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88An often brilliant, always revelatory, deeply interesting omnibus film.
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80Obviously the variety that was bound to result was part of Brigand's plan. The astonishment is that almost all of the assemblage is fascinating, very little is poor, and one segment is superb.
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759/11 was a savage and heartless crime, and after the symbolism and the history and the imagery and the analysis, that is a point that must be made.
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75They vary enormously in style, quality, and ideas, but the best of them -- by Gitai, Chahine, and Iñárritu, among others -- pack an enormous emotional and intellectual punch.
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75Some segments are anti-American, but to concentrate on that is to miss the variety, depth of opinion, and fierceness of the emotions that drive each director.
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75The results are not monumental, but they are a variety of sober responses to the tragedy that help place the event in a global context. Some of the films may be, as has been suggested, anti-American in tone, but none come anywhere near defending the attacks.
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Overall, the film contains personal and political stories, as well as the macrocosm and the microcosm of chaos, rage, sadness and confusion.
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70The filmmakers' attempts come to terms with a recent catastrophe of indeterminate meaning but global consequences are often fascinating.
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70An ungainly, intermittently harrowing omnibus filled with moments of piercing sorrow and rage.
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70Until filmmakers get a little distance, maybe they'd be better off ignoring such projects.
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70A sober, thought-provoking response to a tragedy of worldwide import and a much better film than one might expect from the pre-release publicity.
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70They're all instructive and interesting in one way or another, and they're indispensable viewing for residents of isolationist, or at least isolated, countries such as this one.
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67As a whole, September 11 never reaches any conclusions or ready insights. But as a collection of moments, the film often soars.
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67In the most shocking contribution to this self-conscious but fascinating sampling of art challenged by life, Mexico's Alejandro González Iñárritu (''Amores Perros'') makes a horrifying suspense story.
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63Taken as a whole, the film says, "We grieve too, but like this, and this, and this."
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60The films, both narrative and nonfictional, range from the engagingly elliptical...to the simple-minded... to the cloying and incomprehensible.
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60It's no surprise that Imamura has directed the best film in September 11, which is doubtless why the producer saved it for last.
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60Most impressive, and the only segment that dares to criticize the terrorists directly, is Mr. Imamura's contribution, the last part of the film.
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50The results are mixed. Many of the films are too long, and even worse, the collection as a whole doesn't come to grips with the human scale of the tragedy.
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50Of the pieces, two are first-rate, a few more are amusing or provocative, and the rest are actively annoying.
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30It's hard to say if this devastating, nakedly exploitative work has a larger point beyond the evocation and infliction of trauma. A repeat viewing might clear that up, but it's an experience I'd rather not relive -- and one that I cannot in good faith recommend to anyone.
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30A crashing letdown.