All The President Movies
There's no denying that life in the White House today seems to be imitating the art of the film "Wag the Dog."
Pundits have had a field day comparing Clinton's woeful predicament with that of the unnamed, unseen president who molests a girl in the Oval Office of Barry Levinson's movie.
The March 20 release of Primary Colors will likely have the media abuzz again, with analysts drawing parallels to John Travolta and Emma Thompson's celluloid Bill and Hillary.
Oddly, the scandalous presidential film is a relatively new phenomenon. Films about our country's chief executive have historically leaned toward the reverential, and have tended to steer clear of the president's personal life. But during the past several years, Hollywood has shattered the president's squeaky-clean image and grown increasingly skeptical.
Here's a look at some of the most memorable presidential films, from hagiography to exposés of presidential peccadilloes.
Gabriel Over the White House (1933): In his first of several presidential roles, Walter Huston plays President Judson Hammond, a lackadaisical president all too willing to tow the party line and ignore the travails of his Depression-mired constituency. That is, until a car accident and subsequent miraculous recovery leave him a changed man. He wakes from a coma, dissolves Congress, and institutes a series of sweeping social programs. Whether this leader's transformation is something to admire or dread, one must admit he gets the job done.
Young Mr. Lincoln (1939): Though John Ford's character study does not chronicle Honest Abe's years in office, the film does trace his political rise from down-home merchant to lawyer to politician. Henry Fonda's Abe is ever honest, with all the homespun virtues Americans could ever want in a leader.
Wilson (1944): This forgotten Woodrow Wilson biopic would hardly be considered earth-shattering by today's standards. At the time, though, it was a suprisingly revealing portrait of a vulnerable man. The film charts Wilson's rise from Princeton president to New Jersey governor to American president, and follows his active social life after the death of his first wife. Wilson won five Oscars and a best picture nomination.
Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1963): This masterful Cold War black comedy from director Stanley Kubrick is timeless, as it speaks volumes about the power machines wield over men. Peter Sellers' bumbling, impotent President Merton Muffley (one of three roles he plays) struggles to avert nuclear disaster spurred by a maniacal Air Force general who wants to decimate the Soviets because, he believes, they are out to pollute Americans' "precious bodily fluids."
All the President's Men (1976): Not only did they bring down Richard Nixon, the reporting team of Woodward and Bernstein (Robert Redford and Dustin Hoffman) can also lay claim to inspirng a new generation of investigative journalists. The Washington Post reporters' Watergate reporting opened the Oval Office to public scrutiny, in real life and in celluloid.
JFK (1991): Conspiracy-minded director Oliver Stone never did buy the Warren Commission report that Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone. And his JFK makes the commission's conclusion seem quite dubious. Despite criticism that his film rewrites history, Stone (never known for subtlety) has crafted an important, compelling docudrama packed with fact and fiction. Released nearly 30 years after the Kennedy assassination, JFK's major revelation is that time is the human imagination's greatest fertilizer. Ultimately, Stone's film (starring Kevin Costner, Sissy Spacek, Joe Pesci, Tommy Lee Jones, and Gary Oldman) not only failed to set the record straight, but clouded the already fuzzy images of that fateful day in Dallas.
Dave (1993): An unexpected hit, this Capra-esque comedy tells the story of presidential fill-in Dave Kovic (Kevin Kline), who assumes the job full-time when a stroke puts the president in a coma. Dave warms the cold heart of the first lady (Sigourney Weaver) and pushes through a compassionate agenda.
Air Force One (1997): Harrison Ford's President James Marshall is a chief executive only Hollywood could create: a no-nonsense leader, steadfast in his resolve to suppress terrorists and dictators, a dedicated family man. When a group of Communist fanatics takes Air Force One hostage, the prez single-handedly saves the day.
Wag the Dog (1997): The story in this Barry Levinson offering mirrors the one dominating the headlines, only the fictional account is a hilarious satire. The president is in deep trouble when a "Firefly Girl" accuses him of getting a little too touchy-feely in the Oval Office. A presidential aide (Anne Heche) calls in a fix-it guy (Robert De Niro) who enlists the help of a slick movie producer (Dustin Hoffman), who invents a war in Albania. Dramatic footage and heart-warming songs suitably distract the public long enough for the president's re-election.
Back to The Primary Source
Stranger Than Fiction
Hollywood Fibs
Their True Colors
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Written by Beth Rowen for Information Please with graphic design by Dana Byerly