Whiskey Tango Foxtrot (2016)

A journalist recounts her wartime coverage in Afghanistan.

Directors:

Glenn Ficarra, John Requa

Writers:

Robert Carlock (screenplay by), Kim Barker (based on the book "The Taliban Shuffle: Strange Days in Afghanistan and Pakistan" by)

Stars:

Tina Fey, Margot Robbie, Martin Freeman

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Tina Fey	...	Kim Baker
Margot Robbie	...	Tanya Vanderpoel
Martin Freeman	...	Iain MacKelpie
Alfred Molina	...	Ali Massoud Sadiq
Christopher Abbott	...	Fahim Ahmadzai
Billy Bob Thornton	...	General Hollanek
Nicholas Braun	...	Tall Brian
Stephen Peacocke	...	Nic
Sheila Vand	...	Shakira Khar
Evan Jonigkeit	...	Specialist Coughlin
Fahim Anwar	...	Jaweed
Josh Charles	...	Chris
Cherry Jones	...	Geri Taub
Scott Takeda	...	Ed Faber
Eli Goodman	...	Tucker Wang

Storyline

2003. After careful consideration, Kim Baker, a news copywriter, decides to leave the relative comfort of a New York desk job and serious boyfriend Chris to accept the assignment to work for three months as on-camera reporter in war torn Afghanistan, as her news agency is looking for anyone within their ranks to fill immediately the empty voids overseas. Her only experience of being in such an environment is going through hostile zone training a few years earlier. Immediately upon her arrival in Afghanistan, she realizes that she is ill-prepared emotionally for this assignment, not only enduring the dangers of the war itself, but also the conditions of everyday life, including largely been seen by men as only a "piece of ass" and a distraction despite her being considered average looking back home and not being overtly sexual, and being an individual with a small bladder who is nonetheless told to stay hydrated at all times. She is largely assisted in navigating this new life by Tanya...

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Plot Keywords:

afghanistan | journalist | war on terrorism | kabul afghanistan | frenchman | 

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Taglines:

From the headlines to the front lines

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Genres:

Biography | Comedy | Drama | War

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for pervasive language, some sexual content, drug use and violent war images

Did You Know?

Trivia

Martin Freeman and Billy Bob Thornton also appeared both in Love Actually (2003).

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Goofs

Bill Bobs character is promoted half way through the movie. When they first meet he was a Colonel, as seen by his collar device, which is an eagle. Later on in the film he promoted to Brigadier General, this is seen by the single star on his collar.

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Quotes

Kim Baker: What inspired you to enlist originally?
Lt. Stern: I'm a big fan of the movie Predator with Arnold Schwarzenegger. We're the same height.

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Connections

References Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery (1997)

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Soundtracks

Nude
Written by Colin Greenwood, Jonny Greenwood (as Jonathan Greenwood), Ed O'Brien (as Edward O'Brien), Phil Selway (as Philip Selway) & Thom Yorke
Performed by Radiohead
Courtesy of Xurbia Xendless

User Reviews

Tina Fey shines and surpasses her "next-door girl" cliché

A real gem of a film that you shouldn't miss. I saw the trailer and immediately felt the need to see though I had my reservations about Tina Fey in a black comedy/drama film. Guess what! Tina surprised me with her performance (not acting-wise, but presence-wise). I know this doesn't make any sense, but picture an actress shining in a movie without an over the top performance, not an easy job to do. Whether Tina has grown to be great at many genres OR the movie was simply destined for her real life character.

The story-telling and events flow like nobody's business and the representation of Afghan People in the movie is beyond great. The movie balances between realistic approaches and the mainstream Hollywood agendas.

I really recommend this film to all kinds of viewers.

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook

Country:

USA

Language:

English Pushto Dari French

Release Date:

4 March 2016 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Taliban Shuffle

Filming Locations:

Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$35,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$7,450,275, 6 March 2016

Gross USA:

$23,083,334

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$24,972,139

Company Credits

Production Co:

Broadway Video, Little Stranger, Paramount Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

112 min

Sound Mix:

Datasat Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1