Pat is not more important or special than any of the others
who have fought in these wars, but the truth of what happened
to Pat — and to every soldier who has died — is important.
The truth shines a light on systematic corruption, incompetence
and lack of accountability in the military and in government.
~ Mary Tillman, Mother of Pat Tillman
With Army Ranger Pat Tillman's headline-making death by so-called "friendly fire" in 2004, truth was lost somewhere in the unforgiving, mountainous terrain of Afghanistan.
Tomorrow, August 20, Amir Bar-Lev, director of My Kid Could Paint That (2007), releases his new documentary, The Tillman Story. The filmmakes goes in search of the facts of how Tillman died, uncovering and exposing in the process the now-known government effort to make propaganda of the former pro-footballer's death. Coinciding with the film's release is the re-release of Boots on the Ground by Dusk: Searching for Answers in the Death of Pat Tillman (Modern Times, 2008), by Mary Tillman, Pat Tillman's mother.
The trailer for the film, narrated by actor Josh Brolin, is below. (Note: The audio for this video and the next video has been programmed to start immediately. Simply click one off to hear the other.)
In this clip, Bar-Lev, who had access to family members, talks of how he shot his documentary:
"The truth", said Oscar Wilde, "is rarely pure and never simple."
About Pat Tillman, the complex questions of what is truth and what is fiction remain unresolved.
Resources
"Rumsfeld Says He Was Not Involved in Cover-Up of Tillman Death", PBS NewsHour, August 1, 2007
"Soldier: Army ordered me not to tell truth about Tillman", CNN.com, April 25, 2007
Jeffrey Brown, "Conversation: Director Amir Bar-Lev Tells 'The Tillman Story' in New Documentary", PBS NewsHour Art Beat, July 9, 2010 (Transcript and Video)
CBS News, "Pat Tillman's Mom: McChrystal Helped in Cover-Up/Mary Tillman: Pat's Death Isn't an Isolated Case; Many Military Families Not Getting Full Story About Kids' Deaths", August 16, 2010
Sam Stein, "Pat Tillman's Father to Army Investigator: 'F--- You...And Yours' (Exclusive), The Huffington Post, August 12, 2010
Mary Tillman, "Pat Tillman's mother on Army Gen. Stanley McChrystal: I told you so", Los Angeles Times, August 8, 2010
Toni Monkovic, "Revisiting the Pat Tillman Story, and McChyrstal's Role", The New York Times, June 23, 2010
Eugene Hernandez, "Tillman Doc Coming to Theaters; Weinstein Makes Deal for Sundance Hit", IndieWIRE, February 5, 2010
Ari Karpel, "Documentaries Look at Mistruths in Wartime", Indiana Gazette.com, August 16, 2010
"ASU Remembers Pat Tillman" (YouTube Video)
Pat Tillman Foundation (Foundation's Page on FaceBook)
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4 comments:
Wow, thank you for posting this. I admire his parents so much for pushing this issue and dredging up what must be incredibly painful feelings for the truth to be told.
Mary Tillman just re-released "Boots on the Ground"as a paperback with self-publishing company Blurb. She's donating all the proceeds to the Pat Tillman Foundation, and Blurb is donating an additional $1 for every book sold.
Oscar Wilde had it right.
and every parent deserves/needs the truth when their child is killed.
someday we will all get the truth that's a comin'.
thank God for his mercy.
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