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| Charlie Wilson's War | 
| Category: Movie
This item is no longer available
Avg. Customer Rating:  121 reviews
Sales Rank: 3680
Rating: R (Restricted)
Media: Video On Demand
Running Time: 103 minutes
ASIN: B001688V2E
Theatrical Release Date: December 21, 2007
Release Date: October 6, 2008 (New: Last 30 Days)
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| Customer Reviews:
 Entertaining, but hopelessly inaccurate January 14, 2008
14 out of 25 found this review helpful
I'm going out on a limb here as most people adore the film. As an entertaining movie it's okay.
While I'm as far from a prude as humanly possible, one may question Wilson's morality; you may recall the system did that with Bill Clinton to the point that they kept him occupied with it for years. The film brushed aside Wilson's goings-on with some women of dubious moral stature, particularly the filthy rich, ultra-right woman, played by Julia Roberts, who funded many of Wilson's endeavors--and in whom he indulged. The film just brushed aside this behavior, as if it were nothing more than a public relations blunder. I feel uncomfortable with that brush off, as it's what would cause much of the general public to challenge Wilson's stature right off.
(The Washington Post had a lengthy piece on Wilson just about the time the film came out, confirming much of that behavior, though questioning some details, e.g., the cleavage of some of Wilson's staff.)
Other reviewers have gone over the themes of the film so I won't reiterate them. At the end of the film, I was concerned--uncomfortable-- that there was minimal attention paid to the consequences of the Afghanistan maneuvers. Has anyone heard of a Saudi civil engineer and economist by the name of Osama bin Laden? He's one of the consequences. Or "the base?" (In Arabic Al Qaeda?) Another consequence.
So I felt uncomfortable with the film without, frankly, much detail on why I felt that way. Then I was sent a review by Chalmers Johnson in which he referred to the film as an "Imperialist Comedy." Johnson took my discomfort and put far more substance to it. For instance, what I didn't know is that the US involvement in Afghanistan took place before the USSR had invaded. It was an attempt to bring a self-destructive, Vietnam-type experience to the Soviets. While that's at least dubious legally, if not illegal, it's something that needs to be discussed, not disregarged as the film did.
Further, Wilson did all this conspiring without a word from his colleagues or consituency. In this, a democracy? Hmmm. Do your own thing, I guess.
Aaron Sorkin, who wrote the screenplay, had originally included a line from CIA operative Gus Avrakotos, played very well by Phillip Seymour Hoffman, which goes, "Remember I said this: There's going to be a day when we're gonna look back and say, 'I'd give anything if [Afghanistan] were overrun with Godless communists.'" That line was elimated from the script.
So the consequences of the US/Israeli involvement were barely covered by the film, though it's a preoccupation of a country today--one by which we can find ourselves victims with no culpability for those consequences.
In short, the film didn't address the blowback of what we'd done, and at least implicitly makes a hero out of a man who did his own thing despite the consequences. We can get on the "get them Russians" bandwagon, while as usual ignoring the US experiences in Vietnam and elsewhere. We can laugh at what Wilson got away with, relative to a president who was in office at the same time. But, while we sold the Afghans some missiles to counter the technically superior Soviets, there WERE consequences for which we continue to pay. And the film barely touched them.
 The picture just got bigger January 13, 2008
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
A fantastic movie on all levels. Not only are the performances sleek and inspired, but there is a refreshing element of everydayness that makes the whole account watchable and enjoyable while retaining its seriousness. The gravity of the whole issue is not allowed to weigh the movie down, and the cheekiness of the presentation does not trivialise any of its messages. A perfect balance has been struck that delivers its message loud and clear.
It is important to notice that this movie transcends partisanship by extending itself into the real world. Specifically, the movie lacks an ending; even though it follows the war of the Afghan nation against the Soviets, showing how the US got involved, all the way to the defeat of the Soviets and even slightly beyond that, it stops there and does not follow through. And here lies the genius of this movie, simple and laconic: it gives us no ending. There in no proper ending to this movie, for the ending is out there, in the real world. We are actually left to understand the turn of events on our own, through the aftereffects of what the movie has shown happen twenty years ago, and to make up our minds as such. We are left to close the movie up with our own personal experience of the repercussions of what happened out there, and we are left to do it on our own and without lectures or cheesy endings.
And the best part of all is that when the DVD is released in a few months time, we will still have an ending for Charlie Wilson's War. While this may make this movie difficult to comprehend in its entirety, say, fifty years from now, it makes it perfectly relevant now, and allows the real world to explain the movie, just as this movie tries to explain the real world. Brilliant reciprocity. What a way to make a statement. Even if the events are not entirely comprehensive, it's a great statement to make. Great storytelling. An effective way to touch a nerve or two. It'll incite hot questions and make an individual realise that defending democracy involves more than just arms. It involves brains, balls, vision, and an appreciation of the bigger picture, which were unfortunately absent in this tremendous case. And so not only was the monumental opportunity of fanning the winds of democracy and modernity in a medievally-functioning country squandered, but they were also tragically reversed into a backdraft that is now burning away right in front of our faces, inside our pockets, and down our children's future.
Charlie Wilson's War shows us exactly how idealism, zealotry, business-making, or just plain hype, can turn from blessing in disguise to an acrimonious curse, and may have a thing or two to teach us... if we take a little time after the movie is over and look around a bit.
an old-fashioned star vehicle January 8, 2008
10 out of 12 found this review helpful
In 1980, Charlie Wilson was an obscure Texas congressman, more notable for his folksy manner and serial womanizing than for any legislative accomplishments. Until, that is, he became actively involved in getting Congress to covertly fund some badly needed weapon shipments to the Afghani freedom fighters - also known as the Mujahadim - in their battle against the Soviet invaders. It was these arms, particularly the anti-aircraft guns, that helped to turn the tide of the war in the Afghanis' favor and made them the only force in history to defeat the Soviet army. Wilson was greatly inspired by a wealthy, right-wing socialite by the name of Joanne Herring who took up the Afghani's cause almost as a personal crusade.
Though glitzy and superficial at times, Mike Nichols' "Charlie Wilson's War," based on the book by George Crile, is a generally entertaining romp thanks to the performances of its mega-watt stars, Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts and Philip Seymour Hoffman, and to the breezy, crackling dialogue by scenarist Aaron Sorkin, of TV's "West Wing" fame. Hanks has rarely seemed as confident and commanding in a role as he is here, and Roberts clearly relishes playing a woman who is both icily elegant and strangely vulnerable at one and the same time. In their sizzling scenes together, the two old pros conjure up memories of some of the great screen couples of the past like Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall, Spencer Tracy and Katherine Hepburn, Myrna Loy and William Powell who knew what it meant to be movie stars and could convey that larger-than-life quality on screen.
These virtues more than compensate for the film's tendency to oversimplify the political and historical issues of the times and for a somewhat disjointed quality in the story's structure. Despite the generally light-hearted tone of the piece, the movie ends on an admirably sober note, showing how what was initially seen as a triumph for American foreign policy might in actuality have been the catalyst for the events that would culminate in 9/11 (the sound of an airliner roaring overhead near the end of the film seems to foreshadow that seminal event).
In contrast to some of the year's earlier, more heavy-handed (yet also more substantive) political dramas, "Charlie Wilson's War" is one social studies lesson that goes down easy - though it should be noted that "War," with its big-name stars, lighter tone, and safer, less topical subject matter, earns fewer points for audacity and courage than those others do.
What a Difference One Man Can Make January 8, 2008
24 out of 30 found this review helpful
(3.5 *'s) Lascivious, witty, yet folksy, US Representative Charlie Wilson had a plan. An inveterate jet-setter, "Good Time Charlie's" main motivation in Congress seemed to be for the expense account. In an opening scene we find him hot-tubbing in a swanky suite in a Las Vegas hotel. Joining him in the Jacuzzi are topless strippers who warm up nicely to the Congressman. He casually discusses investing money for a TV show with Crestoff, a friend and business associate. Cavalier at every turn, he still has enough wits about him to engage in politics even while chasing women. After all, that's how some of them become politicians.
One of his romantic and political ties is former fiance, Joanna Herring (Julia Roberts), a wealthy born-again Christian who's described by his main staffer (Amy Adams) as "ultra right-wing". She has a mission for her second district Texas (D) Congressman. Staunchly anti-communist, she has bought him a flight to talk the President of Pakistan about providing arms to Afghanistan in their war against The Soviet Union.
It's an offer he can't refuse. On his visit, he demonstrates a lack of protocol when he requests an alcoholic beverage in a palace that doesn't allow much less serve a drop. (In one funny scene after being taken to task, Wilson quips, "You're told you have character flaws from someone who hung his predecessor in a military coup.") From there she has him hopping his way through the Middle East getting support for a plan for infiltrating arms for the peasants' resistance of the Soviet attacks. Since most of the attacks are from helicopters, Wilson negotiates with Israel, the ones who have the largest stockpile of Soviet weapons. The logistics of negotiation, getting Israel and Egypt to work together, you can imagine, would be a piece of work.
Close on his heels back in the States is CIA operative Gus (Philip Seymour Hoffman), an irascible man who won't be pushed aside as a player in The Cold War. When Wilson and Gus cross paths, Gus doesn't think Wilson will walk the walk. He's seen it all on Capital Hill before. So how refreshing it becomes for Gus when Wilson proves to be a wheeler dealer of Texas-sized proportions. Wilson works to convince the committee chairman (Ned Beatty) to double the funds for assisting the Afghans while keeping the covert operation under the radar.
Meanwhile, his partying comes to roost when news stories trickle into his Congressional office about alleged cocaine use. Unflappable Charlie regards the charges like a pesky fly, but he relies heavily on an all-female staff who, despite their prowess at damage control, were hired much less on typing resumes than what their cleavages revealed. Crestoff, it seems, whom he turned down for his TV show sponsorship, double-crossed him, with an investigation linked all the way to New York and Rudy Guiliani.
`Charlie Wilson's War' is a thoroughly entertaining and inspiring movie. There are plenty of laughs to go along with the insight, and the film proves the honored wisdom that if you want reform, you have to see it. Just as some people needed to see African Americans hosed, beaten, and confronted by attack dogs on TV, Charlie is truly moved when he sees first hand the refugee masses in Afghanistan and the terrible atrocities done to their children.
Like all historical fiction, there may be a few liberties taken with the truth. Recent articles have raised objections about the connections to Bin Laden for the arms arrangements. Whether this is true or not, the movie is an entertaining and informative look at a secret operation before "covert operations" became a dirty word. There has to be a lot of truth to it, even it allegedly fails with a detail or two.
One of the most gratifying aspects of the movie is that the previews are perfect. Neither spoiling its contents nor misleading, the trailer is what it should always be: a warm up, a superb taster, leaving much more that is worth seeing. 'Charlie Wilson's War' has good performances and solid developments without a wasted word or scene. The movie may not be Oscar worthy, but it's a very satisfying movie to watch in every way.
Stunning Movie! January 6, 2008
9 out of 10 found this review helpful
Charlie Wilson was our Congressman from 1972 until his retirement. He
had always proven to be effective in handling social security and veteran's benefits problems for the citizens of his district. He had the
nickname of "Timber Charlie" because of his relationship with Temple Industries. He was also known as "Good Time Charlie" for his partying
reputation. He was made aware of the Afghanistan situation by Houston
socialite JoAnn Herring(ably portrayed by Julia Roberts). At her insistance he made the journey to Afghanista. He was shocked at the cruel treatment the citizens were suffering at the hands of the Soviets. He was
further shocked at the primitive weapons that were being used by the mujadeen warriors. This became a personal cause for Wilson. He joined forces with a CIA agent played by Philip Hoffman. Using favors that he had gathered in Congress and his knowhow of the operations of Congress Wilson started enlarging the budget for the Afghanistan cause. Through this the Afghanis managed to obtain modern weapons to shoot down helicopters and fixed wing aircraft. Thanks to these budget increases made
possible by Wilson the tide turned in Afghanistan. The Afghanis eventually defeated the Soviets. This is one of the better movies that you will see this year. It makes me proud to have known Charlie Wilson.
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