Where Client 9 excels is in ferreting out the previously unknown details of Spitzer’s story. While much of the press attention surrounding Spitzer’s extramarital dalliances focused on escort Ashley Dupre, Gibney reveals that he actually had a much more substantial relationship with another escort, identified in the film only as “Angelina.” Gibney also lays out a pretty good case for the idea that the federal investigation into the Emperors Club VIP escort service that eventually brought about Spitzer’s fall was a political hit orchestrated by Republican enemies (although it must be noted that all of the evidence pointing to this conclusion is circumstantial at best).

(photo: director Alex Gibney, courtesy of Cathryne Czubek)

When asked to describe his film, director Amir Bar Lev is likely to describe THE TILLMAN STORY as an examination of a competing set of narratives. The one put forth by the military immediately following Tillman’s death in Afghanistan—and quickly adopted by a complicit, unquestioning media—sought to lionize him as a killed-in-action war hero for cheap political gain. That reductive narrative mythologized Tillman as a prototypical ur-patriot so committed to the ideals of democracy and America that he was willing to forgo fame and riches to exact revenge for the 9/11 terrorist attacks against the U.S. But, despite the Bush administration’s attempts to shoehorn Tillman into a narrative befitting its Manichean worldview, the truth surrounding his life and death didn’t fit neatly into the storyline laid out by the Defense Department. The reality of Tillman’s death was much messier, and lay somewhere in a box of thousands of military documents dumped by the government on his grieving mother.

What is interesting and compelling about the The Tillman Story is the unwillingness of Tillman’s family to be complicit in joining this manufactured narrative. The portrait of Tillman that emerges in the film is one a close examination of any person would reveal: a man swaddled in complexity and contradictions, inexorably reduced to a caricature by a ham-fisted media. Levi, to his credit, gamely accepts the difficult task of telling the story of Tillman as accurately as possible, knowing that even he will undoubtedly end up distilling the man to parts that cannot quite capture the whole. Following the screening, STF Artistic Director Thom Powers spoke with Bar-Lev.  See below for Q&A.

(Image provided by the evening’s co-presenter THE FILM PANEL NOTETAKER)

Carrying the STF card is a sign of your support for bringing great documentaries to the theater. You’ll see sneak previews months before the rest of the public, discover rare work that you might never see again, meet the filmmakers, and fraternize with NY’s documentary community. Browse the STF Archives to get a sampling of our past; and sign up for a season pass to participate in our future. 

If that’s not enough to motivate you, consider 7 more reasons:

(photo: director JK Wasson with film subject Jutta Cords, courtesy of Cathryne Czubek)

MARWENCOL, winner of SXSW Grand Jury Prize, uncovers a story that truly embodies “stranger than fiction.” Mark Hogancamp, who suffered a brutal beating, finds a therapeutic outlet by staging dolls in World War II era costumes. Starting out as a personal project, his work gets discovered by the art world and his story takes unexpected turns. STF honors another one-of-a-kind artist Harvey Pekar (who recently died) by presenting the innovative documentary and fiction hybrid AMERICAN SPLENDOR, based on his comic book. The Q&A will feature several members of the film’s creative team including actor Paul Giamatti. Other STF fall highlights include the first NYC sneak previews of ON COAL RIVER and SURVIVING HITLER: A LOVE STORY, featuring their directors visiting from out of state; and a revival of MARLENE the classic documentary about Marlene Dietrich, directed by Maximilian Schell, for a rare chance to see it on the big screen.

“This season will mark STF’s sixth year,” said Artistic Director Thom Powers who also serves as the documentary programmer for the Toronto International Film Festival and the new DOC NYC festival. “We have a little of everything: art, politics, sex, glamor, activism, emotion, travel and history. Many of these titles have won acclaim at festivals such as Sundance, SXSW and Silverdocs. We’re pleased to bring them to New York audiences. As the STF t-shirt says, ‘Tuesday is the new Friday.’”

(Season passes now on sale at early bird rate through Thurs. Sept. 16; Individual tickets go on sale Fri. Sept. 17, subject to availability)