Oliver Stone - 9/11

Fresh on heels of Spielberg's Munich project, Paramount recently came out with news of their upcoming Oliver Stone, 9/11 project. Stone is no stranger to controversial subjects and given his track record of dealing with raw human emotion, 9/11 may very well be a great fit for this socio-politically conscious director. Now that there's another A-list director involved with sensitive subject matter, we thought we'd take a look at what Stone may bring to the 9/11 project.

Tuesday, September, 11, 2001 is a day that will be forever burned into the American psyche. On that day, New York City and the world witnessed massive death and destruction, but they also witnessed great courage and compassion from the emergency crews and ordinary citizens. There have been numerous stories related to the survivors of 9/11 like Adam Mayblum's, but the Stone film will focus on the true rescue story of two Port Authority police officers, John McLoughlin and William J. Jimeno. How do two 9/11 survivors feel about having their stories portrayed on screen? In a recent Paramount press release on The Movie Insider, Jimeno revealed,

"As a survivor of 9/11, I want people never to forget those that died from my department, the Port Authority Police of NY/NJ, and those from my fellow departments, the NYPD and FDNY, as well as all of the EMTs and the civilians in NYC, in Pennsylvania, and at the Pentagon. I know that with the talented cast of people that have been brought together by Double Feature Films to bring this film project to life, they will never be forgotten. It will also be a tribute to all those that gave everything they had to bring people home to their loved ones. This film is also a testament to the good that we as human beings are capable of. I have all the confidence in the world that with such a great script that was written by Andrea Berloff and having one of the world's greatest directors, Oliver Stone, who has served his country and knows the price of freedom, this film will be one that will live on for generations to come, not only in America but the world!"

As a director, Oliver Stone certainly doesn't shy away from controversy, with such true to life depcitions as Platoon, JFK and Born on the Fourth of July. If you've ever seen his films, you'll know Stone has tackled some of the sorest moments in American history. Why were Platoon, JFK and Born on the Fourth of July well recieved , but also loathed by some? Why so much backlash when dealing with real moments in American history? Whether it's fiction or fact, Stone is a keen study of action, reaction and illiciting emotion. In an effort to learn straight from the source, here's what Stone had to say during a 1997 interview at UC Berkely,

"You set out to be authentic to yourself and to put down the way that you feel it and you know it and you interpret it. And then others sometimes can key into it and get it. But a lot of people can see my movies, and they tell me they enjoy them or they don't, but they don't get into deeper analysis. Some people will say, 'I was very moved by the picture,' but may not even understand what feelings were working on them. Natural Born Killers, for example, evoked a very strong negative feeling in people. And I thought that that is the same thing to me as positive, because it's just a working out of feeling, that they were vomiting, regurgitating at the picture. People who saw Born on the Fourth of July were healed, they said that they were healed because they felt that they were restructured. I don't know how true that is. But the films work at you on an emotional level and you make of it what you can."

The question remains, is Stone the right director for this movie? His body of work certainly speaks for itself and Oliver Stone has a reputation of dealing with topics that make people uncomfortable. In terms of filmmaking, emotion is what a director plays on. Stone was a soldier in Vietnam, a product of the Kennedy generation, and subsequently a veteran. As a director, he's interpreting from experience in the same manner as a screenwriter writes what he knows. That 's what great filmmaking is all about. One certainly can't fault anyone for their creative visions based on experience. On the downside, however, Stone's political views often come into question whenever he's behind the pen or camera and those views, which he has described as both Liberal and Conservative, will be the focalpoint of critics, especially for a film dealing with 9/11. Putting his political views aside, 9/11 will undoubtably focus on the raw emotion and human drama of the nation's worst tragedy. Referring to the Paramount press release on The Movie Insider, Stone says,

"Andrea Berloff's screenplay is one of the best that's ever come to me out of the blue—I guess like that day. It walloped me—and many others—with its emotion and simplicity. Clearly, it's a work of collective passion, a serious meditation on what happened, and carries within a compassion that heals. It's an exploration of heroism in our country—but is international at the same time in its humanity."

Although controversy has plagued Stone throughout his career, one can't ignore the political intensity behind such a devastating tragedy. If there's one director who can make a political statement while focusing on the exploration of heroism and providing America with a unique sense of justice, it's Oliver Stone.

In the end, it takes a great filmmaker to deal with such sensitive subject matter, but the greater challenge is telling a great story while giving some sense of justice not only to the victums' familes but America as well. Although this isn't a burden Stone should carry, to some extent its inescapable when dealing with 9/11. Whether you like Oliver Stone or not, you have to respect a guy who isn't afraid to tackle topics that most people may, or would, shy away from.

However Stone translates 9/11 to screen, one thing's is for certain -- 9/11 is rich in story value, heroism and naked truth. When looking back at Stone's career and the controversy that's followed him along the way, moviegoers and historians alike know the most painful aspect of life is the fact that the truth often hurts. If that's what makes Stone such a controversial director, then so be it... that's life.