Review of Whiskey Tango Foxtrot (2016) by Grant S — 23 Mar 2017

2003. Kim Baker is a writer at a TV news network in New York. The network needs a reporter in Afghanistan and, as her career has stalled and her life is in a rut, she (apprehensively) takes the job. Nothing could have prepared her for life in Kabul and what she'll see and experience - she is truly a duck out of water. Over time, however, she adapts and even thrives. More than thrives, she seems to live for the danger and excitement, a fact that not only endangers her own life but that of her colleagues too.

I didn't have great expectations before watching this. While Tina Fey's TV work is superb (30 Rock, SNL) her movies often miss the mark, ending up lightly entertaining, at best. So, was expecting a light comedy and nothing much in the way of drama.

Turns out the movie is very funny, and, even better, often darkly so. The humour is often presented in dramatic or very plausible situations, so doesn't feel forced, feeling more like a candid view of people in a war zone. That's the beauty of the movie - it's as much a drama as a comedy, and the comedy stems from the drama, rather than existing in a vacuum.

On the drama side, the situation in Afghanistan is very realistically portrayed, without shirking from the events and issues involved. While the press attempt to make the most of their situation and live it up, attempting to shut themselves off from their surrounds, the threat of violence and death is never far away. There is a fatalism hanging over the movie which makes it even the more engaging and compelling.

Not perfect though. I felt that, while a good and often funny story, it didn't really make a profound point in the end. The conclusion seemed quite flat, especially after what came before.

Overall: a great blend of comedy and drama.