9/11 (2002 film)
A documentary on the September 11 attacks from firefighters' perspective.
9/11 is a 2002 documentary film about the September 11 attacks in New York City, directed by brothers Jules and Gédéon Naudet and FDNY firefighter James Hanlon. It premiered on CBS on March 10, 2002, and presents the events from the point of view of the New York City Fire Department.
Quick Facts
- Writer
- Tom Forman; Greg Kandra
- Director
- Jules Naudet
- Gédéon Naudet
- James Hanlon
- Presenter
- Robert De Niro
- Narrator
- James Hanlon
- Theme music
- Richard Fiocca; Michael Patterson
- Country
- United States; France
- Language
- English
- Producer
- Tom Forman
- Jules Naudet
- Gédéon Naudet
- James Hanlon
Facts from the source article.
Synopsis
In early September 2001, filmmakers James Hanlon and the Naudet brothers had secured permission from the New York City Fire Department to follow a rookie firefighter named Antonios (Tony) Benetatos. He was based at the Engine 7/Ladder 1/Battalion 1 firehouse on Duane Street in Lower Manhattan. The project was meant to show a probationary firefighter’s first days on the job. On the morning of September 11, that firehouse was called to investigate a reported gas odor at Church and Lispenard streets.
Jules Naudet rode with Battalion Chief Joseph W. Pfeifer to check it out, while his brother Gédéon stayed behind to film Benetatos. While the firefighters looked into the gas leak, American Airlines Flight 11 flew overhead. Jules turned his camera to follow the plane and captured one of only three known recordings of it hitting the North Tower of the World Trade Center. Chief Pfeifer’s crew were the first responders on the scene.
Jules continued filming as they tried to rescue people, and he was inside the lobby of Tower 1 when United Airlines Flight 175 struck Tower 2 and when that tower later collapsed. Jules, Pfeifer, and other firefighters managed to escape the lobby and get out of Tower 1 before it fell. Back at the firehouse, Gédéon filmed Benetatos, who was alone there for a while. Unable to leave, Benetatos watched news coverage and learned that American Airlines Flight 77 had hit the Pentagon.
After Tower 2 collapsed, Benetatos and retired former chief Larry Byrnes headed to the World Trade Center. Gédéon lost track of them and filmed near the site, kept back by police. He later returned to the firehouse and filmed as firefighters came back. Eventually his brother Jules arrived, and Benetatos was the last to return, having searched the debris for survivors until about 6 pm. Every member of the team survived.
Release and reception
CBS aired 9/11 on March 10, 2002, marking six months since the attacks. The broadcast included only two commercial interruptions, and advertisers used their space to honor first responders. The film was produced by Susan Zirinsky and hosted by actor Robert De Niro. It drew 39.4 million viewers, achieving a rating/share of 22.3/33, and was the highest-rated program that week.
CBS repeated the broadcast on the first anniversary. The film aired in 103 countries in 2002. The documentary was noted for profanity used by its subjects. Under normal circumstances, such language would have been subject to censorship by the broadcaster or the FCC, but the FCC took no action against the network for indecency, believing action would be interpreted as sanitizing history.
A 2006 federal appeals court ruling temporarily halted FCC enforcement of indecency rules, allowing CBS to air the documentary without edits. The DVD release omitted De Niro's footage. CBS re-aired the film on September 10, 2006, hosted again by De Niro, with updates on the principal subjects as of 2006. On September 11, 2011, CBS broadcast 9/11: Ten Years Later, hosted by De Niro, with updates by the Naudet brothers, Hanlon, and Susan Zirinsky, including new interviews and footage on the subjects' lives, the construction of One World Trade Center, and health problems of firefighters exposed to contaminants.
CBS aired viewer discretion warnings before and during each broadcast. In 2016, CNN acquired the rights for the fifteenth anniversary, with James Hanlon as executive producer, director, and updater, hosted by Denis Leary.
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