February 2008
Time Out
Charlie Wilson’s War
US-rated R, German release date: February 7
You thought it was Ronald Reagan who brought down the Soviet empire? Or maybe Mikhail Gorbachev?
Charlie Wilson’s War tells another, wilder, considerably more amusing inside story. In this version of history—based on a nonfiction best seller by John Crile—the credit for the routing of the Soviet Army by Afghan mujahideen rebels belongs to a little-known Congressman named Charlie Wilson (Tom Hanks). The womanizing, scandal-plagued, hard-drinking
bon vivant from Texas is joined in international intrigue by a rogue CIA agent named Gust Avrakotos (Phillip Seymour Hoffman), who likes nothing better than killing Russians. The two are urged on by Wilson’s staunchly anti-communist friend and romantic flame, Joanne Herring (Julia Roberts).
Charlie Wilson’s War is a rare Hollywood commodity these days. It is a journalistic satire and a light treatment of the disastrous lesson of recent US politics: that the ball you’ve set in motion keeps bouncing long after you’ve lost interest.
Earth
German release date: February 7
Four years ago, Alastair Fothergrill mesmerized a broad audience with
Deep Blue, a sensational documentary exploring the multifarious existence of sea-dwellers. Now this pioneer of modern nature film has gone above ground.
Earth travels to no less than twenty-six countries, following beastly protagonists on their quest of survival: a polar bear mother tries to feed her new offspring, while the ice melts beneath the bears’ feet; in the desiccated Kalahari desert an elephant cow leads her calf to the Okavango Delta in search for fresh water; a humpback whale mother and her youngster venture the longest migration possible for ocean mammals. The film’s 98 minutes present spectacular views of landscapes and animal wild life from innovative perspectives. Access to a Nepalese Army spy plane, for example, enabled the production to shoot the first aerials ever of Mount Everest. In a time where the worldwide consciousness of our earth’s fragility has increased, this mammoth documentary exhibits our planet’s breathtaking beauty, demonstrating at all times that there is so much worth saving. <<<
