I have always been a fan of historically based films, but 'Charlie Wilson's War' breaks the mold of a traditional non-fiction film...if there is such a thing. For those that have not seen this film, it takes place in the 80's during the Soviet war in Afghanistan, and covers the crusade of one US congressman Charlie Wilson, and his attempt to put together funds, weapons, and put them in the hands of Afghan guerrillas fighting the Soviets.
This film came out several years after the 9-11 attacks and ensuing US invasion of Afghanistan. In a way, the story presented in Charlie Wilson's war is a prequel to the events that led up to 9-11. The US support of the Afghan Guerrillas seemed to stop after the defeat of the soviets, and in an ethereal scene, we hear the sound of a airliner flying overhead just after Wilson is warned by his CIA cohort that the 'crazies are rolling into Kandahar like its a f***ing bathtub drain.'
The famous quote that says 'those that don't know history are condemned to repeat it' is perhaps cliche, but presented here as an important reminder. As a war in Iraq winds down and we still struggle for total victory in Afghanistan, it is important that we remember that war doesn't stop hurting a country after the battles are over. Things cannot be left to fall back into disarray after the fighting is done. In Charlie's words and warning: 'These things happened, they were glorious and they changed the world....and then we f***ed up the end game.'
-David
This is a very important film. It tells an amazing story of a man who fought hard for what he believed was right, and Tom Hanks does an incredible job of portraying Charlie Wilson. The atrocities shown in this movie, inflicted on the Afghan people by the Russians is horrifying. Children with their arms blown off, drawn to shiny things looking like toys which are actually mines...For all the non-ethical behavior from Charlie Wilson, he obviously had a conscience where it counts.
The sad thing about this story is the end, yes, this movie doesn't necessarily have a happy ending. We see that the government was willing to spend a billion dollars to fight a covert war, but when Charlie Wilson asks for a million dollars to rebuild schools in Afghanistan, a member of the committee basically says no one cares about a school in Afghanistan. The final quote in this film speaks volumes, "These things happened, they were glorious and they changed the world....and then we f***ed up the end game." Charlie Wilson predicted that Afghanistan could be taken over by terrorists if we didn't stay involved, and that's exactly what happened.
It really causes you to think about what is important, how involved our government should get in these types of things, and perhaps how different things could be if we had worked more to build stability in Afghanistan by helping with projects such as school improvement. This movie definitely leaves you with a lot to think about.
-Bethany
