Without giving too much away (you probably know what to expect anyways) you have to watch this movie in a certain way.  It's basically like the Blair Witch Project or Signs.  What would it be like for you or your friends to go through a disaster.  In most movies you are in a God-like vantage point seeing an event in its entirety.  That's not the case here.  One camera taken around by one guy.  It's the story of normal people during a disaster.

If you were like me during 9-11, I saw stuff on TV and when I heard that the Pentagon was hit, I looked out the window and see a plume of smoke coming from that direction.  It was time to high-tail it out of there. 

That's what this movie is like.  You're not in some all knowing vantage point seeing the disaster.  No, you are placed within the disaster.  It's not about action and adventure, it's about survival and saving the people you love.

It's like Signs vs. Independence Day.  That was an alien invasion.  But one was how it would affect you as an individual. The other was a traditional movie.

Yeah, I'm sure you'd like to see more of what's going on.  But it wanted to be more realistic. In reality, when I was in DC, I wasn't going towards the Pentagon, me along with millions of others, where trying to get the heck out of there.

That's how you have to watch the movie, and I think you'll probably be in for a good ride.