The Unknown Known I know." "The Unknown Known" was screened in the main competition section at the 70th Venice International Film Festival, and premiered at the Telluride Film Festival on August 29, 2013. The documentary has an 84% approval rating on the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, based on 105 reviews with an average rating of 8.2/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "Viewers hoping to see Donald Rumsfeld admit making mistakes in public office may find "The Unknown Known" frustrating – but no less fascinating." On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 69 out of 100, based on 30 critics,
Known and Unknown: A Memoir are highlighted. He describes being in the Pentagon when the hijacked American Airlines Flight 77 slammed into it on September 11, 2001. He recounts staying at his post amid the rubble and groping to determine the significance of the attack. He also remarks that the targeted sectors of the Pentagon were undergoing refurbishment (with many offices unoccupied) and thus many lives were spared. Rumsfeld discusses the longtime problems of his son, Nick, with drug addiction. He recalls when his son checked into a rehab clinic shortly after 9/11, and Rumsfeld, overcome with emotion, breaks down in a meeting with Bush