'Tillman Story' shows how death was whitewashed

There's little new information in "The Tillman Story," a step-by-step account of the official whitewash that followed the death of former NFL player Pat Tillman in Afghanistan in 2004. Reporters have ferreted out the real story, and Jon Krakauer wrote a book, "Where Men Win Glory," that covered the case.

Still, a documentary allows us to see the people involved, hear their voices and witness the places that a book can only describe. On that score, "The Tillman Story" brings its tale to life.

Pat Tillman made headlines when he quit his successful NFL career with the Arizona Cardinals and volunteered for military duty after Sept. 11, 2001. Many others made sacrifices, but Tillman was a high-profile person, so the admirable act got a lot of publicity.

Publicity also followed Tillman's death, but of a much more orchestrated kind. Within days of his death by gunfire on a hillside in Afghanistan, an elaborate memorial service was held, with John McCain delivering the eulogy. Tillman was posthumously awarded the Silver Star.

The military might have buried him at Arlington National Cemetery, except for his own explicit wishes -- perhaps he sensed somebody might have an interest in exploiting his celebrity.

When the facts came out that Tillman had been killed by "friendly fire" in a chaotic situation that might not have involved any enemy combatants, Tillman's family was quick to sense the coverup.

As "The Tillman Story" argues, they were right. Tillman's parents, and his brother Rich, speak at length in the film about the ways their search for the truth was stymied by government and military officials.

Curious by his absence is Pat Tillman's other brother, Kevin, who enlisted in the service with him. He's also been highly critical of the official handling of the case, and is seen in footage at a Senate hearing on the subject -- but director Amir Bar-Lev ("My Kid Could Paint That") ought to explain his absence in the interviews here.

It's a disturbing story (insultingly rated R for language -- more on that below) that, frustratingly, still doesn't have closure. The military had its fall guys, but questions remain about how high the planning went.

The film, narrated by Josh Brolin, creates a few indelible character studies. Pat Tillman himself was much more complicated than his jock image might suggest; he was intellectually curious, widely read and had developed a very thoughtful approach to his belief system, which was atheism.

His mother, Mary, is from the "Norma Rae" mold. One observer suggests that the military meant to forestall her constant questioning by burying her in an avalanche of paperwork surrounding her son's death. It was a massive underestimation of her determination, as she parsed the thousands of pages of documents for the untruths contained there.

The feistiness of the Tillmans is seen in footage from the memorial service. After hearing McCain and Maria Shriver invoke God and heaven in their speeches, Rich Tillman took the podium, beer in hand, and told the crowd, "Pat isn't with God. He's (expletive) dead. He wasn't religious. So thank you for your thoughts, but he's (expletive) dead."

The expletive used was a Tillman household favorite, as the movie explains. "The Tillman Story" captures a most unusual family, under tragic circumstances.