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| Charlie Wilson's War | 
| Category: Movie
This item is no longer available
Avg. Customer Rating:  131 reviews
Sales Rank: 9818
Rating: R (Restricted)
Media: Video On Demand
Running Time: 103 minutes
ASIN: B001688V2E
Theatrical Release Date: December 21, 2007
Release Date: October 6, 2008
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| Customer Reviews:
 Loved it! May 9, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Of course, I love just about anything that Philip Seymore Hoffman is in. But it's the entire cast, especially Tom Hanks as Charlie that makes this flik shine. Excellent movie.
Funny, Sexy, and Downright Interesting... May 8, 2008
When director Mike Nichols is attached to a project, actors and studios listen. From The Graduate to The Birdcage, Nichols' eye for a specific brand of snappy and broad-ranging comedy is something to be cherished and respected.
That CHARLIE WILSON'S WAR is based on actual events also makes this story all the more interesting. Taking place in the office of Congressman Charlie Wilson (Tom Hanks, The Da Vinci Code), we're taken on a wild ride of political manipulation that helps defeat communist Russia during the Cold War. Now one might think that such a fantastic thing as eliminating the communist threat would come from an upstanding and righteous man. Not so. Charlie's a womanizing, drinking, and drug-sniffing man who's responsible for a little known congressional district in Texas. But he's also a damn good looking guy, and he's caught the eye of southern socialite Joanne Herring (Julia Roberts, Charlotte's Web), the sixth richest woman in Texas. She implores Charlie to go to Afghanistan and witness the atrocities being committed upon that little-known nation in the name of communism. So Charlie goes and his life is turned around. He comes home and begins pressuring his constituents to place more money and military aid to the freedom fighters in Afghanistan.
With Charlie's ideas comes a gruff CIA agent named Gust Avrakotos (Philip Seymour Hoffman, Capote) who's abrasive demeanor and beer-gut shape is in direct contrast to Charlie's. But the two learn to cope with one another and bring victory to the Afghan fighters.
The most notable performances in the film come not from Hanks, but from Hoffman and Julia Roberts. Philip Hoffman's whip-bang line delivery is astonishing and absolutely hilarious ("What is US strategy?" "Most strictly speaking, we don't have one. But we're working on it." "Who's we?" "Me and three other guys.") And Roberts' performance was quite a surprise. She played the soft but opinionated and strong Ms. Herring exceptionally well, giving one of her finest performances to date. I also enjoyed Amy Adams' (Enchanted) role as Charlie's personal secretary. She was always in the background and always right-on target with her beauty and wit. But even she couldn't stand up to the power that is Philip Seymour Hoffman (he definitely deserved the Oscar nod he got this year for his performance here).
This is a funny, sexy, and downright interesting story that few people probably know about. One can't help but wonder what new gem Nichols might be working on now and who will be in its cast.
Fascinating version of history May 8, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Strong acting and a great plot-line captivated my attention from start to finish. I knew nothing about Charlie Wilson or the story when I sat down to watch it and whether it was all true or not, I was impressed.
Unintended consequences... May 5, 2008
are the results of the actions of the pricipals in this historical drama. But great acting propels this story. A party animal for congress is not necessarily a bad thing, as Charlie Wilson proved. He was also a worker and a fighter for his causes. A few more like him might really accomplish something. Of course drinking & coke can also be traits that give us doltish presidents.
 simple minded May 4, 2008
Presentaion = excellent, ending = basically hollow. If the importance of the subject matter were not so enormous, then it would be an easy matter to just give this film a pass as an entertaining success... which in many ways it is. Perhaps the movie title could have been 'Charlie Wilson's Unfinished War' or 'How An Amateur Texas Politician Helped Send Several Billion Dollars Of Weapons Into A Region They Really Knew Nothing About Without Regard For The Consequences'. That's where the rub lies at the end, and it's presented as if we were a mere $1 million in school investments away from success, when of course we weren't.
All of the performances are great, the dialoque is snappy, and the girls are beautiful. It's the end result and a couple of minutes of reflection that leaves the viewer a bit uneasy. In the bonus features the real life Joanne gives away the deeper motivations with her assessment of Soviet intentions, domino theory, and the risk to oil routes (as mentioned by Roberts in the film). Charlie is presented as a heroic film, but the larger aims and issues are far more complex than that. It would have been nice if the real Charlie would have gathered up all of the US donated guns, RPGs, missles and mines after 'mission accomplished' & before leaving office. Absolutely no mention is made of Bin Laden and company as beneficiaries, of course. Those serious issues deduct 2 *'s from the rating.
AFTER 2nd viewing: It appears at 2nd glance what it seemed at first = a glorification of Reagan era policy... pumping weapons into Soviet contested hot spots. The film begins and ends with Charlie at an awards ceremony on a right wing pedestal.
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