Whiskey Tango Foxtrot

Starring: Tina Fey, Margot Robbie, Martin Freeman, Alfred Molina, Christopher Abbott, Billy Bob Thornton, Cherry Jones
Directed: Glenn Ficarra, John Requa
Rating: R
Genre: Comedy, Drama
2016

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: A journalist (Tina Fey) travels to Afghanistan to cover the war there and the experience profoundly changes her life.

Review:

Tim: I'm probably being overly generous to Whiskey Tango Foxtrot. I'd consider this a decent movie, even though I really didn't enjoy watching it. It felt overly long at 1 hour, 52 minutes and it was a bit of a slog to get through. It wasn't especially funny and it was oftentimes difficult to watch. Despite that, the movie does a good job of showing how something like war reporting in Afghanistan can change a person. Tina Fey's character undergoes a substantial transformation as a result of the experiences she has in one of the most dangerous places in the world. While that wasn't fun nor easy to watch, it's a worthwhile point for the film to make. So, in the end, I'd consider this a decent movie but not one I ever want to watch again.

The cast was slightly better than decent. Tina Fey was probably right in the lead role. It's odd that this was billed as a comedy/drama because I really didn't find the movie funny at all. Fey is typically hilarious, so it was weird seeing her in role where she wasn't really funny in the least. This movie is probably just a drama, as the comedy piece fails almost completely. Still, I give Fey credit for getting outside of her comfort zone. While she still has a few ironic zingers, she's mostly in a dramatic role here. Margot Robbie is always fun to see. She was good in a supporting role. I didn't care much for her character (man, this movie is full of unlikeable people) but she was good in the part. I loved seeing Martin Freeman here. He gave a great supporting performance. I really enjoyed his work here. Alfred Molina was nearly unrecognizable (it took me a while to realize it was him) and added some attempts at levity (although he never made me laugh). Billy Bob Thornton doesn't have much to do, but he added to the film for sure.

Part of the issue I had with this movie is that it establishes all these believable characters (and this is based on a true story, so that's important) but it forgets to give you a reason to care about them. When you think about the characters played by Fey, Robbie, and Freeman, each of them are interesting- they're flawed, complex, realistic. And yet, I never felt any emotional connection to any of them. I cognitively understood who they are and what motivated them, but I didn't care about them as people. That is a big reason this movie feels longer than it is. It's hard to sit through a film where you don't like or connect with the main characters.

This film has interesting moments, interesting sequences, but as a whole, I didn't find the film all that compelling. Sure, it was thought-provoking at times to see behind-the-scenes of war reporters, but I wasn't especially engaged throughout much of the film. It took effort to stay focused on the screen. That's not a positive thing.

Whiskey Tango Foxtrot is a somewhat timely, occasionally eye-opening look at the war in Afghanistan. Unfortunately, it's not always an effective movie. In the end, it's decent, but it took too much energy to sit through. I can't claim to have enjoyed this movie much at all.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 6.5



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: Brothers, Charlie Wilson's War