The USA vs. Bergdahl

The only doc to access Bowe Bergdahl's story

The USA vs. Bergdahl When Bowe Bergdahl infamously walked off his base in Afghanistan in 2009 he was captured by the Taliban and held for five years, tortured and kept in a tiny cage. But the nightmare only continued when he was freed by President Obama in exchange for five Taliban prisoners from Guantanamo. Arriving home, he was vilified in the media as a deserter who collaborated with the enemy. Donald Trump called for him to be shot as a “dirty rotten traitor”. So what is his side of the story? Film-maker Sean Langan gets exclusive access to Bowe Bergdahl and to his parents, presenting a moving story of a family caught in a storm of false allegations, and a soldier who made a mistake and paid a terrible price.

The Producers


BAFTA nominee and British journalist Sean Langan made his name by travelling to many of the world’s trouble-spots – dangerous and volatile environments noted for war, conflict and civil unrest armed with nothing more than a camera. Born in 1964 Sean has been making documentaries since 1997; His first film Video Diaries: Nightmare In Paradise saw him investigate the kidnapping of two British tourists in Kashmir. He joined the relatives of these missing men, who didn’t know if their sons were alive or dead, following them as they took to the streets looking for information and recording their every move with his camera. Ten years later in March 2008, whilst working on a film for Channel 4, Sean was kidnapped in the Afghanistan-Pakistan border region by a group associated with the Taliban after trying to make contact with Al-Qaeda’s second in command. He was freed three months later (21st June 2008) after his family had negotiated his release. The BBC drama The Kidnap Diaries which is co-written by Sean documents this horrific ordeal.

Making The Film


Film-maker Sean Langan was himself held captive for four months by the same group that captured Bowe Bergdahl. He too was locked in a dark cell, interrogated and put through mock executions. In March 2008, whilst working on a film for Channel 4, Sean was kidnapped in the Afghanistan-Pakistan border region by a group associated with the Taliban after trying to make contact with Al-Qaeda’s second in command. He was freed three months later (21st June 2008) after his family had negotiated his release.With his special insight, Langan gets exclusive access to Bowe Bergdahl and to his parents, Bob and Jani.

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