Charlie Wilson's War (R)
Scott:
Scott: Tonight I am reviewing Charlie Wilson's War
, a movie based on true story of how Charlie Wilson helped end the Soviet Union's invasion of Afghanistan.
Mike was not able to attend this screening.
What did I think?
I really liked it. I knew a little about the history of Afghanistan, mostly that the Soviets invaded and that after some time they left. This movie fills in my many holes.
It's really interesting how the trio of Congressman Charlie Wilson (Tom Hanks), Joanne Herring (Julia Roberts) and Gust Avrakotos (Philip Seymour Hoffman) were able to pull off such a monumental effort. Herring really doesn't like the Soviets and she wanted them out of Afghanistan more because she didn't like them than for any other reason. Wilson, after seeing a broadcast from Dan Rather on the subject, was also interested in the situation. Herring brought in Wilson and got the ball rolling.
Wilson was also the right man to get interested in the subject as he sat on committees in congress that held the purse strings for such events. Together, Wilson had the means, and, at least at first, Herring had the motivation.
Along comes Avrakotos, a CIA agent without a task. He gets assigned to the Afghanistan desk and before too long; he is working with Wilson to stop the Soviets.
Some of my favorite scenes in this movie include the interaction between Avrakotos and Wilson. They are both witty and informational. Both men seem to be cut from the same mold; they just took different directions in life. Avrakotos is such an interesting character. He seemed to always say what was on his mind, to heck with the consequences. Hoffman as Avrakotos was superb. He disappeared into the role.
Wilson was a serious ladies man. He never seemed to take his job seriously. It was all about getting more women. The invasion of Afghanistan seemed to be the only thing he took seriously. Hanks played the part well. He laid out his southern charm and it was fun to watch.
Joanne Herring is the 6th richest woman in Texas and apparently that means a lot to Wilson. She was key in getting Wilson involved in Afghanistan. Roberts's accent was at times hard to appreciate, but it fit the character well. I haven't seen Roberts since Oceans Twelve and she seemed to move into this role, an older socialite, easily.
The cast overall is pretty good, with several foreign actors I am not familiar with. My favorite was Amy Adams as Wilson's administrative assistant Bonnie Bach. She clearly believed in Wilson and that everything he did was the correct thing. Of course, most of his decisions seemed to be given to him by her, but that's beside the point. She was the lead lady in Wilson's office. An office filled with young, attractive women (as was noted in the movie).
The movie is based on the non-fiction book Charlie Wilson's War: The Extraordinary Story of the Largest Covert Operation in History by George Crile. Crile was a producer for 60 Minutes and that might explain the frequent views on TV we get of CBS's Dan Rather.
Mike Nichols directed the movie. He may not be a big name to everyone, but he has a very impressive list of movies on his directorial resume. With movies like The Graduate, Silkwood, Primary Colors and several others, it's no surprise how well the movie turned out. The movie has a great pace and its length at just under 1:40, was perfect. The dialogue was funny and interesting and it kept you entertained through the entire movie.
How do I rate this?
I give this a 3.5 overall and a 4 for biographical drama. It was one of the most interesting movies I have seen in a while. It's also really interesting to note that this took place in Afghanistan and that it's possible that one of the fighters the U.S. armed was Osama Bin Laden.
