Harry's War

HARRY'S WAR is one of the only American films ever made that really attempts to reveal the corruption in our governmental system. Other than Frank Capra's MR. SMITH GOES TO WASHINGTON there has never really been a studio film made that tells it how it really is. And although this film only scratches the surface of how absolutely corrupt and unconstitutional the I.R.S. is, it does deliver a shocking amount of truth, within a film community that is undeniably censored and most of the time pure propaganda.

It's amazing the power that film has. It people saw this film in mass. It would start a revolution.

This movie should be required viewing for all students. It puts into perspective how we have allowed our "servants" to become our "masters". Harry's speech is great talking about freedom and what our founders stood for. So many important lessons we have forgotten. I bought a copy on e-bay. They are getting hard to find and I guarantee it will never again be released. Get your copy while you can. A great deal of the movie is based on truth. The scene with the aunt dying at the IRS kangaroo court is based upon a true incident. When he talks about the IRS and their abuses, many if not all of them can be documented as based on real life. The discussions of the complexity of the IRS code and how no one understands it make you want to stand up and shout "AMEN". Someday I hope our government will listen and ax the tax.

I had never heard of this movie and just today (20121215) came across it on Netflix.

So, for those looking to watch it, you have the opportunity. (and this is where my review would end, were it not for the 10-line minimum rule! So, on to the blathering...)

Casting (or, possibly, makeup) and score selections were slight distractions. Less cartoonish portrayals of 'Aunt' Beverly and Billy would have helped the audience relate more with these characters, who represent a genuine compassionate, charitable neighbor to everyone and a war veteran. As it stands, they are presented as kooks and the antagonists (I'll let you figure out who they are) are presented as the sane, "normal," most-easily-related-to folks. That may have been the only way to get the film made, however. Sort of like Churchill being forbidden from writing about Hitler - he still did it, using animal abstractions, but people read between the lines and understood.

I've also never been a huge fan of scores that include whimsical flute playing. I understand the link to our nation's history, but the sound just doesn't strike the right chord for such a serious topic.

The presentation of the story is typical for the 80s. Not quite the gritty "French Connection/Dog Day Afternoon/Dirty Harry" quality of the 70s films and not the over-the-top "Dumb and Dumber/Scary Movie" silliness of the 90s/00s. Somewhere in the middle.

If this film were made today, it would be darker (truer?), and the omnipresence of the IRS, while significant, would be but a mere shadow of its true power. Still, I think you'll get the intended feelings when watching the current film.

In 1981 I worked in an office adjacent to a Vidio rental store, where I would visit frequently to rent movies. Although, I must have missed any theatrical release, I found "Harry's War" on the video racks. My wife and I watched it and were fascinated by the almost sacrilegious shots taken at the "IRS" in the movie. As we at the were embroiled in a conflict with the "IRS", it hit really close to home. As a result we talked about the movie constantly to friends and acquaintances. Many of them showed and interest and we decided to rent the movie again and invite a few of these friends over to view it on our Television. We were surprised however to find that the movie was missing from the shelves. This was very unexpected as there had been at least a dozen copies. When I questioned the store owner, he stated that the distribution company had re-called the movie without explanation. At that point I began searching other Video rental stores and must have contacted 20 or 30 different stores without finding it. In fact, I could not even find anyone who recalled having the movie. At this point I began to suspect foul play. I did not have access to the internet at the time, but I did research and called a number of Video suppliers, including the one that our store said the movie had come to him from. Once again, I could not find out what had happened to the movie, or even get anyone to admit that they had heard of it. At this point I was beginning to doubt my own sanity. If I had not watched it with my wife, I may have thought I dreamed it up. I have repeated this story many times down through the years and never found anyone who would, or could verify that they had seen the movie. You can imagine my surprise at finding it in this data base. I had eventually (99%) come to the conclusion that the Government (ie IRS), had been instrumental in quashing the movie, as it was extremely (rightfully) prejudicial to the IRS's tactics of collection. I'm still waiting to find out.

I remember seeing "Harry's War" (1981) when I was on vacation in St. George of all places (where "Harry's War" was filmed). I honestly don't remember much about the film--the political arguments were a little beyond my 12-year-old brain.

Watching it recently as a 42-year-old, I must say that I enjoyed it quite a bit. Oh, the cinematography, script, and acting are a bit wobbly (you can tell it was a low-budget production), but it has one thing that a lot of movies today lack: entertainment value. I was entertained throughout the entire film. Part of it was probably due to the fact that I couldn't believe what I was seeing. I've seen plenty of left-wing diatribes on film, but I don't think I've ever seen anything so sincerely right-wing. And even though it was in the service of a "silly" comedy, it was smart right-wing (I know that sounds like a contradiction: silly and smart). The condemnation of the IRS in the film was valid, and it's only gotten about 1000 percent worse since 1981.