Year of Release: 2007Country of Origin: USA
Director: Mike Nichols
Cast: Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts, Philip Seymour Hoffman
Plot outline: A drama based on a Texas congressman Charlie Wilson's covert dealings in Afghanistan, where his efforts to assist rebels in their war with the Soviets have some unforeseen and long-reaching effects (IMDb).
Despite great performance by the cast, especially Philip Seymour Hoffman, clear cut storyline and witty dialogue, the movie lacks the sharpness to bring the audience to greater understanding of the real issue of this delicate and difficult political affair. The movie seems to oversimplify many things: e.g. the defeat of the Soviets seems so quick and easy (in reality the struggle lasted about a decade); the claim that Charlie Wilson single-handedly brought down the entire communist world is certainly highly disputable; the final scene of Charlie Wilson's request for more financial help to build a school in Afghanistan, which is blatantly rejected, followed by his closing statement, "These things happened. They were glorious and they changed the world ... and then we fucked up the end game." - do you honestly believe that the end game can be easily resolved only by building a school in Afghanistan??? It's been forty years since Mike Nichols produced his masterpiece The Gradute; has he lost his sharpness?
My judgement: **1/2 out of 4 stars
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