Benghazi is back in the headlines … but this time, it’s Hollywood’s version

Michael Bay isn’t known for his sensitivity. The director of “Pearl Harbor” and “Armageddon” is known for repeated and realistic explosions and destruction.

Yet the real men sent on a rescue mission during the Benghazi attacks say his reputation doesn’t do him justice. When John “Tig” Tiegen, Kris “Tanto” Paronto and Mark “Oz” Geist were at the Ritz Carlton in Charlotte on a media tour in December, the three tough guys said Bay was precisely the person to tell their story.

“We made it clear to Michael,” Paronto said. “If he did anything to dishonor the Americans who lost their lives that day, we wouldn’t back the movie. We’d even speak out against it.”

I’d tend to believe the former Army Ranger.

“13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi” is based on Mitchell Zuckoff’s book of the same name. Both the book and the movie cover the events of Sept. 11, 2012 when Islamic militants attacked the U.S. State Department compound and a CIA station called The Annex in Benghazi, Libya.

Tiegen is a former Marine sergeant who spent several years as a security contractor for Blackwater in Afghanistan, Pakistan and Iraq before working for the CIA’s Global Response Staff (GRS).

Paronto, the class clown who wanted to be sure the story mentioned that he’s recently single and available, is a former Army Ranger and private security contractor.

Geist is a former Marine who joined the intelligence field, specializing in interrogation translation, after leaving the Corps. He’s a certified forensic interviewer of children, former chief of police in Fowler, Colo., and now a private investigator, bounty hunter and bail bondsman.

These guys are buff, tough and patriotic. They’re also, it’s fair to say, adrenaline junkies. Even as they speak solemnly about the four Americans killed in the attack, they also say their jobs in such a dangerous part of the world were (surprisingly) fun.

“We enjoy doing this,” Paronto said. “I was having a blast over there. I smile when I see the trailer for the movie. It’s actually therapeutic for me to remember.”

They say the film doesn’t just show what security contractors go through; it also shows the worry and fear their families live with. “All our kids ask us why we don’t do something else (for a living),” said Geist.

They’re also eager for moviegoers to see that military contractors aren’t mercenaries. “Ninety percent of contractors are vets,” Tiegen said. War is hell for soldiers, but it’s no picnic for the security forces, either.

“There’s a brotherhood among contractors, too,” Geist said. “We lost two of our own that day.”

The men were on set in Malta for two weeks to help ensure Bay depicted events accurately. They spent time with the actors portraying them.

Besides honoring the bravery of the contractors sent in to try to save lives, the film also pays homage to the four Americans killed that day: U.S. Ambassador Christopher Stevens; Sean Smith, information management officer with the U.S. Foreign Service; Tyrone “Rone” Woods, GRS operator in Benghazi; and Glen “Bub” Doherty, GRS operator in Tripoli, who was part of the Quick Reaction Force sent after the compound was attacked.

The men who were sent on a rescue mission say Michael Bay got their story right. “Just look at ‘Pearl Harbor,’ Paronto said. “Michael gets heroism. He gets that this group was sacrificing for the greater good.” Paronto said he’s even assured the family members of some of the deceased that Bay handled the story with sensitivity – if not subtlety.

Bay didn’t need to embellish, they say. There was enough drama during those harrowing 13 hours to make an effective action flick. “This is not a stretch,” Paronto said. “This is our story.”

This story was originally published January 12, 2016 at 11:15 PM with the headline "Benghazi is back in the headlines … but this time, it’s Hollywood’s version."