Navy, Marine theaters also decline Tillman film - Marine Corps News | News from Afghanistan & Iraq - Marine Corps Times

Navy, Marine theaters also decline Tillman film

Theaters on Navy and Marine Corps installations are joining those on Army posts and Air Force bases in declining to show “The Tillman Story.”

The Navy Motion Picture Service, which provides movies to theaters on Navy and Marine Corps bases, “do not support and show documentaries at the military theaters,” Rachelle Logan, a spokeswoman for Navy Installation Command, said Thursday.

The same decision was made earlier by the Army and Air Force Exchange Service, which operates the theaters on Army and Air Force bases. AAFES officials said Sept. 3 they will not show the movie, at least at this time.

“The Tillman Story,” which does not portray the Army and Defense Department in a positive light, is the story of Pat Tillman, who left a lucrative career as a professional football player to join the Army in 2002 and was killed in Afghanistan in 2004.

The Army initially said Tillman was gunned down while fighting the enemy and awarded him a Silver Star. For more than a month, officials withheld from his family and the public the fact that he was shot by his fellow Rangers. Investigations still have not uncovered exactly who killed Tillman.

“General audience acceptance drives movie selection at AAFES theaters,” said AAFES spokesman Chris Ward in an e-mail response to questions. “While the military mission is unique, its members represent a cross-section of society, and tastes in the military community generally parallel those of their civilian counterparts.”

Ward said the “The Tillman Story” was released Aug. 20 in just four movie theaters. The same week, “The Expendables,” a big-budget action film starring Sylvester Stallone, was released in 3,270 theaters.

“AAFES selected The Expendables for showing in its theaters,” Ward said.

“The Tillman Story” opened in additional theaters Sept. 3 in New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Washington, D.C. and nine other cities. On Friday, it will be shown in 14 cities; and in an additional five cities on Sept. 17.

“In the end, it’s the general public who dictate the type of movie AAFES procures. Because patronage at the box office is commensurate with audience acceptance, AAFES evaluates box office results and reviews in trade journals when determining the films to book,” Ward said.

“The Tillman Story” was written and directed by Amir Bar-Lev.

Related reading

• No Tillman movie at Army, Air Force theaters