© St. Petersburg Times, published March 11, 2002
If you were one of those millions watching the horror of the World Trade Center collapse unfold on TV six months ago today, it was a question that probably crossed your mind more than once.
What could it be like for those inside?
On Sunday, CBS gave the world that experience via its startling, simple documentary, 9/11.
And after two hours of watching the tale of that awful day played out through the lens of a documentary filmmaker inside one of the World Trade Center towers, one thing is certain.
Close as this footage takes us, we'll never feel the full horror. And that's probably a good thing.
This program came courtesy of two French filmmakers, Gedeon and Jules Naudet, who were making a movie about a rookie firefighter (or, "probie" as the firefighters call them) stationed at a firehouse a few blocks from the World Trade Center.
On the morning of Sept. 11, Jules headed out with men from Engine 7, Ladder 1, answering a call about a gas leak. As the firefighters passed sensor equipment over a grating, the scream of a jet engine pierced the air and Jules swung his camera up, just in time to catch footage of the first plane slamming into the World Trade Center.
"At the time we didn't think there could be anything worse than losing a single firefighter," said firefighter James Hanlon, who narrated much of 9/11, along with the Naudet brothers. "Looking back, I think we were innocent."
Nitpickers may grouse that the documentary, assembled with help from CBS News, should have been treated like news and shared with us all much sooner than the attacks' six-month commemoration.
But we may not have been ready to see this before now. Images of chaplain Mychal Judge (seen praying in the lobby minutes earlier) being pulled from the escalator where he died as the second Trade Center Tower collapsed; the awful, loud thumping noises as the bodies of those who jumped from the towers hit bottom; the ash that covered everything like a thick blanket of gray snow.
Even with six months' distance, the footage tugged at the heartstrings, lent weight by the Naudets' and Hanlon's personalized commentary.
In truth, 9/11 started slowly, introducing viewers to 21-year-old probie Tony Benetatos and the men of Engine 7, Ladder 1. We see Benetatos hoping for a big fire to prove himself and the Naudets cooking a meal for the fire company.
In a way, watching this setup footage felt a little morbid. Like the early minutes of a disaster movie, you're anticipating the big tragedy in a way that feels both exciting and a little shameful.
When the tragedy finally hit, much of what the Naudets captured was confusing. Jules, who was shadowing a battalion chief as they answered the gas leak call, followed firefighters into the lobby of the Trade Center tower hit first -- capturing the chaos of the command center there.
His footage centered mostly on milling firefighters and confused evacuating office workers. As the tower that was hit second collapsed (it came down first), we saw Jules rushing toward an escalator as the world went black.
Still, that confusion only helped place viewers in the moment. Later, when the battalion chief Jules is shadowing tackles him to the ground to duck beneath the rushing debris of the final tower collapse, viewers could almost taste the ash and soot as it filled his camera lens.
His brother, Gedeon, was stuck outside, capturing footage of the burning towers and airplane parts blocks away. When the towers fell, each brother was convinced the other must be dead, until they reunited at the same firehouse where their ordeal started.
To its credit, sponsor Nextel didn't try to sell anything during the three brief breaks allotted during the two-hour program. Instead, they flashed pictures of emergency workers; Tom Ridge, the country's director of homeland security, and actor/firefighter Steve Buscemi also told viewers of charity and volunteer efforts.
Uncomfortable-looking "host" Robert DeNiro may have been the biggest drawback, addressing viewers with three clunky speeches. His most useful warning -- that the firefighters' would use some understandably salty language -- could have been delivered by Hanlon or an artful graphic.
Still, 9/11 served as a well-crafted reminder of the horror that forever changed the New York skyline and American notions of safety at home. I know I'll never see a firefighter with quite the same eyes ever again.