The chicanery of the Bush administration revealed: The Tillman Story

The documentary film "The Tillman Story" is great for the material it presents, though it's definitely no groundbreaker or landmark in documentary filmmaking. But for the information alone, everyone ought to see it: a terrific account of how the U.S. Army covered up the truth about the death of Pat Tillman in Afghanistan so that they could have a story of heroism in battle to help sell the war and stir faux patriotism. Gradually, the truth came out that Tillman was killed by other U.S. forces. By reading between the lines or seeing between the frames, we can discern that the Tillman episode was similar to the Jessica Lynch story: a narrative cooked up by the military for their own purposes (ironically, Tillman was on the periphery of that rescue). Movie makes plain that Tillman was completely disillusioned about the war by the time he was shot. Also makes clear that the Tillman fakery and cover-up had to be known by and approved by top-level military. Stunning stuff - but where the film falls short is, first, had basically no access to anyone outside of the Tillman family and their closest supporters, so the killer interview with a Rumsfeld (or a Cheney) just isn't there, though there's good usage of the footage of Rummy testifying before Congress. Second, there's not a great deal of tension here, as all of us know the basic facts already, so it's not a documentary that reveals much that's new along the way or at the conclusion. It does, however, place on the documentary record for all time solid evidence of the chicanery of the Bush administration, and for that it's a truly valuable piece of work.