SXSW Review: Colin Hanks' Insightful Tower Records Documentary 'All Things Must Pass'

While the title of Colin Hanks' directorial debut documentary, "All Things Must Pass," refers to the message on the marquee that the employees of Tower Records left for their customers at their Sacramento store after it closed, it's also the name of George Harrison's classic album, the kind of artifact the late great music store was designed to sell. The triple LP, released in 1970, came housed in a beautiful cardboard box, something of a novelty at the time for rock records, when gatefold covers were the norm for multiple discs. But All Things Must Pass is the perfect example of the tactile experience of buying music that today's era of streaming and downloads has lost. Indeed, all things must pass, and no one knows that more than Tower Records. Hanks' insightful tribute to the retailer, and chronicle of their history, is the story of the music industry, who had it all, and believed the good times would last forever, only to see it all slip away.

The documentary kicks off...