The dramatic footage showing the implosion of the Pruitt-Igoe housing projects (captured in, among other films, Koyaanisqatsi) are part of our collective memory. At the time of its opening in 1956, the development was presented as the housing project of the future. Two decades later, however, nothing but ruins were left and the “poor man’s penthouse” was no more. Pruitt-Igoe became a symbol of the failure of social housing and urban planning. Using excellent historical footage and thorough research director Chad Freidrichs challenges clichés and sets out to uncover the real reasons behind Pruitt-Igoe’s demise.