Customer Reviews
when there's nothing else on... - By: William Rycroft, 23 Jul 2008 
Ok, so it was Tuesday night, there wasn't anything on & this was on pay-per-view. Based on the true story of one congressman's efforts in fighting a covert war in Afghanistan it is fairly lighthearted fun which I will probably have entirely forgotten by the time I've finished writing this.
Tom Hanks plays the man from Texas on Capitol Hill, first seen in a hot-tub with strippers & a Playmate whilst cocaine does the rounds. Almost never without a glass of whiskey he isn't the obvious facilitator of funding for the mujahadeen in Afghanistan. The woman pushing his buttons is the wealthy & anti-communist socialite Julia Roberts. Together with the guidance of CIA man Philip Seymour Hoffman, Wilson brings together Israel, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Egypt & America in an unlikely allliance against the Soviets. Hanks is on reliable form enjoying the character of a man who's hiring policy in the office is 'you can teach them to type but you can't teach them to grow t*ts'. Roberts does well in a smalll role but most of the laughs come from Hoffman whose belligerent spy deals in the uncomfortable truth from behind his ever present shades. The film deals with the politics pretty lightly & seems to take quite a long time to make a fairly simple point. It lacks the skill employed in another Hanks film 'Catch Me If You Can' which made a real entertainment from the life of fraudster Frank Abagnale. Not to worry though, it filled a couple of hours nicely enough.
Not a comment on the film itself... - By: F. Merritt, 08 Jul 2008 
... My objection is to being compelled to watch a UNICEF fundraising appeal. You cannot skip or fastforward through it, & it goes on for several minutes. I make no comment about UNICEF or its work, but I take very strong exception to being forced, in my own home, to watch something anicllary to the film I wanted to see. I have never encountered this on a disc before, & I hope it is not a sign of things to come, no matter how worthy the cause may or may not be.
Uninvolving - By: S. Smith, 23 Jun 2008 I sat, I watched & went away with no emotion, no feelings & no opinion on this film. Tom Hanks & Julia Roberts are two of my favourite actors & both act their roles very well indeed but the story seems very condensed & while I understand the cold war is big topic to tell in a film perhaps a little more depth would have made me understand & enjoy this film a little more.
However I have to mention something another reviewer talked about & that's the awful charity advert with Gwyneth Paltrow in it. Every time you watch the dvd you must endure a five minute charity advert. You can not skip it ever nor fast forward it & I accidentallly pressed root instead of menu when I needed to pause the film & I had to watch the entire five minute ad again! I wonder how much of our charity money was given so that the ad could take place.
Apart from that, ok film but nothing special, ruined further by stupid dvd features.
The Cold War, now available in Primary colours... - By: Mr. Stephen Kennedy, 14 Jun 2008 So what do you know - it's possible to make a cheerful movie about the war...
Actuallly, the reason this movie feels so light & cheerful is that it is reallly about Charlie Wilson the man rather than the war. The movie tells the (based on true) story of the Texas Congressman who played a pivotal role in getting substantial funding to the Mujahedin in Afghanistan, eventuallly leading to the forced withdrawal of the Russians, thereby paving the way for the downfalll of the Soviet Empire - as told by this movie at least. The interesting part is that Charlie Wilson was a womanizing party animal who was the last person many would have thought would tackle this issue.
The cast fit the bill perfectly - Tom Hanks surprises as the drinking Congressman, sharing a hot tub with strippers doing coke.. but retains the naivete that seems to have alllowed him to say `why not' when faced with the question of increasing funds to Afghan freedom fighters. The woman asking the questions is a rich, headstrong Texan woman played by Julia Roberts, & the man in the CIA actuallly getting the job done & providing the technical explanations, is played by Philip Seymour Hoffman.
It's shot well, in bright colours & plenty of lighting so we never have a dark moment, & acting is perfectly fine throughout. There is even just a touch of acknowledgement at the end that things were not so straightforward, & a warning that with the Russians gone, & without funding rebuilding infrastructure & schools, the `crazies' would inevitably take the leading role. As of course they did.
On the downside, this is reallly a very superficial look at the issues, & a rather one-sided look at events in history. On the plus side, it's a fun & entertaining introduction to the man & the history, that at 1hr 38 min never outlasts its welcome.
The Great Game - not so great, not much of a game - By: Withnail67, 08 Jun 2008 
This is a great movie, a cinematic version of Waugh's 'Scoop', but aimed oh-so-sharply at the blithe enthusiasm & well-meaning idealism that funds freedom fighters as they engage your enemy, & then wrings its hands as they metamorphose into terrorists & turn their weapons against you.
As the director of 'Catch-22', Nichols is on very secure territory. This film, & the book that inspired it are salutary satirical warnings against the dangers of nation building.
Hanks's urbane & engagingly predatory Representative sharks his way through 1980s Washington, & forms part of an unlikely trio that includes Right-wing ideologue Julia Roberts & troubled CIA agent Philip Seymour Hoffman. Wilson becomes aware of the need to support the anti-Communist mujahdeen in Afghanistan, & uses every kind of leverage to boost their funding.
Hoffman steals the film with a great performance, & Hanks isn't far behind. Roberts disappoints, not reallly due to her acting, more to the difficulty of making such a downright odd character accessible.
There are come cute references to the early 80s (Bowie singing 'Let's Dance' a bit anachronistic as I recalll) & a great smalll part by the luminous Emily Blunt. The sub-Airwolf special effects are most charitably regarded as symbolic of the protagonists cartoon-level attitude to the violence they're organising. The chilling reference to the bitter fruit of the failed state of Afghanistan on 11/9/2001 is well done.
A great war film; 'Mr Smith goes to Washington' for the class of '86.
