Documentary filmmaker Nina Davenport was working on a project in San Diego at the time of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Putting everything on hold, she took her camera, got into a car, and drove across America to her New York home, stopping along the way to ask people about their reactions to the tragedies of that horrific day. What she found was a tapestry of deep and sincere emotions, ranging from philosophical profundities on love and death to connections between 9/11 and previous catastrophic events such as the bombing of Hiroshima. Davenport had no problem rounding up a series of less-than-usual suspects (including a minister for a Las Vegas drive-in chapel and a survivor of the Oklahoma City bombing), but her well-intended film essay eventually takes on a methodically multicultural feel, and too often 9/11 itself gets lost in the shuffle (Davenport's visits to event sites are also disappointing, particularly when she is questioned for filming the Pentagon). Parallel Lines, which was shot in November 2001, might have been an effective act of catharsis at the time, but five years after the 9/11 attacks, the film seems vaguely self-indulgent and too close to the moment to pose any genuinely relevant questions on the attacks and its aftermath. Too, while this could have been more effective as a short film, at 98 minutes it seems flabby and frequently inert. DVD extras include an interview with Davenport. Optional. Aud: C, P. (P. Hall)
Parallel Lines
(2004) 98 min. DVD: $26.95. Docurama (avail. from most distributors). Color cover. ISBN: 0-7670-8472-1. Volume 21, Issue 5
Parallel Lines
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