49 Pulses

By: Amos Lassen

"49 Pulses"

We Can Never Allow Ourselves to Forget

Amos Lassen

When I first heard about this film, I was not sure that I really wanted to see it. What happened in Orlando at Pulse was difficult and although I never wanted to forget it, I was not sure I wanted to see it again.

On June 12, 2016, a gunman walked into a crowded nightclub in Orlando, Florida and shot 102 people, murdering 49 of them. At 2:00 AM, the Pulse nightclub was winding down its weekly Latino night. The building was dark, crowded, and loud. Patrons were making plans to leave when a gunman, who began firing in every direction, ambushed them. Customers tried to escape, but the killer followed them. For the next three hours, he terrorized victims while playing hide and seek with the police.

Filmmaker Charlie Minn tries to answer several questions that remain unanswered about the tragedy of that night and these include why the perpetrator chose Pulse nightclub and why it took over three hours for police to stop him. Through his interviews with the survivors, police, family members, and city officials, Minn pieces together how one of the largest mass shooting in American history took place.

Minn says that he made the in order to honor the victims. "I am fully aware of the sensitivity surrounding the tragedy and would never make such a movie unless it was to pay tribute to the victims by telling their stories of humanity and heroism."