Responding to a tragic day.

It is hard to believe that over a decade has passed since the devastating attacks of September 11th 2001.  On that day terrorists killed 2976 people, and wrecked the lives of countless others.

In the years that have followed,  these events have influenced many Hollywood films and television shows.  In this post we remember some of these.

A.I. Artificial Intelligence.  Stephen Spielberg

A.I. was actually made before 9/11, but coincidentally it was released in the UK ten days after the attacks.  Underrated at the time, this futuristic reworking of Pinocchio still looks stunning and packs an emotional punch.  Towards the end of the movie, we see a flooded New york City (above), and then a haunting image of the twin towers, damaged, but still standing.

Stephen Spielberg

As USA Today described, the 2005 remake of War of the Worlds took the images and sounds from 9/11: 

The dust-caked faces of thousands of terrified, fleeing citizens. The hundreds of "Have You Seen ... ?" posters with photos and contact information for loved ones trying to find the lost. One line of dialogue — "Did you lose anybody?" — was a common New York greeting at the time.

Life on Mars

The short lived (but decent), American version of Life on Mars used the World Trade Center to inform Sam Tyler of his arrival in 1973.

Paul Greengrass

Oliver Stone

In 2006 two movies reconstructed different aspects of the tragedy.  United 93 looked at the story of the fourth plane, that had been prevented from reaching its target by the heroism of its passengers.  This is truly a stunning piece of work.  On the other hand, Oliver Stones World Trade Center looked at the true story of trapped rescuers at the New york site, with some incredible reconstructions.

Nicole Rittenmeyer, Seth Skundrick

The first of two outstanding documentaries on this list, The History Channel's  102 minutes that changed America (2008) is an extraordinary chronological retelling of the tragedy on 9/11. It covers the moments from when the first plane, American Airlines flight 11, hit the north tower- until it collapsed 102 minutes later.   Weaving together a variety of amateur and news footage it takes you through all the devastating incidents.  The fact that we know what is going to happen, whilst the people on screen don't, adds to its power.

James Marsh

Man on Wire (2008) documents Philippe Petits' illegal tightrope walk between the twin towers of the World Trade Centre in 1974. The most remarkable aspect of this documentary is that it manages to be both compelling, despite containing no actual footage of the walk, and is a tribute to the World Trade Center without mentioning 9/11. 

Allen Coulter

Somewhat unfairly mauled by critics, Remember me really isn't that bad.  And the unhappy ending sort of works.