MovieChat Forums > Flight 93 (2006) Discussion > Flight 93 better than United 93

Flight 93 better than United 93

posted 17 years ago by rob3034
72 replies | jump to latest

I have just watched "united 93" after having seen "flight 93" a few months ago, and i have to say that flight 93 is MUCH better, it had me almost in tears the whole way through and was very emotional, it also had great computer generated imagery from outside of the plane and it soared up and down showing you what was actually happening to the plane. Also as previously said it had the other side of the families, showing them in their homes coming to terms with what was happening to their loved ones....what was said in the conversations and the public's reaction to what they were seeing on the TV as the crashes happened, and how the passengers came up with a plan to storm the hijackers everything....

it also has very emotional scenes at the end of the film after the plane has crashed. very sad.

However United 93 had none of this.. wasnt at all emotional or dramatic, just basically showed the US military and senior air traffic controllers messing things up, didnt focus in on the passengers or what happened between them or what they said in their phone conversations and families on the other end of the phone. Or the public's reaction to seeing the horrifing scenes on the Tv and news.

My advice is almost certainly is that flight 93 was much better than United 93.

[–] greenyamo 17 years ago

Have to agree with you there. My wife and I got about 40 minutes in to United 93 and turned it off. The acting was poor. Flight 93 had us gripped from the 1st minute to the last.

The thing for me was that I had to keep reminding myself that this actually happened and was not just a film. When they were planning to attack the terrorists, I was half expecting them to win and save the plane at the last minute and not crash.

That may sound bad but when you're watching a film you just normally expect good to overcome evil. Well I do anyway.

[–] jamie_sheehan1 17 years ago

I completely agree... I was somehow expecting them to be all safe in the end, which makes it even more heartbreaking when you remember.

The thing is, 'Flight 93' makes you feel the situation on both sides and lets you imagine what it might feel like to be in that situation, and because of the amazing acting and realism, I was actually in tears and I never cry...

[–] antoniocasaca 16 years ago

I don't agree. "United 93" (8/10) is better than "Flight 93" (6/10). I think the acting of "United 93" is more realistic and powerfull but "Flight 93" is also a interesting film.

[–] Suppeelsker 17 years ago

I haven't seen the United, but this movie "Flight 93" is awesome. I am so sad now, because I just watched it. It is so sad and emotional. If people hate this movie, it is really weird. It's awesome and a tribute to the passengers and crew-members who died. Rest in peace everyone of you.

[–] Gurtejdhillon 17 years ago

I Like United 93

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[–] swlnugget23 17 years ago

Even though Flight 93 was released three months before United 93?

Spartans, prepare for glory!

[–] moskii58 17 years ago

I totally agree the a&e made for tv movie "Flight 93-the flight that fought back" seemed to hit the mark better than the movie "United 93"

[–] georgiemyler 17 years ago

Both are good. But I cried at the end of Flight 93, and I didn't at the end of United 93. Those scenes with the family members are so sad.
Both films are good though, I just think Flight 93 focuses more on the people on the planes and their families rather than the air traffic people, so gives a much stronger sense of what it was like for them. In contrast, United shows much more of what it was like for the air traffic people as well as the passengers, and it also shows the utter chaos of that day very well.
God bless the passengers and crew of Flight 93 and their families.

[–] blue-eyed-babe 17 years ago

i just watched flight 93 thinking the whole time it was United 93. this being a made for tv movie and not for the theatres totally fooled me. since i was fooled i was anxious to watch United 93 thinking it would be better since that one was in the theatres. but after hearing that United isn't nearly as emotional than this one i'm not that excited.
dealing with the emotions from the passengers is what got to me. the phone conversation with the young woman and her mother was heart wrenching, along with the other family scenes at the end. and seeing the news footage on the family's tvs brought me back to that horrible day to where i could remember exactly what i was doing when these things happened.

[–] Established1981 17 years ago

Flight 93 was far too Americanised, Lots of Army figures running around, glossy effects of planes spinning around in the air, extended over emotional crying scenes.

United 93 was a claustrophobic, brutal, genuine account of harrowing events of that day. It is every thing Flight 93 should have been.

[–] Mad_Max85 17 years ago

I have to agree with many people in here, tho flight 93 was a made-for-tv-movie,it was much more emotional and, in my opinion, realistic compared to united 93. Hands down Flight is a much better film..it almost made me cry...United in the other hand..not so much.

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[–] z99 15 years ago

couldn't have said it better.
Flight 93 had this cheesy feel to it while United 93 presented much more realism

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[–] Stenian 14 years ago

Really? I thought United 93 was Americanised (or Hollywoodized). All we see on that film is the air traffic controllers.

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[–] tjaa_11 16 years ago

I agreed.. This one grabbed me more than united 93!

[–] samanthababie 15 years ago

I completely agree as well. United 93 took forever to get going, and with flight 93 I was in tears almost the whole time. It seemed more realistic. I might be biased because I saw Flight 93 first, so I was expecting United 93 to be better, but I thought it fell flat. Flight 93 was just so much better and should have been the one released in Theaters.

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[–] aarongallagher1 17 years ago

I just watched this film last night, I started quite confused as in the opening credits it said directed by Peter Markle! Surely Paul Greengrass directed it, "perhaps Greengrass was just Producer" I thought.

At no point in the entire movie did I think back and question that this was not the Cinematic version.

From the outset with the moving introduction of the passengers by means of the ticket machine showing us their names I was in tears. The film never lets up it's emotional hold on the viewer.

After I watched the movie I spoke to my girlfriend and told her I had finally watched "United 93" and that we were right when we had watched the pile of "emotion by the numbers" with the heroic uplifting ending that is "World Trade Center" and thought that is not the story of 9/11, THIS FILM IS.

Now today I log onto here to see what others thought of this movie and to remind myself of what on earth had beaten this to Best Picture at the Oscars and discover Whoa! this is a TV movie! and not United 93 the celebrated movie.

This film for me will always be the movie about those tragic events on 9/11.

[–] shenandoahpride 17 years ago

"Flight 93" is the better movie in terms of emotional impact. You get involved with the families and passengers. It's a pretty good TV movie.

But if you want to get a sense of the utter chaos and sheer terror of Sept. 11, I vote for "United 93." For me, it captured the complete confusion of the day, from how many and which planes were involved to the slowness of the military to the mass panic the day generated.

Give me love , give me love , give me peace on earth.

[–] lac-21 17 years ago

I agree I was just about to post a " Does anyone else think this was BETTER then United 93?? There was something "missing" in the movie release. I felt the AE peice was more heartfelt and touched you more on a human level...
Peace

[–] in_themists 17 years ago

Flight 93 was better than United 93..

Only because Flight 93 seemed to focus on almost every passenger and their background stories, and United 93 seemed to focus on the day itslelf focusing on the views of several areas of that day. Both were moving, but the movie I preferred were the Flight 93, because I was interested about the passengers and their story, rather than the stories of people off the plane.

[–] chrismahon2005 16 years ago

I enjoyed both,but did really like the focus on the air traffic controllers,the family bit for me was ok,but far to sad to watch imo.

[–] stonewolf29 16 years ago

I agree. I felt closer to the passengers on Flight 93 because of all the phone calls they made. We got to see the families' perspective, and it was sad. I just saw United 93 yesterday, and it kind of left me empty and unsatisfied. The ending was too sudden. I'd have liked to see at least a few shots of the crash site as the aftermath, which would show the audience the full horror and sadness of what happened.

"If you were in your office right now we'd be having this conversation face-to-face."

[–] steinlo 16 years ago

I'll just repeat what Established1981 said

"Flight 93 was far too Americanised, Lots of Army figures running around, glossy effects of planes spinning around in the air, extended over emotional crying scenes.

United 93 was a claustrophobic, brutal, genuine account of harrowing events of that day. It is every thing Flight 93 should have been."

[–] girishb86 15 years ago

And I'll just quote you.

Just finished watching both films and United 93 is definitely the better of the two.

[–] TomBon1 16 years ago

OK, sorry to post twice but I just read something that made my blood boil written by Stonewolf.

In United 93 "The ending was too sudden"

I am shaking my head in disbelief just now.

[–] TomBon1 16 years ago

I totally disagree. United 93 was brilliant. Adding the bits about their families in my opinion distracts the viewer from the main subject. United 93 shows the passengers as self preserving and that is realistic. Flight 93 was stuff we've seen 1000 times on documentaries etc. United 93 was stunning. Truly wonderful film.

Established 1981. You sum it up perfectly. People who say Flight 93 is more realistic are blind. Even "United" is so much of a better title. Two meanings etc.