Charlie Wilson's War

I enjoyed "Charlie Wilson´s War" and although it is hardly something you would expect from Hanks, it reminds me that Hanks had previously tried something different when he portrayed Viktor Navorski in "The Terminal." In this film, Hanks is a man who has some definite moral shortcomings, but he makes a stand for a little nation and ends up providing the fuel to the fire that ended the Russian occupation of Afghanistan. This is a very high level view of the events and the film quickly moves past the gory details and condenses and manipulates the timeline to tell its story, but "Charlie Wilson´s War" delivers the spirit and overall nature of the work done by Charlie Wilson and Gust Avrakotos. It is rare that I enjoy something with Julia Roberts having a starring role and this film is such an exception. The story, acting and direction are top notch and while theater-goers may have given the film a slight snub, it is worthwhile experiencing on DVD.

Video:

"Charlie Wilson´s War" is presented on DVD with a solid looking 1.85:1 anamorphic transfer that is detailed, colorful and quite natural looking. Before going deeper into the visual details, I would like to make mention that the promotional bumper contained on the front of the disc advertises the HD-DVD format. This film was scheduled to originally appear on the now deceased format and I would certainly have liked to have experienced this film in high definition. I suppose I will simply have to wait patiently for the impending release of this Tom Hanks picture on the Blu-ray format.

While "Charlie Wilson´s War" is not presented in high definition as of yet, it is a stellar looking DVD title that looked quite impressive via my upconverting Toshiba HD-DVD player. Detail was very strong and there were a few instances where I had forgotten I was watching a movie that was mastered at only 480 lines of resolution. Clothing textures, skin imperfections, the sand of the Pakistani refugee camp and strippers in a hot tub all look superb on this DVD. Coloring is also strong and while the film does not have today´s over-processed appearance; it looks film-like and natural. Colors and photography are somewhat muted to remind one of the decade in which the events transpired. Some moments are ´dumbed down´ in visuals to look akin to the stock footage used in the film. The source materials used to mint this digital transfer are crisp and clear. Film grain, posterization, edge enhancement and other woes of a DVD release are absent in this good looking transfer.

Audio:

The picture quality is top notch, but the audio mix is a little more pedestrian. Dolby Digital 5.1 multi-channel surround is provided in English, French and Spanish. As are subtitles for each of the three languages. The problem with the mix is not the mastering or the technology, but the limited sound design of the film. Most of the content in the film is dialogue based and the rare action scenes where Hind helicopters are blasted out of the sky is detailed in stock footage and lacks the solid punch of a soundtrack where explosions rock the .1 LFE channel. The mix is very clean and sound does pan nicely from left to right, but the rear surrounds are not given a lot to do. The musical score by James Newton Howard keeps itself in the background and while its presence can be felt, it is a very understated musical score. The dialogue is perfectly intelligible and nicely anchored in the center channel. This is a technically sound mix, but there just isn´t a lot of excitement in the source materials to fully utilize the available six channels.

Extras:

Two supplements are provided for "Charlie Wilson´s War." The first feature, The Making of Charlie Wilson´s War (17:08) is your typical EPK styled making-of featurette and finds stars Tom Hanks and Julia Roberts, director Mike Nichols and others involved with the production discussing the genesis of the film from the novel written by George Crile to some minor insight into the story and the real-life personalities behind the story depicted in the film. Charlie Wilson lends some of his time towards this promotional featurette and this helps make the seventeen minute running time worthwhile. The second featurette, Who is Charlie Wilson? (12:22) is a very good continuation of the first feature that spends most of its time looking at the historical figure known as Charlie Wilson. Footage is provided from Wilson´s actual trips to Afghanistan and the naked hot tub scene is provided in this supplement and I have to wonder if the real Mr. Wilson didn´t enjoy that scene enough to ask for it to be included in the featurette about him.

Closing Comments:

"Charlie Wilson´s War" is one of three Tom Hanks films that I did not see in theaters. I did not catch his big screen debut "Splash" in theaters because I was just twelve and romantic comedies weren´t my thing at the time. The next film I did not see starring Hanks was "The Terminal." I´m not sure if it was due to the limited marketing for the film or the fact that Julia Roberts was attached to the project, but "Charlie Wilson´s War" was a film I had earmarked as a title to wait for on home video. With the price of a ticket, popcorn and soda as high as they are today, the film seemed like something I´d enjoy just as much on the small screen. The wait was worth it and while "Charlie Wilson´s War" is not a movie I needed to see on the big screen, it is a good purchase on DVD and finds the veteran and very bankable star trying something new in a role that introduces his character in a hot tub with naked women. That is something you would not have expected from Hanks. Sure, I have pointed out that scene a few times in this review, but it serves as a good contrast between Tom Hanks and Charlie Wilson. Both are very likable people, but very different public perceptions. The DVD features a very good picture, with a limited sound design and two good, but short supplements. Regardless of the DVD´s minor shortcomings, it is a good addition to any library.

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