The true story of attorney Ken Feinberg and the
development of the 9/11 Victims Compensation Fund. BIOPIC/DRAMA
|
Worth (2021)Directed by Sara Colangelo
Written by Max Borenstein Starring Michael Keaton, Amy Ryan, Stanley Tucci, Tate Donovan, Shunori Ramanathan, Talia Balsam, Laura Benanti, Chris Tardio |
Making films about 9/11 is tricky. There's a fine line between honesty and propaganda, and many of the films made about this tragic event have difficulty finding their own identity within those parameters. World Trade Center, United 93, and Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close come to mind as films that, while well-meaning, were far more dramatic and Hollywood-esque than they needed to be. Worth leans more towards the honest side of the spectrum, with Michael Keaton, Amy Ryan, and Stanley Tucci keeping this story grounded in humanity.
Keaton is Ken Feinberg, an attorney whose firm is known for developing compensation for survivors of disasters. He has assigned monetary value to human life his entire career, and now he's been hired by the government to develop the 9/11 Victims Compensation Fund. At first, Ken develops an economic formula, which just pisses off the victims' families when the monetary value of a CEO grossly outshines that of a janitor. Over time, he and his team start to realize that everybody's story is different, and these are real human beings that need closure. Tucci plays a widower who helps Ken come to this realization. The performances are great, and while the film is fairly formulaic, it's still engrossing and emotional. As far as Netflix's 2021 output so far, Worth is one of their best. It's a subtle, nuanced glimpse into the economic fallout of 9/11. We get to see the big corporations who tried to take a colossal bite out of the fund and threatened to destroy it if they didn't get theirs. Some things never change. But Ken Feinberg stood up to them and helped thousands of people find closure in the wake of a national tragedy. That's a story worth telling. |
I forget how long it’s been sometimes. I was only a young kid when it happened. Yet here we are coming up on twenty years since that fateful, tragic day. What am I talking about? Well, simply put, 9/11. A day which would claim the lives of so many innocent people, leaving loved ones wondering how to go on with life, and rock the entire nation to its core. Knowing all that, it wasn’t too long after when the airlines started to care more about not being sued and less about the lives lost. So, they demanded those in the government to come up with a fund to pay off the deceased’s loved ones as opposed to seeking legal action. The problem with something like this is people are worth more than a sleazy, greedy check. Real people lost their lives that day. Thankfully, the person in charge of the fund, Ken Feinberg, would turn it into something meaningful for the families and go on to be in charge of several more funds for various disasters. Worth tells that story.
It’s safe to say most, if not all, biographical dramas rely heavily on performances. Worth is no slouch in this department. Michael Keaton delivers a nuanced, beautiful performance as the aforementioned lawyer in charge of the fund. Seeing him go from looking at this as purely a numbers game to a horrendous tragedy which left many broken is one of the film’s highlights. Not far behind him is Stanley Tucci. He plays a character whose wife died during the attack and has organized a group against the bill. Tucci also delivers a beautiful performance of a man who calmly does what he can for Keaton to see why his fund isn’t gaining traction. Now, because I don’t have a lot of background on this particular subject the film is about, I can’t speak to how faithful it is. So, there could be some embellishment here. Still, the point of the film is never lost in a story which will make you angry one second and sad the next. Worth is, well, worth it. It shines a light on a tragic moment in our country. A moment which was used initially for a greedy, disgusting fund which, thankfully, got turned into something actually good. This is a powerful film backed by some beautifully nuanced performances. |