Charlie Wilson’s War
by James Roland
The latest rose-colored political drama from Aaron Sorkin never escapes the Made for Cable Mini-Series vibe that courses through every scene, but despite its truncated version of American history, the film retains a sentimental, deeply nostalgic heart that will have its audience thumbing through the TV Guide for more information on the History Channel.
Charlie Wilson’s War is scripted by Sorkin but directed by Mike Nichols (of The Graduate fame). It has a chintzy, revisionist feel to its costumes and set design that’s reminiscent of his earlier film Primary Colors. But a quick review of stock footage of the American 80s (again, check out The History Channel documentary, The True Story of Charlie Wilson) shows that people actually did dress that way, snort that much cocaine, and wear hairstyles straight from a wind tunnel.
The brilliantly acted caricatures are fun to watch but, at first, hard to relate with. Such attention has been devoted to every silly detail that it’s easy to think, “oh cool there’s Phillip Seymour Hoffman in a funny mustache.” But the performances quickly reel you in, and the larger than life characters eventually unravel enough to allow a glimpse to the normal people underneath.
Unfortunately, the film works hard to balance their screen time with a fascinating world history lesson, and winds up feeling rushed and a bit surface level.
What was accomplished by Charlie Wilson and his rag-tag team of misfits – including a religious Texan heiress, a black-listed overweight C.I.A. operative, a twitchy chess-genius turned weapons specialist, and a gaggle of tight-sweatered hotties affectionately named “jail bait” – was nothing short of extraordinary. They alone stopped the Cold War and saved an ethnic group from annihilation (while unknowingly paving the way for the rise of al-Qaeda and Osama bin Laden, a tidbit that is left unmentioned in the film).
What Winston Churchill did with might and bravado, Charlie Wilson did with cunning and charm, and until this film he was relatively unknown. That fact alone makes Charlie Wilson’s War worth the rising ticket prices.
