When my sister visited (before falling down the stairs, hitting her head and winding up with an out-of-alignment spine, a pinched cerebral artery, and a fractured C-2 vertebrae), I showed The Tillman Story to her, and that was one of the things she thanked me for in an e-mail exchange (we both hate the phone) two hours before her fall.
My son watched it between his visits with friends while he was here in June. He also thought it was really good, and when I told him how quickly it disappeared from theatres, he looked up the distribution. In spite of getting excellent reviews and being about someone who was known all over the nation (as well as about the leaders of our nation!), it played in only 24 theatres! Compare that with "The Hangover," which was playing in 3615 when my son visited. I understand that documentaries are less popular than other movies, but "Fahrenheit 9-11" played on 868 screens at its peak, and even a less publicized documentary like "No End in Sight" played in 108 Theatres. "Inside Job" played in 250 theatres. So what happened with "The Tillman Story"!???
Here are some other interesting comments:
No one among the readers responding to Michael Ordona’s article on what the Academy overlooked for the Oscars this year (January 28, “Oscar Nominations Passed Over Some Worthy Work,”) mentioned The Tillman Story, which Michael Ordona called “the biggest omission” (in the documentary category) and described as “perhaps the most enraging experience at the movies this year.” It was the best movie I saw in any category last year, and it’s one I think is a must-see for those who care about this country and others in the world, so I truly don’t understand this omission. Even though I enjoyed The Kids Are All Right and will be serving tea sandwiches on my grandmother’s best china in honor of The King’s Speech this Sunday evening, I am in mourning that this extremely important and engaging (as well as enraging) documentary has been over-looked. The Tillman family had the courage to insist upon the truth; how sad that the Academy and the public in general hasn’t heard and promoted it.
T.M.
S.K. February 22, 2011
Hi Tina,
I watched the Tillman story between my "flu-haze" Friday evening with my sister. We both were flabbergasted at the atrocities that high ranking officials get away with---i.e. the Army and specially ex-Bush. How does that man sleep at night? The highlight of the movie for me was Pat Tillman Sr. writing the letter and saying F---You at the end. I take strength from people who have the courage to speak their mind and not worry about the consequences. The family showed remarkable courage and perseverance, specially the Mom, and Pat's memory will live on correctly because of their efforts. The Congressional hearings at the end were a mockery of justice and when I see these hearings, I feel soooo helpless, almost as helpless as if I were living in Pakistan and not a democratic country. I am also very angry that the group who were responsible for the "friendly fire" weren't held accountable in any way at all. The movie teaches me to question authority and when instinct tells me something is not right, follow my instincts until I am satisfied with the answers. If nothing else, at least I have made my best effort. Thanks so much for sharing the story; I am very happy you're passing it on to as many people as possible!
S.K.
March 10, 2011
About "Tillman's Story" - watched it today. I'm so glad that the movie was made because the family got SO little from all the "investigations." The worst - or one of the worst - scenes was the generals yucking it up after the House hearing. How nauseating. His story felt like an allegory of the entire war story - total lies and duping from beginning to end. I guess the only reason they didn't say that in the movie is that he did after all enlist to partake in the shenanigans. What I found most curious is why he enlisted and my conclusion, the family is so coy about it, is that he wanted to go into politics. What do you think, Tina? His mother is incredible. Her speech at the hearings is the best - something like, it's not about Pat, it's about what was done to the whole country (world?). She and the kids are really wonderful. Why did that husband divorce her and those fabulous kids? I also was fascinated at how long they were under fire, long enough for Pat and the other two soldiers to have conversations.
It was just boom, bang, it seemed rather drawn out. It should be required viewing in all Civics classes!
Sent: Monday, March 21, 2011 8:23 AM
To: Tina Martin
Subject: Tillman Story
…I also wanted to let you know that I haven't forgotten about "The Tillman Story." Sam's mom Rachelle just borrowed it yesterday and Gladys would also like to see it. I figured you wouldn't mind and would like it if more people saw it, so I hope it's OK with you.
Now, as I'm writing (July 27, 2011), I’m still really concerned about the lack of viewings that The Tillman Story got. Can you believe that it was shown in only 28 theatres, and The Hurt Locker (which I think is more difficult to watch in spite of also being a good film) has gotten more than 500?
How do you explain that?
I bought more than 5 copies of The Tillman Story and have lent it out to my friends, who’ve also passed it on. But I can’t believe that the lack of theatre distribution happened “naturally,” due to viewer preference.
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