The Films About Politics subgenre often resides in the Drama genre and overlaps with many other subgenres including Conspiracy Thriller Films, War Drama Films, and Films About Infidelity. The Political Film subgenre can also include various types of politics from government-based politics to workplace or family-driven politics. Politics has always been an intriguing subject for films with many classic films utilizing a political backdrop for Dramas, Thrillers and other genres.
The most popular Films About Politics also happens to be one of the greatest films of all time – Citizen Kane (1941). Over the next few decades there were also classics of the subgenre with Julius Caesar (1953), Animal Farm (1954) and Seven Days in May (1964). It wasn’t until the 1970’s that Political Films became one of the most popular subgenres as this decade also saw the popularity of another subgenre emerge – Conspiracy Thrillers.
The 1970’s produced many classics of the subgenre with The Candidate (1972), The Parallax View (1974), All the President’s Men (1976), Network (1976), F.I.S.T. (1978) and Norma Rae (1979). In Fact, All the President’s Men and Network are often featured on almost every Top 100 Films of All Time lists.
The 1980’s saw a shift away from Conspiracy-driven Political Films to a variety of sub-themes including political sexual scandals, Cold War driven politics and docudrama and biographical political films. Sexual scandals were prevalent in two popular films of the Politics subgenre with Scandal (1989) and Blaze (1989). The Falcon and the Snowman (1985) and White Nights (1985) used the backdrop of Cold War politics within their plots. And biographical political films were popular throughout the decade with The Killing Fields (1984), The Last Emperor (1987) and Cry Freedom (1987). Other notable films of the decade included First Monday in October (1981), Reds (1981), Moonlighting (1982), Mass Appeal (1984), A Passage to India (1984), Kiss of the Spider Woman (1985), Matewan (1987), Talk Radio (1988) and Do the Right Thing (1989).
Though the 1970’s produced classics of the subgenre, the 1990’s were the Golden Age of Political Films. There were a wide range of genres and subgenres represented with many classic films released including JFK (1991), Malcolm X (1992), Hoffa (1992), The American President (1995), Nixon (1995), Richard III (1995), City Hall (1996), Michael Collins (1996), Wag the Dog (1997), Primary Colors (1998) and The Insider (1999). A few other notable films of the subgenre included Guilty by Suspicion (1991), True Colors (1991), Ruby (1992), Citizen Cohn (1992), Bob Roberts (1992), Stalin (1992), Barcelona (1994), Beyond Rangoon (1995), Truman (1995) and George Wallace (1997).
The Golden Age of Political Films continued into the 2000’s as more classic films of the subgenre covered a variety of topics and genres. Political satires and comedies became popular in this decade with Head of State (2003), Spinning Boris (2003), Man of the Year (2006), Charlie Wilson’s War (2007), Swing Vote (2008) and W. (2008). Classic films of the Political subgenre included Traffic (2000), The Contender (2000), Bloody Sunday (2002), Syriana (2005), V for Vendetta (2006), Lions for Lambs (2007), Che: Part One (2008), Frost/Nixon (2008), Milk (2008) and Che: Part Two (2009).
The 2010’s featured another shift of the subgenre back to biographical political films while also tapping back into the 1970’s news and politics theme. Biographical political films were the featured theme of the decade with many classic and notable films including The King’s Speech (2010), J. Edgar (2011), Lincoln (2012), Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom (2013), The Imitation Game (2014), Selma (2014), All the Way (2016), Jackie (2016), Churchill (2017), Mark Felt: The Man Who Brought Down the White House (2017), LBJ (2017), Darkest Hour (2017), The Front Runner (2018) and Vice (2018). Films that mixed politics with news organizations or reporters included Kill the Messenger (2014), Truth (2015), Spotlight (2015), The Post (2017) and Bombshell (2019). Other notable films of the decade included Fair Game (2010), Casino Jack (2010), Too Big to Fail (2011), The Ides of March (2011), Game Change (2012), Promised Land (2012), Sully (2016), Miss Sloane (2016), The Best of Enemies (2019), The Public (2019) and Official Secrets (2019).
The 2020’s has had a few notable films in the Political Film subgenre worth checking out that include Irresistible (2020), Judas and the Black Messiah (2021) and Don’t Look Up (2021). Don’t Look Up will likely become a classic of the decade and is a film worth moving to the front of your streaming queue.
Our list of Films About Politics includes over 300+ movies from 1941 – 2021. Multiple genres are also included in this list with Dramas, Comedies, and Thrillers. For our list of Top Films About Politics You Haven’t Seen, we had to leave quite a few great films of the list. These notable films included The Candidate (1972), White Nights (1985), The Falcon & The Snowman (1985), Storyville (1992), The Contender (2000), Amazing Grace (2006), Zipper (2015) and Miss Sloane (2016).
Note: We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites. Here is our list of Top Films About Politics You Haven’t Seen:
Plot: Reporter refuses to reveal her source and is thrown in jail. Her case makes it all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court.
KBZ’s Take: An engaging Political film that tracks the conviction of a reporter to protect her sources at all costs. More of a drama than a thriller, the film is excellent when it delves into the intricacies between government secrets and news transparency. Kate Beckinsale and Matt Dillon both give great performances in this film any fan of the subgenre will enjoy.
Where to Stream / Buy: https://tubitv.com/movies/462750/nothing-but-the-truth
#9
Citizen Cohn
Plot: A reflection on the life of lawyer Roy Cohn.
KBZ’s Take: Biographical films are at their best when they cover a controversial character and don’t hold back. That’s the case with Roy Cohn who was instrumental in the Red Scare of 1950’s McCarthyism. James Woods is amazing as Cohn and was nominated for both an Emmy and Golden Globe for his performance. Regardless of where you stand on Roy Cohn as a person, this film shouldn’t be missed for Woods performance.
Where to Stream / Buy: https://amzn.to/40fL6cs
#8
Barcelona
Plot: Two friends in Barcelona deal with relationship issues and anti-Americanism from the Barcelona community.
KBZ’s Take: One of a handful of films that shows opposing viewpoints of the US during the Cold War. Warning though – this movie is a talker with little to no action. Whit Stillman’s films have a ‘love it or hate it’ vibe similar to Woody Allena and Jim Jarmusch. Barcelona is the second in a trifecta of dialogue heavy films including Metropolitan (1990) and The Last Days of Disco (1998). Overall, it’s still a great film and worth watching if only to see the funny (and often clueless) musings by Chris Eigeman’s US naval officer.
Additional Lists: Top Cold War Films You Haven’t Seen #8
Where to Stream / Buy: https://amzn.to/3WAe9nO
#7
Casino Jack
Plot: Based on the career of Jack Abramoff, who was involved in a massive corruption scandal.
KBZ’s Take: One of the better films of the subgenre driven mainly by Kevin Spacey as Abramoff and Barry Pepper as Michael Scanlon. For people wo don’t know about Abramoff or the corruption he was involved with, this is a great film to learn about how corruption works within the government lobbying world.
Where to Stream / Buy: https://amzn.to/3HEoslB
Plot: A salesman for a natural gas company gets involved with local politics of a small town.
KBZ’s Take: This is one of the films that tackled the Fracking controversy of the early 2010’s…and is still the best one that covers the topic. While some documentaries will cover the more technical details of Fracking and how it impacts the environment, Promised Land focuses more on the small-town communities affected by Fracking – both economically and environmentally. Matt Damon and John Krasinski are both excellent in the film and it’s one that shouldn’t be missed by fans of the subgenre.
Where to Stream / Buy: https://amzn.to/3HF3kN8
#5
Scandal
Plot: Young woman has an affair with Britain’s Minister of War which leads to a government scandal.
KBZ’s Take: This film is worth seeing for the performances by John Hurt, Ian McKellen and Joanne Whalley-Kilmer. It’s also a fascinating look into 1960’s era British Politics and how the Profumo scandal ruined the lives and careers of multiple people. One of the best films of the subgenre and not to be missed.
Where to Stream / Buy: https://amzn.to/3kVLJHD
Plot: Reporter discovers witnesses of a senator’s assassination are dying.
KBZ’s Take: This is one of the best films of the Political Films subgenre and one of the best films of the Conspiracy Thriller subgenre. Though it’s based in 1970’s political paranoia, a lot of the themes present in the film will be reminiscent of any era in politics and the shadow characters behind multiple facets of government.
Where to Stream / Buy: https://amzn.to/3RjOrmL
#3
Fair Game
Plot: CIA operative’s cover is blown as her identity is leaked to the press – in retribution for her husband’s New York Times article refuting the sale of enriched uranium to Iraq.
KBZ’s Take: The best film that covers Government retribution when the press exposes their lies. As we now know, Iraq didn’t purchase enriched uranium as the pretext for the U.S to invade Iraq. This film shows how the government will stop at nothing – including unmasking one of their own – when the narrative they are selling to the public is questioned. Highly recommended film and one of the best of the subgenre.
Where to Stream / Buy: https://amzn.to/3Hi77OY
Plot: A look McCarthyism and the Hollywood Blacklist through Director David Merrill.
KBZ’s Take: One of Robert DeNiro’s lesser-known films but still one of his best. Though the film is fictionalized (with David Merrill inspired by the experience of John Berry), it’s a unique look into the era of McCarthyism, the Red “Communist’ Scare and its impact on an entire industry – Hollywood. At heart, the film is about staying true to one’s convictions in the face of politically charged winds.
Where to Stream / Buy: https://amzn.to/3JrEnpO
#1
True Colors
Plot: Two law school friends find themselves at odds when one becomes a Justice Department lawyer and the other a politician.
KBZ’s Take: A forgotten classic of the 1990’s despite its two great leads – John Cusack and James Spader. While the film is a bit dated with its early 1990’s style, it’s still a great political drama that shows how cutthroat someone can be in achieving a life in politics. Classic tale of political corruption and greed and one of the best of the subgenre.
Where to Stream / Buy: https://amzn.to/40cANpp
