REVIEW: ‘The Tillman Story’

You may remember your high school teacher asking you to write a narrative, generally a story relating an event, which may or may not be completely true.  In Amir Bar-Lev’s documentary “The Tillman Story,” Pat Tillman’s family considers the elaborate story the U.S. government created surrounding the death of their loved one to be just such a questionable tale.  Throughout the film, Tillman’s family and friends call the story the government released and the press perpetuated a fiction, at one point saying the eulogy given at Tillman’s San Jose memorial service was “based on a Silver Star narrative”.

The film, nominated for the Grand Jury Prize at Sundance, begins with a promo clip Tillman recorded for his NFL career.  He states his name and position, and then stares at the camera.  Uncomfortably, and for far too long.  As it turns out, the cameraman told him to do so, and he did.  The effect is unsettling, similar to that of the movie poster.  Pat Tillman is often shown staring at us – the audience – not quite accusingly, but more with pride as we voyeuristically delve into the details of his death, and life.  (Note that the film ends with a similar shot of Tillman’s mother, the camera lingers just a little too long, until the audience, embarrassed at how much of her life we’ve witnessed, turns away first.)

Tillman is presented as having wanted to be treated like any other soldier, and his family repeatedly says they want to be allowed to grieve in private, but the government and press did not allow them this simple honor.  Yet, to be fair, neither do the filmmakers.  Tillman was no ordinary soldier, his death no ordinary death.  Pat Tillman was a football star, first for Arizona State University and then for the Arizona Cardinals, who gave up a multi-million dollar pro football contract to join the military.  From the day he enlisted, (which was not, as the press has led us to believe, the day after 9/11) military officials sent out memos that Tillman was a soldier to keep an eye on.

Tillman’s death was first reported as a heroic incident where he sacrificed himself to save his fellow soldiers, one of whom was his younger brother Kevin.  Eventually, the family and the world learned that Tillman was actually a victim of friendly fire.  The documentary traces the Tillman family’s struggle to get to the actual truth, and locate someone in the military who will take responsibility for the cover-up, and for using their son and his death as a publicity tool.

Bar-Lev interviews other soldiers as well, most of whom were told to stay quiet by the military, including somewhat sinister comments like “your career’s on the line, don’t tell…what happened”.  Also interviewed are neighbors and a blogger named Stan Goff, who helped Tillman’s mother sort through the 3,000 pages of documents the military gave her, in hopes the overwhelming task would quiet her.  Goff, comparing Tillman’s story to that of Jennifer Lynch, whose own incident was quickly disproven, says “If you want to get the public to co-sign (military action) you have to give them something they’re willing to co-sign.”  According to the director, the rescue of Lynch was delayed so a combat camera crew could record the events, and Tillman was among the soldiers setting up the perimeter for that attempt.  Goff also believes both soldiers fell victim to “the perception management aspect of the war”.

Bar-Lev displays military documents from the Tillman investigation, including comments from soldiers involved regarding why they unknowingly fired on their own men (summarized by “I was excited,” and “I wanted to stay in the firefight”).  One soldier even says that when 9/11 occurred they were “pumped because we knew we were gonna go to war”.  In their defense, the director reminds us that these are not, in many cases, mature adults, but teenagers.  Goff, a Vietnam veteran, recalls how young soldiers are always focused on “giving a practical demonstration of their masculinity…it’s like a locker room atmosphere”.

“The Tillman Story” effectively shows that a cover-up of the friendly fire incident went all the way to the highest positions in our government, and when investigated by Congress, cabinet members and multi-star generals denied ever having seen memos reporting Tillman’s death, if they admitted receiving them at all.  Even a convenient retiree couldn’t provide the military the scapegoat it appeared to desperately need to reach any sort of conclusion regarding the matter.

In the end, Tillman’s mother says it’s “immoral” for the government to have turned a young man with honorable intentions into a propaganda tool.  The precipice Bar-Lev walks (rather steadily) is for the audience not to realize that he has done exactly that.  Propaganda is propaganda, no matter whose side you’re on.  “The Tillman Story” is a film that deserves to be seen for this very reason: to understand the techniques both governments and documentary filmmakers use to manipulate emotions and perceptions.