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Wag the Dog

R Released Dec 25, 1997 1h 37m Comedy Drama List
86% Tomatometer 78 Reviews 76% Popcornmeter 25,000+ Ratings
Two weeks prior to reelection, the United States president lands in the middle of a sex scandal. In need of outside help to quell the situation, presidential adviser Winifred Ames (Anne Heche) enlists the expertise of spin doctor Conrad Brean (Robert De Niro), who decides a distraction is the best course of action. Brean approaches Hollywood producer Stanley Motss (Dustin Hoffman) to help him fabricate a war in Albania -- and once underway, the duo has the media entirely focused on the war.
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Wag the Dog

Wag the Dog

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Critics Consensus

Smart, well-acted, and uncomfortably prescient political satire from director Barry Levinson and and all-star cast.

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Critics Reviews

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Jason Bailey Vice If anything, in the years since its release, the worlds of politics, entertainment, and news media have grown even more intertwined in which narratives are carefully controlled and expectations are minimal. Jan 2, 2018 Full Review Jonathan Rosenbaum Chicago Reader Hilary Henkin and David Mamet's script is gleefully hyperbolic without ever straying from its political target. Mar 30, 2009 Full Review Time Out Lazily assembled by director Levinson, it slides into a series of soft, extended skits on engineering a media war, not helped by several badly handled leaps in the story. Jan 26, 2006 Full Review Dan DiNicola The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY) The idea sags near the end, but for some time, it is right on. Rated: B+ Jan 19, 2023 Full Review Wesley Lovell Cinema Sight ...I’ll simply let the movie explain itself and recommend it highly for anyone interested in satirical filmmaking. Rated: 4/4 Jan 7, 2023 Full Review Eddie Harrison film-authority.com ...a vitriolic comedy/satire that venomously assesses the lack of morality in the modern media and politics... Rated: 4/5 Jun 9, 2021 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Denis K The really genius movie about how politics works :) Rated 5 out of 5 stars 09/27/24 Full Review Bulgantamir B I really liked the talented actors Rated 5 out of 5 stars 08/08/24 Full Review Godfrey D Its a really good movie. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 08/07/24 Full Review Бавуу Э Two weeks prior to reelection, the United States president lands in the middle of a sex scandal. In need of outside help to quell the situation, presidential adviser Winifred Ames (Anne Heche) enlists the expertise of spin doctor Conrad Brean (Robert De Niro), who decides a distraction is the best course of action. Brean approaches Hollywood producer Stanley Motss (Dustin Hoffman) to help him fabricate a war in Albania -- and once underway, the duo has the media entirely focused on the war. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 08/07/24 Full Review AB L Don't get me wrong, there are some perfectly executed cynical moments here (The patriotic songs, the fact that no one disputes the fake war but merely create a separate false narrative, etc.) but the movie still feels lacking. Even at the time this was made Presidents didn't need to create a fake war as a distraction, they simply bombed real people. Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 08/31/23 Full Review Jelisije J A movie about so many subject mattes that if you break down into reality its actually a horror movie than a political comedy. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 05/05/23 Full Review Read all reviews
Wag the Dog

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Cast & Crew

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Movie Info

Synopsis Two weeks prior to reelection, the United States president lands in the middle of a sex scandal. In need of outside help to quell the situation, presidential adviser Winifred Ames (Anne Heche) enlists the expertise of spin doctor Conrad Brean (Robert De Niro), who decides a distraction is the best course of action. Brean approaches Hollywood producer Stanley Motss (Dustin Hoffman) to help him fabricate a war in Albania -- and once underway, the duo has the media entirely focused on the war.
Director
Barry Levinson
Producer
Robert De Niro, Barry Levinson, Jane Rosenthal
Screenwriter
Larry Beinhart, Hilary Henkin, David Mamet
Distributor
New Line Cinema
Production Co
Punch Productions, New Line Cinema, Baltimore Pictures, Tribeca Productions
Rating
R (Language)
Genre
Comedy, Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Dec 25, 1997, Wide
Release Date (Streaming)
Jul 1, 2008
Box Office (Gross USA)
$43.0M
Runtime
1h 37m
Sound Mix
Dolby SR, DTS, Dolby Stereo, Stereo, SDDS, Dolby A, Surround, Dolby Digital
Aspect Ratio
Flat (1.85:1)
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