After moderate success with the controversial film World Trade Center, director Oliver Stone sat down for a roundtable phone interview to reflect on the movie as well as the historical event that took place.

The first question on everyone’s mind was whether or not the movie was made too soon due to it being only five years after the incident. Stone replied that although he has tackled topics such as the Vietnam war (Platoon) and the Kennedy assassination (JFK), both were 15 and 20 years after their respective events.

He said the real life police officers John McLoughlin and Will Jimeno — both of whom the true story is based on — aren’t going to be around forever, and he wanted them involved, so he depicted their struggle on Sept. 11 as accurately as possible.

With the release of both World Trade Center and United 93, conspiracy theorists have continued to spread their ideas of the government playing a role in the terrorist attacks. Some expressed disappointment to see that Stone shied away from these theories when creating the film.

“I did it in JFK, and that was not a pleasant experience,” Stone said. “There are theories out there, and I haven’t explored (them), but even if (the theories are true), where we are now, then where we were then … there’s more war, more fear, more death.”

Stone said he wanted to create a film that would tell the story of two brave police officers in hopes that it would help link America back to the human side of the events.

“There are no politics in this movie,” he said. “It’s a story of survival.”

Stone attended five private screenings, which the officers involved in Sept. 11 were also invited to. He saw old officers reunite with some of their former partners at them.

“You had people running into each other five years later,” Stone said. “It was a unique . . . very moving, profound experience.”

After the movie finished, audiences were polled on what they thought of the film. 80 percent of those surveyed said they were satisfied with it.

“I’ve never had a film rated so highly,” Stone said.

Contact ALL editor Andrew Gaug at [email protected].