The Tom Hanks feature "Charlie Wilson's War" is another. That film received massive support and advice from from the CIA.
There are indeed a number of Cold War themed films starring or produced by Tom Hanks that have a pro CIA theme to them. All put the CIA in a good light, with mistakes being chalked up to simple incompetence. Jim Di Eugenio in particular has often discussed how Tom Hanks and his production company have promoted National Security agendas in film and media.
One thing I do notice about these movies is that the cast and production crew all come from the more liberal side of the political spectrum. Indeed, its an irony that liberal Hollywood, which not long ago held the CIA in great contempt, now embraces it with open arms. This apparently began after Oliver Stone's movie "JFK" and the election of Bill Clinton. It was during this time that the CIA came out of the shadows and began openly advising media and the motion picture industry in the likes of Chase Brandon.
The influence of the Clinton White House to this change in attitude is something that has yet to be looked into.
First off, this is a great comment. You are absolutely right, Charlie Wilson's War did get made with an assist from the CIA. The agency certainly realizes that movies are a powerful tool to shape public impressions of the CIA, but it was late to the game. The FBI had set up an office in Hollywood years earlier.
I stumbled upon the article below featuring, Chase Brandon, two days before I read this post.
https://covertactionmagazine.com/2023/10/10/cias-hollywood-liaison-may-be-behind-disappearance-of-hollywood-screenwriter-who-knew-too-much/
The Tom Hanks feature "Charlie Wilson's War" is another. That film received massive support and advice from from the CIA.
There are indeed a number of Cold War themed films starring or produced by Tom Hanks that have a pro CIA theme to them. All put the CIA in a good light, with mistakes being chalked up to simple incompetence. Jim Di Eugenio in particular has often discussed how Tom Hanks and his production company have promoted National Security agendas in film and media.
One thing I do notice about these movies is that the cast and production crew all come from the more liberal side of the political spectrum. Indeed, its an irony that liberal Hollywood, which not long ago held the CIA in great contempt, now embraces it with open arms. This apparently began after Oliver Stone's movie "JFK" and the election of Bill Clinton. It was during this time that the CIA came out of the shadows and began openly advising media and the motion picture industry in the likes of Chase Brandon.
The influence of the Clinton White House to this change in attitude is something that has yet to be looked into.
First off, this is a great comment. You are absolutely right, Charlie Wilson's War did get made with an assist from the CIA. The agency certainly realizes that movies are a powerful tool to shape public impressions of the CIA, but it was late to the game. The FBI had set up an office in Hollywood years earlier.
What? No James Bond?
That would be Felix Leiter!