The Twin Towers are a literal structuring absence in 25th Hour, and so it's only fair to interpret the film within the wider meaning and subsequent implications of 9/11. For one thing, not taking the George Washington Bridge in order to go into hiding before the end could be interpreted more broadly as a lesson for what the United States should now do after the Towers came down — i.e. liberals should do the tough but 'adult' and noble thing of supporting the troops in the Middle East…who will, ironically enough, end up being there for about seven years, the same length as Monty's prison sentence. Jonathan Rosenbaum called this a "paean to ethnic vaudeville," and for me, 25th Hour seems to contain everything that's disagreeable with NYC's conception of itself.
Synopsis: In New York City in the days following the events of 9/11, Monty Brogan is a convicted drug dealer about to start a seven-year prison sentence, and his final hours of freedom are devoted to hanging out with his closest buddies and trying to prepare his girlfriend for his extended absence.