Harry's War

First, the IMDb rating for this movie (at the time of this writing) of only 5.7 is a sham. If one takes the actual rating average from the 193 voters, then the rating average is actually 7.16, and if you take the number of stars from those who wrote reviews (and included stars) it has a 9 star rating. So why the 5.7? Well, it appears that if IMDb disagrees with the vote, then they simply change it to whatever they think it should be, and they also clearly state that they will not tell you how they came to that decision. So, in summary, your vote does not count unless they (IMDb) agrees with it, thereby, rendering the movie average that they display as practically useless.

How appropriate a treatment for this very movie, where the governing who disagree simply change the rules to their satisfaction.

This movie is worth seeing for those who wish to see a film regarding an ever growing issue in the US. It is hard to find, but with diligence you can come across DVD copies on the internet. It is certainly better than 5.7.

The protagonist, Harry, attempts to remedy a situation where his friend is about to have her property confiscated for back taxes, taxes that she actually does not owe. He attempts to talk with the IRS director, to no avail. He goes to the kangaroo tax court, only to learn that he lost before ever entering the court room. He quickly finds out that the system is designed to squelch noncompliance, which also results in the death of his friend in the tax court. The property, having been willed to Harry, now becomes his fight, which he does with a method of last desperation with seemingly no other alternative.

Although the film is a bit lighthearted and meant to be a comedy, the subject matter is quite serious. The end scene is darkly prophetic of the tragic incident involving the US government in Waco, Texas, 12 years after the movie was made.

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.

I saw this moving when it first came out in the movie theater, on the big screen. In all the study I've done on the IRS, what little facts the agents spill, are accurate. The IRS does run on bluff. At the end of the movie, I witnessed something I've never seen in a movie theater, although I admit I don't go to many movies. The entire audience stood to their feet and applauded and cheered. This movie tells the truth, and elicits the Americans' true feelings about being robbed and brutalized by the IRS. It took me a long time to find this on video, and now I am having trouble finding it on DVD. The reason? The IRS doesn't want this information out there available to the public. That said, I want everyone to know that the income tax is only applicable to "US citizens," and the Internal Revenue Code defines the United States as "Washington D.C., Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands . . ." and other US territories. However, the US uses forms to get us to check off that we are "U.S. citizen," which we are not, so you are actually volunteering to pay taxes when you mistakenly state you are a "US citizen." Stop doing that! You are a state citizen.

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.