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Charlie Wilson's War (Widescreen) 
Actors : Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Amy Adams, Ned Beatty
Director : Mike Nichols
Studio : Universal Studios
by Universal Studios
Brand : CHARLIE WILSON'S WAR (WS) (DVD MOVIE)
Release Date : 2008-04-22
Publisher : Universal Studios
Availability : Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Number of Items : 1
EAN : 0025195004848
UPC : 025195004848
Avg. Customer Rating: (based on 55 reviews)
List Price : $29.98
Our Price : $11.99
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Americancivilwar.com |
Political movies about backroom negotiations need not be dry or heavy-handed, as Charlie Wilson's War delightfully proves. Based on the true story of playboy congressman Wilson's efforts to fund Afghanistan's defense against the Soviet invasion of the 1980s, the film is borne along on breezy attitude and a peppery script by West Wing scribe Aaron Sorkin. Wilson, played by Tom Hanks (who also produced), is the perfect hero for this kind of tale, because there's nothing perfect or heroic about him: He's a highball-swilling, fanny-pinching gadabout who becomes radicalized on the issue of helping the Afghans against their mighty aggressor. He has help in the form of a right-wing Texas anti-Communist (Julia Roberts) with a genius for raising money, and a sardonic CIA operative (Philip Seymour Hoffman, stealing the show) who lacks all the social skills Wilson has in abundance. Sorkin's syncopated speech is just the ticket for director Mike Nichols, who understands exactly how to keep this kind of political comedy popping (the complicated story comes in at a hair over 90 minutes, amazingly). Some scoundrels are on the right side of the angels, and the movie's Charlie Wilson is one of them. --Robert Horton
Beyond Charlie Wilson's War on DVD 
More Tom Hanks | 
Films by Mike Nichols | 
More Julia Roberts |
Stills from Charlie Wilson's War (Click for larger image) |
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Product Description |
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Academy Award® winners Tom Hanks Julia Roberts and Philip Seymour Hoffman star in this compelling and witty film from Oscar®-winning director Mike Nichols and Primetime Emmy®-winning writer Aaron Sorkin (The West Wing). Based on the outrageous true story Charlie Wilson's War shows how one congressman who loved a good time one Houston socialite who loved a good cause and one renegade CIA agent who loved a good fight conspired to bring about the largest covert operation in history.System Requirements:Running Time: 102 minutes Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: DRAMA/BIOGRAPHY Rating: R UPC: 025195004848 Manufacturer No: 61100566 |
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one of the best films of the year.. |
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I absolutely loved this film that somehow combines breezy wit with heart stopping reality. It's not an easy combination to pull off but with Mike Nichols(The Graduate) as director, Aaron Sorkin(West Wing) as writer and a cast of Oscar winners it all works. This is Tom Hanks at his best with a formidable Julia Roberts, and an incredible Phillip Symour Hoffman. If you want all the intricate details there are plenty of reviews to give that to you. This is a story of how the Russian invasion of Afghanistan changed the course of history with the ramifications still being felt today. The film never insults the audience's intelligence and never tries to tie everything up in a pretty ribbon with characters that are flawless. In a nonstop entertaining, intelligent way these non-heroic characters rise above the muck and actually make a difference. Intelligent, funny, witty and gripping. The kind of film that I thought Hollywood forgot how to make. |
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A wickedly funny, thought-provoking film |
Charlie Wilson wasn't the best guy around. He did drugs, he slept with strippers and prostitutes, and he had a lot of shady deals going on under the table. But damn if he didn't get something right. He saw a need to arm the Afghanistan rebels against the Soviet Union, and in so doing, allowed for Afghanistan to become the first nation to successfully rebel against the Soviet Union.
I wasn't much familiar with the story until I watched the movie--one of those "greatest stories never told" things, I reckon. But I'm glad I watched the movie, and am going to go out and read the book, and read up on what happened. Tom Hanks is engaging, as he tends to be (in fact, he's often SO engaging that I'm not a fan; he's won me over with a few roles in the past, however, and this is one of them). Julia Roberts sizzles; again, I've never been a huge fan (I can think of a LOT of things I'd rather do than sit through "My Best Friend's Wedding" one more time) but she captivated me here.
The standout role here, however, is definitely that of Philip Seymour Hoffman. He's rapidly becoming one of my favorite actors in Hollywood. His comedic timing is near-perfect (Tom Hanks, to his credit, matches him step for step; even Roberts gets in a nice jab or two). I'm not sure why he didn't win Best Supporting Actor for this (well, yes I am: it's hard to beat Javier Bardem as Anton Chigurh, but that's another movie and another review). Still...watch and learn, folks. This guy is a master-in-the-making.
The writing is crisp, the direction almost flawless. There are a few points at which the film lags, but overall, it's a crisp, wicked good time. There aren't much bonus features, though the two documentaries (a "making-of," as well as a piece on Charlie Wilson) are interesting. But you should buy the movie for the sake of watching the movie; bonus features are "bonus" anyways, remember? It's the movie that counts. And "Charlie Wilson's War" counts for quite a lot. Perhaps it's not a classic...but it's damn good just the same.
The main moral of this story, if we can call it that, is that good guys don't always wear white hats. A cliche, but shoot me. The most interesting--and, get this, REAL--protagonists are the ones who are flawed, who don't always follow the yellow brick road, but can still stand up for what they believe is just and fair. We can't all be saints...but sometimes, as Charlie Wilson (and his "War") shows us, we can at least act like we are. |
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Most Cynical Movie of 2007 |
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What a monumental waste of talent, time, and energy. Everyone collects their checks here for nothing more than boiler plate work. I'm being generous with 2 stars. Not one redeemable character in the bunch (supposedly based on a true story) makes one very sad at such a waste of film stock - has it really come to this? No wonder the Middle East hates the West so much - this film does nothing but reinforce the cynicism and lowest common denominator mentality (of which it purports to represent)! Yuck! |
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Charlie Wilson's War |
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Somebody send a couple hundred copies of this movie to the White House and Congress! George W (Wonderidiot) Bush has got US playing the part of the old Soviet Union and the Iranians are having a ball bleeding our economy as we lose thouands of precious lives of our men and women. Thanks George! Just watch the movie and try to get us out of the damn mess you have created. |
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A very good movie... |
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I can't speak for how much of the movie was true to history but as movies go this was just a very good movie to sit back and watch- it kept things interesting and if you learned a little something along the way all the better. |
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