It is...praise-worthy that this documentary gives spotlight to...unlikely heroes...[and], for once, the focus here is not a shooter, but people affected.

| Original Score: 3.5/5 | Aug 12, 2024

Tower is art, and necessary art for our time.

| Jun 18, 2024

A harrowing combination of archival footage, interviews and animation.

| Original Score: A- | Aug 29, 2021

Beautifully rendered and emotionally heartbreaking, Tower is truly one of 2016's must see documentaries.

| Original Score: 4.0/4.0 | Sep 26, 2020

The impact is astonishing and utterly eerie.

| Apr 28, 2020

Although Tower is made with consummate skill and artistry that rivals some of the best fictional films of this year, the event it depicts is nothing but the worst nightmare played out in reality.

| Sep 27, 2019

The survivor's tale.

| Aug 19, 2019

Tower is an incredibly important film that doesn't feel self-important despite its extremely stylized take on the shooting. Its style is integral to its emotional core.

| Original Score: 4.5/5 | Aug 7, 2019

This wasn't just a gimmick but a way to feel immersed in what was going on that could never be achieved through stale photos or live action reenactments.

| Original Score: A | Mar 21, 2019

A fascinating and harrowing story told with style and respect, Tower is an unmissable snapshot of American history, told through the eyes of some inspiring heroes.

| Original Score: 4/5 | Mar 8, 2019

The shooting is brought to life without being trivialized, the survivors venerated and mourned without being reduced to mechanical talking heads.

| Original Score: A- | Dec 27, 2018

Thanks to abundant footage, director Keith Maitland reconstructs the whole standoff. Every blank is filled with animation, which adds to the growing tension and uneasiness.

| Original Score: 4.5/5 | Dec 11, 2018

...these are stories of confession and healing, a moment of catharsis for the story-tellers themselves.

| Original Score: 5/5 | Dec 9, 2018

This is good work, though. Very memorable, very moving, and without an ounce of unnecessary fat.

| Original Score: 3.5/5 | Oct 5, 2018

The overall absurdity of the piece left me numb beyond belief. Why stop here? Why not a claymation recreation of the events of 9-11? Or Jiminy Cricket in Steven Spielberg's When You Wish Upon Auschwitz?

| Oct 3, 2018

Tower illuminates important truths about the human capacity for good (and evil) and self-sacrifice that make it an especially important and timely film for our era of ever-increasing mass shootings.

| Sep 13, 2018

Although its last half hour doesn't come through as expected and the film changes its tune dramatically by looking at the aftermath of the event, the first hour is well worth a watch.

| Sep 12, 2018

Combining rotoscoped reenactments of the tragedy with actual news footage and survivor recollections, Maitland creates an astonishing sense of immediacy as we experience the chaos and terror of the attack.

| Sep 12, 2018

It's a sobering, even stirring, film.

| Original Score: 8.5/10 | Sep 12, 2018

You feel like you were there that day from the perspectives of the principal players.

| Original Score: 9.5/10 | Sep 12, 2018