In a way, it will always be “too soon” for a documentary about the tragic elementary school shooting in Newtown, Connecticut.

Jezza Neumann’s film shows a community ripped apart by the cataclysmic event, and there’s something uncomfortably voyeuristic about watching these families give blow-by-blow accounts of the day in the film’s first act.

Things get more hopeful – and more interesting – in the final third, as we see parents and siblings of the victims rallying to help their communities, but there’s a noticeable lack of attention given to the gun control debates which continue to rage on.

Surviving Sandy Hook has a noble aim, showing grieving families as they try to find closure, but without a political view it only manages to poke at still fresh wounds.

RATING: 3/5

INFORMATION

DIRECTOR: Jezza Neumann

SYNOPSIS: Filmed around the first anniversary of the Sandy Hook shootings, this documentary is an examination of how people make amends, and questions America’s gun control.

Sheffield Doc/Fest 2015 runs from June 5th-10th. Tickets are still available, and One Room With A View’s coverage will continue throughout the festival.