Halfass Film Review: WTC View

"WTC View" is a film adaptation of a play by Brian Sloan, portraying the experiences of Eric, who places an ad for a roommate on the 10th of September, 2001.

Eric's ad specifies that the apartment has a view of the World Trade Center, which becomes a central plot element. Ground Zero is not actually shown, but rather suggested by the glaring light coming in through the empty room's single window. As Eric shows the room to potential renters, the conversations relate personal experiences of the tragedy, both from people who watched the tragedy unfold on television, to those who were actually there. It follows Eric's experiences in the weeks following, as he struggles to deal with his emotions and fears, and is an engrossing snapshot into the life of just one of the many New Yorkers affected by 9/11.

The movie stars the very talented Michael Urie (Marc St James in Ugly Betty), who can pull off drama as well as he pulls off comedy. Plus he's GORGEOUS... men may not be my type, but dammit if he was straight and there was a chance in hell (HA!), I would so go straight for him.

Fannish gushing aside, though, Michael gives a wonderful performance. He plays the character well, so that there is not much mystery to Eric at all, and I couldn't really picture the film being made with another actor playing the role. (Michael also played Eric in the stage play.) He carries across the fear, grief and anger of the character so well.

The tone of the film is a sombre one, if you're looking for sensationalism, it's by no means in this film. Everything is stripped back to give a very personal quality to the movie, and it works extremely well. But, I don't think it's a depressing movie in any way. While there is some humour in it (which you may need a sense of humour as twisted as mine to see it), it more or less gives a unique view of the aftermath of 9/11, minus the conspiracy theories and media hype. I've watched probably 10-12 different movies/documentaries about it, and each one is different. WTC View seems to me to be the most human of the lot. It's relatively bullshit free, and makes for compelling drama.

I first saw a preview for this movie on Youtube, and ended up having to order the DVD from my local music store. It was well worth it, and I'm glad I did.

Rating: 5 stars, 2 thumbs up and a bucket of onion rings as well.