Written for and first published by Litnet.

That the US government (or any other government for that matter) covers things up and mostly gets away with it should not come as a surprise to anyone. That the US uses their cover-up to glorify their cause, to market their war, that I still find appalling.

In a nutshell

Pat Tillman is living the all-American dream. He has a beautiful wife and a promising career as an NFL player. He surprises his far from conventional family by giving it all up and enlisting in the army. He is sadly killed in action in what is first reported as an effort to save many lives. He is branded a hero and his face and story splashed across national TV.

However, the story is untrue.

Mood of the film

It is an intriguing look at an unconventional family who thought for themselves and did not blindly follow “God and country”.

Best performance

Pat Tillman comes across as the most intriguing character. Thanks to his very public career as an NFL player there is more than enough footage to give the viewer a glimpse into his character. Also from stories told by friends, family and fellow soldiers he appears to have been a quirky, lively, very committed young man who never wanted fame.

Stand-out scene

Pat’s baby boet gets up at his funeral, glass of beer in hand, and looks all the high and mighty generals and ministers in the eye. They’d all said the same thing: their thoughts are with the family, Pat is with God, it was God’s will, etc, etc. So, glass of beer in hand, knowing his brother Pat did not believe in God, baby boet bravely challenges them all by saying, “He’s not with God. He’s fucking dead, man. He’s fucking dead.”

Negatives

The film could have been a tad shorter.

Is the film relevant today?

Do I need to answer that?

Details

Title:The Tillman Story
Director: Amir Bar-Lev
Starring: Pat Tillman
Runtime:1hr 34 min
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 92%
Reney’s Score: 92%