It’s often important for an independent feature to know its limitations. When a low-budget film deals with 9/11, it’s even more important. September 12th knows that it could never be more than it is. In its own stirring and emotional way, the film stands out because everything from the performances to the direction is underplayed, making the film its own kind of epic.

I’m not saying that September 12th isn’t a small film. It is. Quite small, in fact, but for one of the first films to address the effects of 9/11 on New Yorkers, it may be better that way. Without tension from terrorism or a preoccupation with heroism, September 12th makes us feel what many a New Yorker must feel on a sincere, human level.

After a memorial service for his sister, Frank (Joe Iacovino) makes a quick exit. It’s been three years since his sister died in the 9/11 attack, and Frank still hasn’t come to terms with his feelings toward his sibling. A lawyer who approaches the rest family after the service just makes the experience even worse. At the wake, Frank has a few beers, enough to prohibit him from driving home. His deceased sister’s fiancé Rick (James Garrett) is put in charge of giving Frank a ride.

Frank is a bit down on his luck, it turns out, and so he is forced to stay the night at Rick’s apartment. This thrusts Frank into confronting his strained relationship with his sister, his own inner demons, and one lawyer who isn’t looking for a simple pay day.

The lawyer (played by Ernest Mingione) is an important player in the film, and not just from a narrative standpoint. No, Mingione puts everything on the line with the naked emotion that makes September 12th significant. It's impossible not to look at this film and feel the cathartic purpose it has. With a cast of New York actors, September 12th is able to draw from a place that no other film about the effects 9/11 could even hope to see.

The acting isn’t the only driving force here, though. There are dramatic technical feats that propel the film, as well. The day to night to dawn cinematography is striking. It's not just impressive because of the metaphoric narrative guide. It’s more impressive because I have never seen lighting and photography used so well in digital filmmaking. John Touhey and his crew successfully create a psychological journey, from the bright, surreal light to the noirish, revelatory dark that works because the digital medium is intimately combined with Iacovino’s harrowing lead performance.

A friend of mine in college was from Brooklyn and described to me once her reaction to 9/11. It was decidedly distinct from the others that I had heard. It wasn’t an Erie or Cleveland or Kansas reaction. It was her New York reaction. September 12th works the same way.

Hollywood will make movies for the rest of the country, but this film, John Touhey’s remarkable first feature, is made for New Yorkers. While it’s not an angry film like Spike Lee's post-9/11 film The 25th Hour , September 12th gains its place alongside the subgenre of New York films as a dramatic ode to those lost. That sentiment makes glad this film came around before the rest. If anyone deserved to be heard first, it is New York.

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