What Do The Critics Say?

"With its rapid pace, smart screenplay, and top-notch acting, this is one of the 2007 Oscar season's most appealing and compelling adult motion pictures." James Berardinelli REELVIEWS "Bursting with star power, comes off as a smart comedy, economically written and briskly paced while making politics more fun than they have a right to be." Bruce Bennett SPECTRUM "The surreal comedy is that every tense twist of this secret war is horribly true." James Christopher UK TIMES "Hoffman brings out the best in Hanks: they riff off each other with delicious comic teamwork." David Ansen NEWSWEEK "It's a smart political comedy that tackles a solemn situation, but doesn't forget that it's meant to entertain as well." Cherryl Dawson and Leigh Ann Palone THE MOVIE CHICKS "Tells a momentous story, a story every American should know, in a boisterous, lickety-split style that makes the history lesson go down easily." David Edelstein NEW YORK MAGAZINE

"Director Mike Nichols, working from Sorkin's terrifically written screenplay and with a cast that's obviously game and eager to please, pulls it all together and makes it work in an utterly convincing and crowd-pleasing fashion." Jim Judy SCREEN IT! "A smart, funny, sophisticated story for grown-ups that steers clear of Iraq-fatigue and instead buries its sardonic message beneath bourbon and bimbos." Brandon Fibbs CHRISTIANITY TODAY "A slick, smart, and subversive look at where America went wrong with its geo-political thinking." Andrea Chase KILLER MOVIE REVIEWS "You'll want to stand up and cheer for Charlie Wilson, a smart and absolutely irresistable true tale about a guy who dared to make a difference." Peter Hammond MAXIM "Witty, wacky, and wildly inappropriate for our Puritan PC times, this story...breezes of effortless engagement, filled with performances so potent they act like double shots of soothing Southern Comfort." Bill Gibron POP MATTERS "Charlie Wilson's War, a crisp, biting satire that confidently mixes sex and politics, glides along so smartly and smoothly, it makes you wonder how it's possible that director Mike Nichols and writer Aaron Sorkin have never teamed up before." Christy Lemire ASSOCIATED PRESS

How It Became Charlie Wilson's War In December 1979, the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan, an event much expected by the CIA. As Steve Coll wrote in his Pulitzer Prize-winning book, "Ghost War": "The CIA had been watching Soviet troop deployments in and around Afghanistan since the summer, and while its analysts were divided in assessing Soviet political intentions, the CIA reported steadily and accurately about Soviet military moves. By mid-December, ominous, large-scale Soviet deployments toward the Soviet-Afghan border had been detected by U.S. intelligence. CIA director Stansfield Turner sent President Carter and his senior advisers a classified 'Alert' memo on December 19, warning that the Soviets had 'crossed a significant threshold in their growing military involvement in Afghanistan and were sending more forces south.' Three days later, deputy CIA director Bobby Inman called National Security Advisor Zbigniew Brzezinski and Defense Secretary Harold Brown to report that the CIA had no doubt that the Soviet Union intended to undertake a major military invasion of Afghanistan within seventy two hours." As Crile illustrated in "Charlie Wilson’s War", this invasion changed President Jimmy Carter’s philosophy toward the USSR. "It radicalized him," the journalist observed. "It made him suddenly believe that the Soviets might truly be evil, and the only way to deal with them was with force. Overt force was not a first option for the administration. This was the Cold War after all, and the two superpowers each sat upon an enormous arsenal of nuclear weapons, ominous enough to easily conjure up World War III. Crile elaborated, "The Carter Doctrine committed America to war in the event of any threat to the strategic oil fields of the Middle East. His most radical departure, however, came when he signed a series of secret legal documents, known as the Presidential Findings, authorizing the CIA to go into action against the Red Army." The CIA had a time-honored practice never to introduce into a conflict weapons that could be traced back to the United States. The spy agency’s first shipment to scattered Afghan rebels; enough small arms and ammunition to equip a thousand men, consisted of weapons made by the Soviets that had been stockpiled by the CIA for just such a moment. Unfortunately for the Mujahideen, this was not an impressive cache: mostly rifles from WWI with a limited supply of ammunition with which to load the purloined weaponry. It was their plight and determination that touched Texas 2nd District delegate to the House of Representatives, Charlie Wilson. He possessed a focused interest in history and foreign affairs, as well as an abiding antipathy towards the Soviet Union. The Afghans’ spirit against the overwhelming and brutal Soviet force won his favor. Wilson saw the devastating effects of the Soviet invasion firsthand when taken to Afghanistan by Houston millionaire Joanne Herring. She arranged for Wilson to meet President Zia of Pakistan. "He arranged for me to have Pakistani Army helicopters and go up to the border of Pakistan and Afghanistan, very near the Khyber Pass. That was the experience that will always be seared in my memory: going through those hospitals and seeing the people, especially the children, with their hands blown off from the mines that the Soviets were dropping from helicopters." Seeing those mutilated children had a profound effect on Wilson. One that would spur him to take up the cause of those suffering under the Soviet forces. He recalls: "I left those hospitals determined that, as long as I had a breath in my body and was a member of Congress, that I was going to do what I could to make the Soviets pay for what they were doing, and to try to help the Afghans." Returning to Washington D.C., Wilson would find a kindred spirit in CIA agent Gust Avrakotos. A tough, streetwise Greek American, Avrakotos was an anomaly in the agency then run by America’s patrician class. Avrakotos was just the man Wilson needed. Together, Avrakotos, Wilson and a small crew of like-minded operatives engineered an intricate plan to fund, arm and train the Mujahideen, with the help of Pakistan, Israel, Saudi Arabia and China. It would result in the mighty Soviet Armed Forces being driven out of Afghanistan. Crile noted: "Throughout the Muslim world, the victory of the Afghans over the army of a modern superpower was seen as a transformational event. But, back home, no one seemed to be aware that something important had just taken place and that the United States had been the moving force behind it." The Inside Story Septuagenarian Chalie Wilson says, of all the adventures has had, having his story portrayed in film was most humbling. "Being involved with this movie is one of the real highlights of my life," he said. "And I haven’t had a boring life. The whole process was mind-boggling for a country boy from Lufkin. Mike Nichols’ attention to detail was incredibly impressive, and to be on set and hear someone with the stature and talent of Tom Hanks saying my words and being called Charlie, well that’s something." So how did it all start? When Crile's book finally debuted in 2003, it became a best seller and attracted attention from Hollywood. Producer Gary Goetzman ("My Big Fat Greek Wedding" & "Devil in a Blue Dress") first heard of the book through a Washington connection. "A congressman whom I am very fond of told me about Charlie Wilson and what a fascinating character he was," he recalled. "He told me there was a book written about him by George Crile and recommended that I read it." Goetzman and his producing partner, Academy Award winning actor Tom Hanks, did just that. Upon reading "Charlie Wilson's War," they became fascinated with the rollicking tale, especially the inner workings of D.C. and the Afghan resistance to the Russian Army documented by Crile. "We took one look at that book and pounced on it. It read like a house on fire," says Hanks. After Goetzman and Hanks won over Crile, the task of translating his tome into a screenplay went to Emmy Award-winning writer Aaron Sorkin, known for political stories full of intelligent characters, witty wordplay and engaging plots. "I read a review of the book, and I went out and bought it," Sorkin remembers. "I'd read the first fifty pages when I saw in the trades that Playtone had bought the film rights. I asked my agent if he could get me a meeting with Gary Goetzman so that I could try to convince him that I might be the right screenwriter to adapt it. Gary, in a rare display of poor judgment, hired me. When Playtone and Sorkin were satisfied with the draft, the producers approached filmmaker Mike Nichols about directing the project. Longtime friends Nichols and Hanks had come close to doing a picture together, but nothing came to fruition until "Charlie Wilson's War". To prepare for the lead role, Hanks huddled with Wilson (who would prove an invaluable consultant on the project) to discuss everything from politics, Herring and Avrakotos to his often outrageous personality. With Hanks in the role it was time to cast the film. "Charlie Wilson’s War" marks the second occasion Nichols has worked with Academy Award winners Julia Roberts and Philip Seymour Hoffman, and he was thrilled to reunite with them. Of his interest in bringing on Roberts for the project, the director comments, "Julia is so shockingly creative. She is a wonderful screen actor, a joy to work with, as good as it gets. Her ingenuity about costumes and makeup and what the person would and wouldn’t do…she is really remarkable. We knew the character was somewhat older than Julia, born-again, a Texas millionaire who’s had numerous husbands. Every second Julia’s on the screen, she is so electric, surprising and somehow compelling: even though the character is apparently way held back, very controlled. You see someone you’ve never seen before, and that’s very exciting." Roberts admits that Herring is unlike any character she’s portrayed. "I don’t know that I would have envisioned myself in a part like this, but I love that Mike wanted me for it. It is such a fabulous script; it is so much juicier and has much more depth than the usual screenplay. And Joanne is such a fantastic character, so energetic and yet so enigmatic." Roberts elected not to meet with Herring until she’d determined her character. This was no slight against Herring, but rather an artistic decision. "It’s funny to play a real person; there’s a fine line between imitating and interpreting who that person is," she offers. “I was torn and felt that way when I did Erin Brockovich. It’s tricky to know when the right time to meet is. When I finally did meet her, she was just lovely, with fine social graces, dressed impeccably." Philip Seymour Hoffman, who plays the shrewd, hotheaded CIA agent Gust Avrakotos, never met the man he was portraying; Avrakotos died before the film began production. Nichols marveled at Hoffman’s transformation into the spy. "Phil Hoffman and I worked together on "The Seagull", and he was astonishing. Every fifty years, there is a great actor of that kind." Nichols says he kept looking at Hoffman and thinking, "Are you sure this is the same guy who played Capote?" Hoffman, who relished the challenge of portraying the spy notes, "I’ve known Mike for about seven years now. We did a play together back in 2001, but I met him in 2000. He’s become a friend, someone I love." The real life Charlie Wilson was very impressed with what he saw. Of Hoffman he said: "He has Gust’s lethal, ominous air and intensity; with the dark glasses and the mustache, he looks a lot like him. It’s almost evil that Gust and George couldn’t have been around to see it." Of his Joanne, he says: "Of course, I knew that Miss Roberts was an amazing actress, but there was one scene in particular, a party at Joanne’s mansion, when Julia made her entrance, it was just electric. It was the first time I’d seen her with Tom, and their chemistry was remarkable." British actor Emily Blunt plays Jane Liddle, the not so conservative daughter of one of his district’s most conservative men. Blunt had recently completed the film "The Great Buck Howard", opposite Tom Hanks’ son Colin, and was eager to work on Charlie Wilson’s War. "Mike had seen a film that I’d done and wanted to meet with me. I didn’t know what the part was, just the prospect of working with him was very exciting. And the script was such a funny read—dense and thoughtful, but with a wonderful, underhanded tone to it." "Enchanted" star Amy Adams was cast as Bonnie Bach, Wilson’s administrative assistant and gal Friday. "I loved the script; I thought it was a great story that needed to be told, and I wanted to be a part of telling it," she said. Sadly, author George Crile did not live to see the film begin production. He died of pancreatic cancer on May 15, 2006, at age sixty one. "We lost George Crile before we started shooting," says Goetzman. "His writing the book, his love of Charlie was such a big part of his life, and one of the greatest things for him was this movie getting made. To lose him before shooting was really tough." Synopsis

Charlie Wilson was a bachelor congressman from Texas whose "Good Time Charlie" personality masked an astute political mind, deep sense of patriotism and compassion for the underdog. In the early 1980s, with the looming advance of a Russian invasion, that underdog was Afghanistan. Charlie's longtime friend, frequent patron and sometime lover, was Joanne Herring, one of the wealthiest women in Texas and a virulent anti-communist, believed the American response to the invasion of Afghanistan was anemic at best. She prodded Charlie into doing for the Mujahideen, the country's legendary freedom fighters, what no one else could: secure funding and weapons to eradicate Soviet aggressors from their land. Charlie's partner in this uphill endeavor was CIA agent Gust Avrakotos, a bulldog, blue-collar operative whose talents were over-looked by his dismissive Director. Together, Charlie, Joanne and Gust travelled the world, forming an unlikely alliance among Pakistanis, Israelis, Egyptians, lawmakers and a belly dancer. Their success was remarkable. Their efforts would see the Russians routed and eventually driven out of Afghanistan.

The Verdict "With a cast that includes dual Academy Award winner Tom Hanks; Academy Award winners Julia Roberts and Philip Seymour Hoffman; a supporting cast including iconic actor Ned Beatty and rising stars Amy Adams and Emily Blunt, you'd expect this true life tale to be a highly rewarding, entertaining experience. It is all of that and more. There is something special about this film that grips the viewer. That factor is it's grasp of doing the honourable thing for your fellow human beings. When you get to the end of the film and realize how passionate everyone was, you can't help feeling anything but pride for Wilson, Herring and Avrakotos. In light of what is now happening in Afghanistan, it's a pity they didn't listen to Charlie's pleas regarding the future of Afghanistan and its people. Great acting, good direction and realistic, convincing reconstruction of the era. A moving and yet at times very funny film. Very Recommended. 4 STARS." Cast & Crew Bytes "CHARLIE WILSON'S WAR" stars .......
two time American Comedy Award winner Tom Hanks ["The Green Mile", "Cast Away", "Catch Me If You Can" and "The Terminal"]; Amy Adams ["The Wedding Date", "June Bug", "Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby" and "Enchanted"]; Evening Standard British Film Award winner Emily Blunt ["Irresistible", "The Devil Wears Prada" and "The Jane Austen Book Club"]; three time Chlotrudis Award winner Philip Seymour Hoffman ["Flawless", "Magnolia", "Owning Mahowny" and "Capote"]; Tracy Phillips ["Gun Shy", "Boys and Girls", "Lucky Numbers" and "Dreamgirls"]; Ned Beatty ["Superman II", "Midnight Crossing", "Radioland Murders", "Superman II" and "Shooter"] and three time Golden Globe Award winner Julia Roberts ["The Pelican Brief", "Erin Brockovich", "Confessions of a Dangerous Mind", "Mona Lisa Smile" and "Closer"] as Joanne Herring.
"CHARLIE WILSON'S WAR" was .......
directed by Mike Nichols ["The Graduate", "Biloxi Blues" "The Bird Cage" and "Closer"]; screenplay by Aaron Sorkin ["A Few Good Men", "Malice" and "The American President"]; adapted from the book "Charlie Wilson's War" by George Crile ["Charlie Wilson's War"]; costume design by Albert Wolsky ["The Pelican Brief", "You Got Mail", "Runaway Bride", "The Manchurian Candidate" and "Across the Universe"]; production design by Victor Kempster ["Any Given Sunday", "Bandits" and "Miami Vice"]; director of photography Stephen Goldblatt A.S.C & B.S.C ["The Cotton Club", "Lethal Weapon 1 & 2", "For The Boys", "The Pelican Brief" and "Closer"]; original music by seven time Academy Award nominee James Newton Howard ["Batman Begins", "King Kong", "The Waterhorse: Legend of the Deep" and "I Am Legend"]. Who's Who?

Tom Hanks Philip Seymour Hoffman Julia Roberts Amy Adams Brian Markinson Ken Stott Tracy Phillips Ipalé Ned Beatty Om Puri Faran Tahir Rizwan Manji Terry Bozeman Daniel Eric Gold Emily Blunt Peter Gerety Jud Tylor Hilary Angelo Cyia Batten Kirby Mitchell Ed Regine Wynn Everett Mary Bonner Baker Rachel Nichols Shiri Appleby

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Rep. Charlie Wilson Gust Avrakotos Joanne Herring Bonnie Bach Paul Brown Zvi Bellydancer Egyptian Defense Minister Rep. Doc Long President Zia Brigadier Rashid Colonel Mahmood CIA Award Presenter Donnelly Jane Liddle Larry Liddle Crystal Lee Kelly Stacey Stoned Guy Limo Driver Charlie's Angels - Receptionist Charlie's Angels - Marla Charlie's Angels - Suzanne Charlie's Angels - Jailbait

Run Time 101 minutes Rated M [AUST] Copyright ©2008 - Universal Pictures - All Rights Reserved ©2008 All Rights Reserved - The Movie Pages & Impact Internet Services - Protected by Australian & International Copyright. Trademark Laws Apply.