A Second Knock at the Door is a documentary on friendly fire in Iraq and Afghanistan.[1][2] The film follows military families after they are told their family member died in a "fratricide" incident.[3] All the families profiled in the film only learned their family member was killed by a comrade, not an enemy, months after they first learned of their death.[4]
A Second Knock at the Door | |
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Directed by | Christopher Grimes |
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Director Christopher Grimes has described being inspired by the official coverup of former sport star Pat Tillman being killed by his comrades.[3]
The film was screened at the Flyway Film Festival in 2011, and the East Lansing Film Festival in 2012.[5][6]
Loved ones of those in the military who lost their lives to “friendly fire” are interviewed about what really happened to cause the deaths.
For Christopher E. Grimes, then a graduate student planning his Master’s thesis in Public Policy at Northwestern University, the case provoked the question: how many other cases like Pat Tillman’s are there? The results of Grimes’ thesis research is the award-winning documentary feature A SECOND KNOCK AT THE DOOR, which shares the heart-breaking stories of four families who have lost loved ones due to friendly fire.
The title, A Second Knock At The Door, is a tell-tale application of the emotions involved in these family’s experiences. After being told that their soldier was killed by mortar fire from an enemy or a car accident they discover, most often months later, that their kin was killed by friendly fire. In some cases the army went to great lengths to cover up the exact details of how the solider [sic] was killed. It is alarming to consider that the U.S. Army would lie about a soldier’s death to save face, but they’re only human.
When I saw A SECOND KNOCK AT THE DOOR, at last year's Flyway Film Festival, I was completely knocked off my feet. This is a powerful documentary which focuses on the issue of American troop fatalities caused by "friendly fire," which is the inadvertent firing on one's own soldiers while engaging with an enemy.
To the government, friendly fire incidents are embarrassing blunders that needn’t be dwelled upon; to the families, the fog and secrecy surrounding their loved ones’ deaths make the pain of loss even worse.
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