Most undeservingly overhyped movie of all time??

I cannot think of one single thing that I would change about this film. The acting is incomparable, the directing deft, and the writing poignantly brilliant.

In other words,this film is a surreal ride.

It’s fine. It's literally the definition of a fine movie. You’ve seen it before, you know every beat and outcome before the characters even do. Only question is how much escapism you’re looking for.

I love documentaries that provide a historical retrospective of an evolution of an industry and "All Things Must Pass: The Rise and Fall of Tower Records" provides us with a pretty good outline on the rise of Tower Records with owner Russ Solomon at the helm. There is a sufficient amount of nostalgia for us baby boomers to once again reminisce about the good old days of the LP, colorful and some shocking LP covers, record store promotions, upcoming concerts and the bands promotions such as in Tower Record stores. All good nostalgia of a success story for the first 45 minutes or so which certainly shows owner Russ Solomon's willingness to allow his independent stores to seek their own creativity.What I found this documentary did a miserable job in demonstrating is the balance between the 30 year rise of Tower Records and the gradual decline of Tower Records for what is described as two main reasons, the greed of Tower Records trying to control the price point of the LP and subsequent CD, then not realizing soon enough the evolution of technology such as the compact disc (CD), the imminent threat of the world wide web (WWW.) internet and a company called Napster that literally ended up starving the greedy record stores right out of business.I liked the story line of the first half of this documentary which provides the great success story of Russ Solomon, which included a lot of humorous nostalgia commemorating all the good times of the record store industry which even extended to the far east Japanese market. Having said that, I must say that I was disproportionately appalled that the fall of Tower Records overshadowed the greed of Russ Solomon's will to continually expand and just expect his financiers (Banks and investment firms) to trust what worked for the better part of 30 years would continue to work if those mean old banks would just continue to bankroll a dying industry that was inadequately inept at adapting to the evolution of technology and instead believed they could continue milking common music lovers across North America with higher and fixed prices.I would have rated "All Things Must Pass" higher than a 7 out of 10 rating but the balance of power shifted after the first 45 minutes of this documentary into a pity party for poor Russ Solomon and Tower Records who left quite a few of his suppliers, financiers and every day buyers left holding the bag. Tsk tsk to the producers and director for not fairly representing the good, the bad and the ugly of the rise "and the fall" of Tower Records.

The "Rise" portion was nostalgic and interesting. The second half was a load of self-serving baloney: Russ Solomon admitting he made a few mistakes but, if the banks had only continued lending him money without telling him what to do, all would have been well. A bunch of longtime employees kvetching about losing their jobs, but not ONE SINGLE WORD about all the labels and distributors who got royally screwed and are still trying to cope with their losses to this day. I started out as a specialty music retailer in 1974 and, thankfully, am still going strong. I well remember Tower's predatory greediness, demanding ridiculous terms from labels and distributors: six months dating, 100% return privileges. Finally, the labels and distributors had to say 'no' to getting in any deeper. The fact that this painful fact wasn't even mentioned, reminds me of the 'ServPro' motto, "Like it Never Even Happened".

It is not often you see a documentary that combines business, history, music, but most importantly nearly every viewer over the age of 30 living all over the world has a deeply personal connection to the film. The old footage and photos I'm sure have never been seen by many people before, yet we all can relate to nearly everything. Watching this film took me back to my own life experience when I was young. Given Tower had been accessible to so many people on the planet Earth during its existence between the 1960's up until 2004, nearly everyone walked into one of their stores at least once, if not 100 times before they closed their doors. The film does an amazing job of letting the viewer into the private side of Tower Records yet at the same time, celebrates everyone's own unique and personal experience of pursuing their exploration and celebration of the love of music. The interviews with the staff of Tower combined with the first hand accounts of the actual musicians who both made a living selling their records and acquiring records of other musicians they were inspired by is incredibly entertaining. In retrospect, the film is a beautiful time capsule exploring the personal and public history of many generations of music fans, (my generation and probably yours) musicians, music industry insiders, and a poignant experience describing the real life story of the highs and lows of those who started an entire industry told by those who actually lived it. Its a must see for 2016.

Liberation. That is what music is all about. Always has been, always will be. It brings people together, it creates a community, a family. It changes, it evolves, and never dies. This is the central message, the heart, of Colin Hank's tremendous documentary, "All Things Must Pass: The Rise and Fall of Tower Records." Founded in 1960 by Russ Solomon, Tower Records grew to become one of the most monumental record franchises in the history of the industry. From its very humble beginnings, as an extension of Solomon's father's drugstore, to its international expansion, Tower Records was a cornerstone of the musical world for half a century.Load video Hank's explored the history of Tower Records through interviews with those in Soloman's inner circle's of 30 plus years, some from the inception to accounts from music industry giants such as, Bruce Springsteen, Elton John, and Dave Grohl. The store's lax attitude and nonchalant way of business proved pivotal to its success, a business strategy that would sink any business today. Elton John recounts Tower Records being his primary record provider, while Grohl worked at a Tower Records in Washington D.C. before his music career took off and recognized its significance in his musical journey. One particular anecdote that highlighted Tower Record's influence was that when it opened in a particularly desolate neighborhood in Manhattan, the streets flourished and became revitalized in the years following its opening. It is hard to imagine any store, particularly any record store having that power today.The demise of Tower Records also speaks volumes about the last decade of decline in the music industry. Though Napster and the rise of pirating music is notorious for the music industries steady decline, truly the rise in record prices was the downfall of record stores in general, as is touched on in the film. Though not entirely the reason for Tower Records ultimate demise, it was a crucial shift in business. The slow death of the industry staple was an emotional climax of the film, as it truly captured the importance of Tower Records to many individuals who invested their life to be apart of this journey, and family.No music, no life.