We Are Columbine

It's been 20 years since the Columbine High School Massacre, and this documentary was made by one of the survivors, as she sits down exclusively with a handful of others (including her friends) who were willing to revisit that horrible day. The doc does a good job building up to the event, and each person's account remains surprisingly vivid and terrifying even after all these years. Some of the interviewees haven't walked these halls since it happened, so it's chilling to watch them do so. The doc smartly stays away from asking "Why?" And instead focuses on how these people have healed over the past two decades. It feels very therapeutic.

Greetings again from the darkness. A great many things changed on April 20, 1999. The "Columbine Massacre", a school shooting (and pipe bombs) that resulted in many deaths and injuries, and subsequent copycats, was broadcast live on television for the world to witness. Laura Farber was a freshman at Columbine High School that fateful day, and now, almost 20 years later, she's a filmmaker taking a look at the fallout from such a traumatic event.

Rather than document the progression of events - something that's already been done numerous times - Ms. Farber enlists four of her former classmates, plus a teacher and the school principal to discuss their memories of the day, and more importantly, the impact it has had on their lives since. Gus was the pot smoking slacker. Jaimi was an athlete whose big sister also attended the school. Amy was a cheerleader and social type, and Zach was a studious soccer player. Mr. Zeyba was a first year teacher at the time, and Mr. DeAngelis ("Mr. De") was the school principal. None are especially anxious to revisit those memories, and without the trust they have for Ms. Farber, they probably wouldn't.

With filming set up at an otherwise unoccupied Columbine High School, each of the participants walks us through where they were that day (cafeteria, classroom, etc) and how they remember things unfolding. News clips and a 911 call from that day are replayed, but filmmaker Farber wisely decides against showing the shooters or even mentioning their names. This is about the survivors and as difficult as the conversations are, we get the feeling it's a cathartic exercise for them. We are stunned to hear that they have spoken very little of that day, even to each other or other classmates. There is an "understanding".

This is a very intimate and personal look at how an unbelievably traumatic event can alter the life path of a person. Gus now expresses himself through his rap music. Jaimi is a nurse who values her time with her wife and kids. Amy is a social worker, and Zach is now a teacher at Columbine High School. Mr. Zeyba continues to teach and Mr. DeAngelis continued on as school principal ... after testing numerous fire alarm signals to prevent flashbacks. Each is giving back in their own way after experiencing something most of us can barely imagine. It may not be a traditionally informative documentary, but it's one that brings us as close as possible to what the survivors feel.

This documentary doesn't solely focus on the tragedy that happened April 20,1999 but instead on the lives of a few students that were freshman at the time and what their experiences were before, during, and after the shooting. It was a great perspective to see and I found it just as harrowing as the gory details of that day. I was a freshman in high school at the same time and I remember this day and seeing it all unfold on the news like it was yesterday. I would recommend this film. The only criticism I have is that the film maker didn't tell her story.

To everyone rating this movie low fail to miss the point about why they don't mention the shooters. This was movie was made by one of the survivors and her and everyone she interviewed didn't want to give the shooters the publicity. Every media outlet when they talk about the columbine shootings always focus on the gunmans and this movie was suppose to be different. This movie gets a 10/10 on my book because they talk give you their genuine take on that day and high school. I really recommend watching this if you want a take on what the survivors of Columbine felt before, during, and after that day.

If you go into this movie expecting to have the shooters' motives rehashed yet again, you will be disappointed. First-person shooter video games are already getting your dollars. This movie was made with the intention of showing the effect of trauma, period. Trauma never ends. It changes, it morphs, it waxes and wanes, but it is never over. It is made especially difficult when the nation and the world assume that they know your story because cameras showed up (and did not always correctly report what was going on because they were eager to be the first to get info out before verifying it).