Ricardo De Querol El Pais (Spain) Jul 28, 2023

The Apollo is a song to the importance of building a community and cultural spaces of respite where individuals can feel part of something bigger that includes, welcomes, and embraces them. [Full review in Spanish]

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Carla Hay Culture Mix Jul 11, 2020

The Apollo is an expertly told story that does justice to the Apollo and the people who made the venue great.

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Beandrea July Hyperallergic Feb 28, 2020

Drawing on interviews with theater staff and famous musicians alike, the film's history of this one location is also a cultural history of America.

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Tre'vell Anderson Out Magazine Feb 10, 2020

The Apollo is a necessary chronicling of the history of Black folk and the enduring sociopolitical spirit of our talent, from music to dance to comedy.

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Matt Cipolla The Spool Jan 17, 2020

The trajectory . . . goes for chronology from its foundation to today, but it's uneven in how it examines shifts in the culture that informed the arts that came out of it.

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Caryn James BBC.com Nov 21, 2019

Williams does a terrific job of layering decades of iconic music through the film.

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Glenn Dunks The Film Experience Nov 14, 2019 B

It makes for a film that is both entertaining and poignant...

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Joel Keller Decider Nov 7, 2019

The Apollo is an engaging history of one of New York City's most famous music venues.

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Glenn Garvin Reason Online Nov 4, 2019

Everybody who was anybody in black show business played the Apollo. And now Oscar-winning filmmaker Roger Ross Williams has captured the excitement in an HBO documentary, The Apollo.

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Lael Loewenstein FilmWeek (LAist) Nov 1, 2019

This is one of the best docs I've seen this year.

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Monica Castillo TheWrap Nov 1, 2019

There's probably a multi-part documentary series that could be built out of all that footage that zips by, from Ella Fitzgerald regally singing at the mic to a young Lauryn Hill bombing on amateur night.

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Robert Abele Los Angeles Times Nov 1, 2019

[E]ssential history and quintessential performance expertly woven together to remind us what lasting, vibrant artistry and community looks like.

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Lana Stanczak Film Inquiry Nov 1, 2019

This documentary is an absolute must see for history and music buffs alike.

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Ben Kenigsberg New York Times Oct 31, 2019

While "The Apollo" itself might have taken a more inventive approach, it derives its power from the artistry it captures.

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Leah Greenblatt Entertainment Weekly May 9, 2019 A-

The Apollo feels like both a necessary lesson and a gift.

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Jason Bailey Flavorwire May 9, 2019

Williams eventually pulls his strands together, with an effective and moving juxtaposition of words, images, and history in the closing moments.

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Dwight Brown National Newspaper Publishers Association May 6, 2019 3.5/4

Rarely has a history lesson been so damn entertaining.

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Steve Pond TheWrap Apr 25, 2019

A meditation of African-American identity as manifested in a 1,600-seat theater on 125th Street in Harlem, and a sometimes lyrical, often angry portrait of what happened inside those walls and what it meant.

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Lapacazo Magrira Sandoval New York Amsterdam News Apr 25, 2019

The creation of this vibrant multi-media stage show frames the way in which "The Apollo" explores the current struggle of Black lives in America.

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Chuck Arnold New York Post Apr 25, 2019

While it was a safe place for black artists, "The Apollo" shows just how intimidating that stage could be.

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