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American Tragedy

Play trailer Poster for American Tragedy 2019 1h 19m Documentary Play Trailer Watchlist
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Tomatometer 0 Reviews 53% Popcornmeter Fewer than 50 Ratings
On April 20, 1999, Columbine High School comes under attack by Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold. Sue Klebold, Dylan's mother, attempts to understand how the son she thought she knew, the son she loved, could willingly be a school shooter.
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American Tragedy

Audience Reviews

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J M Sue Klebold is obviously a very intelligent, empathetic and thoughtful individual, and when the filmmakers just sit back and let her tell her story, this documentary soars and pierces the heart. Unfortunately, they apparently don't trust the viewer's ability to sit back and listen, and I'd estimate a good 20-25% of the movie is filled with needless re-enactments that only serve to detract from the story at hand. It suddenly becomes a DATELINE NBC episode. The back half of the documentary concentrates on the need for as much or more preventive education as compared to post-traumatic education. I agree with this sentiment 1000%, but very little specific suggestions are made. Brief mention is made of gun control and mental health awareness, and there are a couple memorable scenes of children being taught to control their emotions, but that's about it. There is also some awkwardly placed stock footage included that feels almost satirical and completely out of place. I am giving this a slight recommendation on the power of Klebold's moments. She alone is able to bring a unique take on the situation based on her unfortunate circumstances. And some of the recollections she shares are emotional powder kegs. - Jeff Marshall, Movie Blogger (Facebook) Rated 3 out of 5 stars 02/25/24 Full Review jen s This should be required watching for any parent—provides a simple social mandate for preventing mass shootongs. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 02/02/24 Full Review Paul W A very shallow account that focuses exclusively on mental health issues as the sole reason for this abhorrent tragedy. Not one word about gun control. Come on. Rated 1 out of 5 stars 01/09/24 Full Review Amy O Awesome is not an accurate description of my rating of this movie/documentary. The subject is heartbreaking…my heart ached. My rating is of the way the topic was delivered. Tragic. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 07/11/23 Full Review kelmech1 I've read Dave Cullen's book and also Sue Klebold's book about Columbine. I agree with much of the findings that you cannot always predict violence and it's not always the parents' fault, but when they reference Nancy Lanza as if she were blameless I want to punch someone. Nancy Lanza had a severely mentally and emotionally disabled child to whom she gave open access to weapons. The idea that guns would somehow be good for Adam Lanza is so disturbingly bad that the whole movie lost me then. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 04/08/23 Full Review Nancy P When I begin a movie or documentary and see Gravitas Veritas, I know I am about to watch an expertly and dynamic film....every.single.time. I woke up early this morning and saw the advertisement for American Tragedy so I began to watch. Tears began to roll down my face. Understand, his actions were wrong and evil & the acts he committed that day were horrendous and hard to forgive 20+ years later, but this film does an excellent job at looking at every aspect of this horrible tragedy. It gives a deeper, more objective look into this tragedy and others that followed. A real look into mental illness as well as how the system has failed to accurately focus and address effectively how mental illness affects our society. We have been reactionary and not preventative in regards to mental illness. That needs to change and this documentary provides wonderful insight on why and how this needs to happen. Bravo, Gravitas Veritas for opening up a dialog about mental illness. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 01/24/23 Full Review Read all reviews
American Tragedy

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Movie Info

Synopsis On April 20, 1999, Columbine High School comes under attack by Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold. Sue Klebold, Dylan's mother, attempts to understand how the son she thought she knew, the son she loved, could willingly be a school shooter.
Director
Josh Sabey
Producer
Zak Ciotti, Josh Sabey
Screenwriter
Josh Sabey
Production Co
Boldrush!
Genre
Documentary
Original Language
English
Release Date (Streaming)
Jul 5, 2020
Runtime
1h 19m
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