In a year of political banter film examples that had the same sort of impact as the damage caused by a pellet gun, Charlie Wilson War isn’t the sort of political film that unfolds with guns blazing, instead it is a studio film without any fangs, without the grudge-match or chess match like conditioning. Frolicking with the 1980’s Cold War history books with a cheerleader discourse, Mike Nichol’s might not have much to add to the complexities of the current Bush and Al Qaeda debate, but ultimately this true-story dramedy (based on George Crile’s non-fictioner) makes for a jovially satisfying treat geared more towards adults looking for a leisurely ride in geopolitical troubled waters.
Putting a whole new spin on fund raising for a good cause and what socialites do with their spare time, Aaron Sorkin gives us a screenplay strong on the flamboyance of covert operations with inflated ego characters to match but ultimately it is a text that falls short on going beyond the tracing the roots of how the Afghans could have possibly had the upper hand on the Soviet red machine. Finding inspiration from some of the whisper decimal level backroom chatter he might have explored with his television writing work on The West Wing, the dialogue is sharp and tailor fitted for the showboating characters played by Tom Hanks and Julia Roberts. The instantly likable pair in Hank’s malt-liquor drinking, playboy congressman from Texas without a clue Charlie (sound like someone we know?) and the groomed in 80’s high-end garb, check-writing snot Roberts are eventually upstaged by the entrance of a CIA operative who is ticked off by being demoted from a Helsinki assignment. In a year where he can do no wrong (The Savages, Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead) Philip Seymour Hoffman steals the thunder from the both.
While it takes no great feat to replicate the 80’s and while the production surely didn’t go the Bourne route in covering the ten year narrative span, the many location-specific points of interest such as hot tubs with playmates and Dan Rather to lunchtime at the CIA cafeteria add to the situational humor – a stark contrast to several minutes worth of stock-footage of the harsh reality for both the Afghans and Russians.
Though it tacks on a weak handed contextualized commentary in the film’s final stages and might not have the acute wit of say a Wag the Dog, it will most likely nonchalantly win over audiences thanks to an efficient runtime and the sort of witty dialogue that has more syllables per second than a pair of golf commentators remarks. A more challenging film (Babel symbolically addressed this) might be how the United States keeps mucking up international relations with a foreign policy that keeps handing out weaponry to the people who in return, use the same weapons to target the superpower Americans. Charlie Wilson War admirably comes across like a substitute teacher teaching us not a great history lesson but instead, a yummy personal anecdote. Come Oscar time, this should get some nom creds.
Reviewed on: December 20th 2007.
