Delayed Reaction: Tower

The Pitch: The story of the 1966 University of Texas shooting...but animated.

I've been on a documentary kick lately. You know, anyone can make up an engaging story. It takes talent to make something true gripping. That's an oversimplification, but there's some truth to it. Tower is a fascinating way to tell the story of the 1966 UT shooting. Keith Maitland uses animation to recreate the events. He mixes interviews of the participants with animated versions of what they looked like at the time and includes actual footage from that day. When I heard that description, I scoffed. Animating those events sounded disrespectful and silly. However, when I watched the film, I was surprised by how well it works. Maitland mixes it well and handles the topic with respect. The movie is halfway through before he uses any current footage of the people and that hits with the intended impact. I was already invested in the story, then seeing the actual people pushed me over the edge. That had tremendous dramatic effect.


What's also impressive is that the movie isn't about the shooter. Look at any film about a spree killing, and there's a point when it tells us that "Charlie Manson was born to an unwed mother on November 12, 1934 in Cincinnati, OH". Tower is not at all concerned on Charles Whitman. His name isn't even mentioned until the film is almost over, and it's only in passing. This film takes a ground-level perspective: what was it like to be down there? I always complain about documentaries injecting too much opinion in them. Tower is smart enough to present the facts and let the audience figure out the rest.

Verdict (?): Strongly Recommend