New York City 9/11/01
HBO (Sun., May 26,9 p.m. ET)
Early in Memoriam you'll see a claim that the terrorist attack on New York City's World Trade Center was "the most documented event in history." It seems like an exaggeration—until you've experienced this film. Skillfully blending amateur video with news footage—and setting the images to an evocative score performed by the New York Philharmonic—the documentary captures the disaster from so many angles that the cumulative effect threatens to overwhelm the viewer's senses and emotions. (Be warned that some shots are disturbingly graphic.)
Drawing extensively on interviews with Rudolph Giuliani and his aides, the film stirs renewed admiration for the ex-mayor's unfaltering leadership in the crisis. But it may be lily-gilding to include his girlfriend, Judith Nathan, who recalls that Giuliani looked to Winston Churchill as a model.
Bottom Line: Fine memorial
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