"Why is Congress saying one thing and doing nothing?"
"Well, tradition mostly."
Review: This film reveals a relatively unknown chapter of the Cold War, how a Congressman used his position to fund a covert operation to drive the Soviets out of Afghanistan. The excellent script by Aaron Sorkin is tight, funny & informative all at the same time. Mike Nichols got great performances out of Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts and Philip Seymour Hoffman.
"Unless I am wrong, and that would be unusual for me, you sit at the intersection of the State Department, the Pentagon and the CIA. You meet in a soundproof room underneath the Capitol, and you preside over a secret and unlimited budget for the three agencies you would need to conduct a covert war. Isn't that right?"
"I also have seats at the Kennedy Center."
"I've been with the company for 24 years. I was posted in Greece for 15. Papandreou wins that election if I didn't help the junta take him prisoner. I've advised and armed the Hellenic Army. I've neutralized champions of Communism. I've spent the past three years learning Finnish! Which should come in handy here in Virginia!! And I'm never, ever, sick at sea. So I want to know why I'm not gonna be your Helsinki Station Chief."
"You're coarse."
"Excuse me?"
"For Helsinki, I need someone with diplomatic skills. You don't have them."
"Is that right?"
"That is right. And I don't know why the hell I didn't fire you when you broke my fucking window."
"How did it go?"
"Well, there were three of them. It was like getting slapped around by a Pakistani vaudeville team. You know you've pretty much hit rock bottom when you've been told you have character flaws by a man who hanged his predecessor in a military coup."
4 1/2 out of 5 Stars
No comments:
Post a Comment