If the film had framed events as one cluster f***k after another leading to the ultimate irony of a an armed Taliban insurgency then it would have played a lot better to contemporary audiences.

Having said that, I enjoyed it for the performances and for the quality of the dialog.

I think the reason the movie failed at the box-office was because by that time people were disenchanted with U.S. involvement in the Middle East. It was becoming all too apparent that the reckless bravado of the title character — something films love to celebrate — was a character flaw that led to unintended consequences. Classic hubris. An inconvenient truth that U.S. audiences didn’t want to accept. Then or now.

Anyway, in this movie I think Sorkin was working with a sow’s ear. Despite his considerable skills, he couldn’t turn it into a silk purse. (Ditto with “Steve Jobs”.)

Be that as it may, I always watch his films (and TV series) and read the scripts. There is always something to learn from him.