Re: *** Official CHARLIE WILSON'S WAR Discussion Thread
After leaving the film I drove to the book store and bought the book. I have just finished it and now can post.
The movie is a quaint rendition of the life of one of the most colorful and powerful members of the House of Representatives – not only of his era, but of all time.
Seymour Phillip Hoffman gets high marks for his performance, and it was fun and entertaining. In reading the book I would have cast James Gandolfini. Hoffman played Gust Avrakotos - a talented but politically incorrect CIA case agent – as a geek. It would be like casting him as Tony Soprano in a movie about the Sopranos. In the movie Gust first meets Congressman Wilson in his office but is repeatedly dispatched and retrieved by Wilson trying to deal with his latest scandal. Gust seems not to mind as he gets to watch all of Charlie’s staff, referred to as jail bait. Hoffman plays him like a college sophomore who enjoys watching the BMOC surrounded by a harem of followers. In real life Gust was hardly the nerd as depicted by Hoffman. Regarding his relationship with Charlie Gust said “What brought us together was chasing pussy and killing communists.” Hey, what else did any red blooded American boy want to do growing up during the cold war?
Tom Hanks is the king of light comedy and he had some nice moments in the film. The problem for the casting director was to find someone who could play a larger than life character. I can’t think of anyone in Hollywood up to the task - Daniel Day Lewis perhaps because he has the ability to morph into a character. Hanks is entertaining but not powerful enough to carry the part.
Julia Roberts is also one not powerful enough to carry the part of Joanne Herring. If Reese Witherspoon was fifteen years older she would have been a good candidate.
I like larger than life adventures to be strung out over a series of episodes. There were easily 24 to 48 stories that could have filled a 90 minute time slot on the History Channel, HBO, etc. This movie is just another cartoon version of an incredible historical subject that is given short shrift. Maybe it will have the effect of causing a few people to buy the book and get hooked on the history of the period.
