Let the Fire Burn
Zeitgeist Films | Release Date: October 2, 2013 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
86
METASCORE
Universal acclaim based on 15 Critic Reviews
Positive:
14
Mixed:
1
Negative:
0
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
100
Washington PostAnn HornadayDec 5, 2013
Directed with rigor and sensitivity by Jason Osder, this is the kind of nonfiction film that proves how powerful simple storytelling and a compelling through line can be. Read full review
100
San Francisco ChronicleDavid LewisOct 31, 2013
Whatever you may feel about each side, it's hard to watch as city officials order explosives to be dropped on the MOVE house (which has a bunker on top) - and then sit idly by as the resulting fire burns the entire neighborhood. You'll keep asking yourself: How did it come to this? And hauntingly, no one has any answers. Read full review
100
VarietyRonnie ScheibOct 2, 2013
The brilliantly edited tapestry of actions and reactions exposes a pattern of prejudice and fear capable of infinitely repeating itself. Read full review
100
New York Magazine (Vulture)David EdelsteinSep 30, 2013
Osder has made a documentary that’s astonishingly in the present tense. Read full review
90
Los Angeles TimesKenneth TuranOct 17, 2013
It earns its considerable impact by telling an unnerving story and leaving it, in ways both daring and effective, fundamentally unresolved. Read full review
90
The New York TimesNicolas RapoldOct 2, 2013
Let the Fire Burn relentlessly sustains its tragic momentum. Read full review
88
Boston GlobePeter KeoughOct 31, 2013
In his eloquent, evenhanded, and meticulously constructed debut documentary, Jason Osder stirs the ashes of this tragedy and sheds new heat and light on such timely issues as the abuse of authority and the violation of the rights of citizens, especially the marginalized and powerless. Read full review
88
Slant MagazineBill WeberSep 30, 2013
An unnerving, all-archival account of Philadelphia citizens suddenly terrorized by the unchecked violence of rogue "law and order." Read full review
80
SalonAndrew O'HehirOct 5, 2013
Disturbing and extraordinary new documentary. Read full review
80
The DissolveTasha RobinsonOct 1, 2013
Let The Fire Burn is a fascinating look at official overreaction, government overreach, and the corrupting effects of prejudice on powerful institutions. Read full review
80
Time OutDavid FearOct 1, 2013
A first-rate piece of forensic filmmaking. Read full review
75
Philadelphia InquirerSteven ReaNov 1, 2013
Let the Fire Burn does not glorify MOVE. What it does do is force us to consider why and how this surreal event - a city bombing its own citizens, leaving innocent children dead - occurred. And ask, could something like it ever happen again? Read full review
75
New York PostFarran Smith NehmeOct 4, 2013
The closing subtitle says that no one was ever prosecuted for this madness. The pure-archive approach leaves a taste of despair; civic governance, it seems, can’t even promise not to kill you. Read full review
70
The Hollywood ReporterJohn DeForeOct 7, 2013
The doc could benefit from more information about what led up to that day. Read full review
60
Village VoiceDiana ClarkeOct 1, 2013
There's never enough information. Read full review
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