Charlie Wilson's War

Charlie Wilson's War is a 2007 film based on the true story of Democratic Texas Congressman Charlie Wilson, who conspired with CIA operative Gust Avrakotos and socialite Joanne Herring to launch Operation Cyclone to help the Afghan Mujahideen during the Soviet war in Afghanistan.

Directed by Mike Nichols. Writen by Aaron Sorkin, adapted from George Crile's 2003 book Charlie Wilson's War: The Extraordinary Story of the Largest Covert Operation in History.

• Well, there were three of them; it was like being slapped around by a Pakistani vaudeville team.
  • Comment on his meeting with Muhammad Zia ul-Haq and two senior staff.

• You know you've reached rock bottom when you're told you have character flaws by a man who hanged his predecessor in a military coup.
  • Comment about Muhammad Zia ul-Haq, who had deposed Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto.

• These things happened. They were glorious and they changed the world... and then we fucked up the end game.

• Thats how a cold war turns into a real war and that's something you want to keep a very good eye on.

• A boy is given a horse on his 14th birthday. Everyone in the village says, “Oh how wonderful.” But a Zen master who lives in the village says, “We'll see.” 'The boy falls off the horse and breaks his foot. Everyone in the village says, “Oh how awful.” The Zen master says, “We'll see.” The village is thrown into war and all the young men have to go to war. But, because of the broken foot, the boy stays behind. Everyone says, “Oh, how wonderful.” The Zen master says, “We'll see.”
  • Comment about the nature of uncertainties, in relation to the course of the Afghan war, using a truncated variant of some famous teaching stories, similar to one widely popularized by Max Lucado, as "The Old Man and the White Horse" in In the Eye of the Storm (1991).

• My loyalty? For 24 years people have been trying to kill me, people who know how. Now do you think that's because my dad was a Greek soda pop maker or because I'm an American spy? Go fuck yourself, you fucking child!
  • Questioning the firing of 3000 first generation and second generation American spies.

Joanne Herring: Why is Congress saying one thing and doing nothing?

Charlie Wilson: Well, it's tradition mostly.

Charlie Wilson: Gosh, Joanne, it's great to hear from you. Could I possibly call you back in just a little bit?

Joanne Herring: Is Ronald Reagan in your bedroom right now?

Charlie Wilson: No.

Joanne Herring: Then I'm considerably more important than whoever is.

Charlie Wilson: You're no James Bond.

Gust Avrakotos: You're no Thomas Jefferson, so let's call it even.

Gust Avrakotos: You see the nerdy-looking kid in the white shirt playing against the four guys at once?

Charlie Wilson: Yeah?

Gust Avrakotos: Which one of the guys do you think is a strategic weapons expert with the CIA?

Charlie Wilson: …hm.

Gust Avrakotos: That was a trick question, Charlie; it's the nerdy-looking kid in the white shirt. Alright, no reason this can't be fun, y'know.

Charlie Wilson: Well, should we try this scotch or is it going to release sarin gas when I open it?

Gust Avrakotos: Ah, I don't think so — but open it over there.

Charlie Wilson: You mean to tell me that the U.S. strategy in Afghanistan is to have the Afghans keep walking into machine gun fire 'til the Russians run out of bullets?

Gust Avrakotos: That's Harold Holt's strategy, it's not U.S. strategy.

Charlie Wilson: What is U.S. strategy?

Gust Avrakotos: Well strictly speaking, we don't have one. But we're working hard on that.

Charlie Wilson: Who's 'we'?

Gust Avrakotos: Me and three other guys.

Joanne Herring: I talk about God for one simple reason. We need him on our side.

Charlie Wilson: Well, what I think's got Gust worried .... is that sooner or later God is gonna be on both sides.

Wikipedia has an article about:

Charlie Wilson's War

• Official Site of Charlie Wilson's War
• Charlie Wilson's War quotes at the Internet Movie Database
• Charlie Wilson's War at Rotten Tomatoes
• Charlie Wilson's War at Metacritic
• "Charlie Wilson's War Was Really America's War," by Michael Johns (19 January 2008)
• "Tom Hanks Tells Hollywood Whopper in Charlie Wilson's War" (21 December 2007)