Release Date:
04/22/2008
The Skinny: The true story of how a boozy and womanizing congressman helped America secretly fund the Afghan resistance against the Russians in the late '80s.
It's only an hour and 42 minutes long: It covers so much ground so well it's proof that it doesn't require two hours to tell a complex story or any story for that matter. Are you listening, Michael Bay and your two-plus hours of talking robots?
The Good: Tom Hanks as the congressman and Julia Roberts as a rich Texas socialite are good, but Philip Seymour Hoffman as a ballsy CIA agent is great. He deserved the Best Supporting Actor Oscar nomination, and should have won, had he not been up against "Frendo" from No Country for Old Men.
The Bad: It starts off slow and confusing. Had we not stuck with it for the first 15 minutes, we wouldn't have realized how good it was.
The Forgotten War: Aside from Rambo III, where John-Boy fought alongside the Taliban, this is the only other movie that tackles this covert war. It's also pretty telling, because after the Russians retreated (SPOILER ALERT FOR HISTORICAL IDIOTS!) America ignored the region, much to the dismay of Wilson; and now we're still cleaning up the mess 20 years later.
Best Extra: There are two equally interesting featurettes that have some crossover: "The Making of Charlie Wilson's War" and "Who Is Charlie Wilson?" Both offer enough info on the real people without getting too boring or self-promotional.
It's only an hour and 42 minutes long: It covers so much ground so well it's proof that it doesn't require two hours to tell a complex story or any story for that matter. Are you listening, Michael Bay and your two-plus hours of talking robots?
The Good: Tom Hanks as the congressman and Julia Roberts as a rich Texas socialite are good, but Philip Seymour Hoffman as a ballsy CIA agent is great. He deserved the Best Supporting Actor Oscar nomination, and should have won, had he not been up against "Frendo" from No Country for Old Men.
The Bad: It starts off slow and confusing. Had we not stuck with it for the first 15 minutes, we wouldn't have realized how good it was.
The Forgotten War: Aside from Rambo III, where John-Boy fought alongside the Taliban, this is the only other movie that tackles this covert war. It's also pretty telling, because after the Russians retreated (SPOILER ALERT FOR HISTORICAL IDIOTS!) America ignored the region, much to the dismay of Wilson; and now we're still cleaning up the mess 20 years later.
Best Extra: There are two equally interesting featurettes that have some crossover: "The Making of Charlie Wilson's War" and "Who Is Charlie Wilson?" Both offer enough info on the real people without getting too boring or self-promotional.