The September 11 attacks, which took the lives of 2,977 innocent people, are the defining moment of the 21st Century thus far. The world was irreversibly changed and although over a decade has passed, the attack still cuts deep. The tragedy had a big effect on popular culture. Suddenly wide-spread terror wasn't an abstract concept. The mass-monument destruction of Independence Day only a few years before wasn't the realm of sci-fi and movies increasingly found themselves skewing close to reality, with War Of The Worlds and Cloverfield being two noteworthy examples of films that utilised visual elements from the tragedy to create a sense of realism. On top of providing some new cinematic language, the events of September 11, 2001 themselves have been prominent in the medium over the past thirteen years. Whether they're representing the day's events, delving into the politics of what happened after or even acting as a show of how the attacks are regarded in our culture, here are ten films about 9/11 that you simply have to see.
10. 11'09"01 September 11
Less than a year after the attacks (the film premiered on September 11, 2002 in some territories, although the release was delayed until July 18, 2003 in the US) French producer Alain Brigand set about making this account of the aftermath. Eleven directors from all over the world (the countries involved in the film are Iran, France, Egypt, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Burkina Faso, UK, Mexico, Israel, India, US and Japan) each made a short film eleven minutes, nine seconds and one frame in length that looks at the 9/11 attacks from the perspective of their respective countries. The standout is probably Ken Loach's London-set piece that sees a Chilean musician draw parallels between the attack and the Chilean coup d'état, a massive political shift that occurred on September 11, 1973. As well as coming so soon after the day itself, with the shock still palpable, the film is notable for presenting an international view on the tragedy, highlighting how what was an attack on America had a strong impact on people all over the world.
