"Don't throw my name around so much, I intend to use it myself quite a bit and I want to keep it clean."
As pointed out by the President of Pakistan, Charlie Wilson (Tom Hanks) is a man with, "many character flaws". He's a congressman whose life is fairly easy, routine - his constituents don't ask for anything because they are happy with what they have.
He is therefore never too busy to do political favours for other politicians when they need him to cast a vote in their favour. However, at this stage of his life he hadn't reckoned with the fervour and dedication of Joanne Herring (Julia Roberts) and Gust Avrakotos (Philip Seymour Hoffman) to ending the suffering of the people of Afghanistan at the hands of the Russians during the cold war.
Joanne persuades him to visit the President of Pakistan whose country is taking in refugees from Afghanistan and slates America for not helping end the suffering. Hanks' slightly comedic character undergoes a reformation as he witnesses the suffering of the Afghans first hand and learns more about the brutality of the Russians. He now has a reason to call in those favours.
The film portrays Charlie Wilson's fight to obtain arms and ammunition which eventually lead to the withdrawal and retreat of Russia from Afghanistan. Throughout the film, Hanks and Hoffman's comedic lines provide light relief in what's basically a serious subject.
Shades of Apocalypse Now occur during the scenes when Russian helicopters are shooting at Afghan civilians. And at the end of the film, despite Wilson's decoration, we feel his frustration over the USA's refusal to rebuild the country and provide for the majority of the population - most of whom appear to be teenagers.
Lucy Grimmé
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