A bright shining lie / HBO pictures presents a Bleecker Street Films production ; a film by Terry George ; director of photography, Jack Conroy ; producer, Greg Ricketson ; executive producer, Lois Bonfiglio ; screenplay by Terry George ; directed by Terry George.

The story of LTC John Paul Vann (Paxton) and his work as a military and civilian advisor in Vietnam over a ten year period (1962-72) until his death in an accidental helicopter crash. As a military advisor, Vann attempted to fight corruption in the Vietnamese army, recognizing the need to build trust among the Vietnamese peasantry. When his recommendations were ignored by the U.S. military, he exposed falsified battle reports and other deceptions to a New York Times reporter, effectively ending his military career. As the war escalated, however, Vann returned to Vietnam as a civilian advisor under Nixon's "Vietnamization" program, ending as the defacto commander of Vietnamese forces in the successful defense of the Central Highlands during the 1972 Easter Offensive. The film also examines Vann's character flaws, the chief of these being his adulterous nature and affairs with Vietnamese women which resulted in a forced marriage to a Vietnamese schoolgirl whom he had gotten pregnant.

MPAA rating: R.

Bill Paxton, Amy Madigan, Vivian Wu, Donal Logue, James Rebhorn, Kurtwood Smith, Les J.N. Mau, Ed Lauter, Harve Presnell, Xuyen Dangers, Kay Tong Lim, David Warshofsky, Robert John Burke, John Lafayette, Richard Libertini, Eric Bogosian.