10 Intense Movies That Captivated The Hell Out Of You
6. United 93
Making a respectful film about the United 93 tragedy, which saw a hi-jacked plane crash into a Pennsylvanian field during a foiled terrorist attack, might have seemed impossible a mere six years after 9/11 shocked the world. It took Paul Greengrass - best known for his Bourne films - to show audiences that it could be done, giving us some of the most nail-biting minutes in all of cinema history.
Shot in a documentary-like fashion, sticking to the established facts, and unveiled mostly in real time, United 93 is downright anxiety-inducing. As an experience, it's hard to imagine a film as inherently intense - and as moving - to sit through. Perhaps it's Greengrass' use of little-known actors, and refusal of Hollywood conventions, that makes it all so seem so realistic (and therefore more painful) to watch.
The ending, of course, is sure to leave you stunned into silence, even though most people watching the film will know in advance what happens to the passengers of the ill-fated flight. And yet considering the subject matter, United 93 manages to depict a tragedy on the most respectful terms imaginable. It's gripping to the point of outright nausea, absolutely, but it never feels manipulative.