9/11 Analysis

What do people individually recall when it comes to 9/11? I remember the images of the bodies falling from the burning buildings and the sound when they hit the ground, or the voices of terrified and shocked people in New York crying, running, saving themselves. As I mentioned before, living in a multimedia culture is both a blessing and a curse. People caught in the Twin Towers knowing that there is no way to survive, called their loved ones before the buildings collapsed. Passengers on United 93 were even longer aware of their impending death, so they took the chance to say a proper goodbye to their loved ones; a “haunting privilege” as Seidel calls it (94). Outsiders, who are not directly affected by the events still feel touched and it

The people walk the streets of New York talking about neurotic First World Problems in a typical, silly, Allenesque humor. Stating above, the sounds of people screaming and bodies crashing on the floor needed to be faded out of the minds. Thus, Allen decided to display the sounds of the city the way he knows and loves it. In Manhattan, the male protagonist Isaac complains “the people in Manhattan are constantly creating these unnecessary neurotic problems for themselves because it keeps them from dealing with the terrible, unsolvable problems of the universe” (Allen, Manhattan). Sounds from a Town I Love is based on these exact people but now it seems rather like an appreciation for their quirkiness than a criticism. Woody Allen opens and closes the short film with a declaration of love for the city when the first person says on the phone “this is the greatest city in the world. Where else can you be so paranoid and right so often?” The film then ends with a message from Woody Allen saying “I love this town.” It seems that being a New Yorker apparently comes with a certain sense of territorial

For the first time, he accepted an invitation to the annual Academy Awards in Los Angeles. It was the first show following 9/11 and thus had a rather melancholic and grieving mood. Allen was not nominated that year but he was asked to introduce a short film called Love Letters to New York in the Movies, a collection of film clips from several popular films set in New York from each era. He came for his love for the city and made the audience laugh with his cynical and self-deprecating wit. It seems as if Allen was able to take the audience’s minds off of the horrible events. By delivering a witty monologue he proves to be the right kind of ambassador for New York, as Whoppi Goldberg calls him, a “New York landmark”. Allen belittles himself joking that he was unsure why the Academy had called. He thought they wanted to collect his Oscars or apologize for not nominating him that year. After explaining the purpose of the phone call, that they needed someone to introduce the film, Allen tried to persuade the Academy that there are more suitable filmmakers than him but apparently “they were not available”. Allen proceeds with a very honest tone, that “for New York City, [he]’ll do anything”. Therefore, his admiration and emotional attachment to the city persuaded him to appear. Before introducing the film by Nora Ephron, which starts and ends with scenes from Manhattan, Allen encourages all filmmakers to