as characters like Tom Burnett (Jeffrey Nordling, '24', 'Big Little Lies') decide that they will rush the cockpit.
Granted, this probably does come off as more nondescript than "United 93" (which I still need to watch), given that it was made for the medium of television, but to say that there's little to no impact when all is said & done is just wrong. The only thing I'd have to say is that in a film of this kind (it runs 90 minutes without commercials), we don't exactly get to know any of the characters that well.
But it's still suitably interesting, and well directed by veteran journeyman director Peter Markle ("Youngblood", "Bat*21"). It DID give A & E the largest audience in the history of the network.
Seven out of 10.