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Wag the Dog
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Wag the Dog

1997
Comedy
Drama
1h 37m
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Avg Percentile 54.29% from 3463 total ratings

Ratings & Reviews

(3463)
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Rated 27 Jan 2010
84
79th
Not exactly a laugh-out-loud experience, but it is also highly insightful, clever, witty, and consistently "humorous".
Rated 14 Aug 2007
85
88th
This movie should be seen by everybody claiming to have a mind
Rated 14 Aug 2007
86
72nd
Hilarious movie, making you questioning the veracity of everything you will ever see in a news report ever again.
Rated 06 Mar 2011
75
67th
I can compare this film to the American version of the TV show The Office. It starts as a great comedy because of great characters and an absurdity that's believable. Unfortunately, it has to keep escalating and topping itself and it eventually goes too far. By the end I'm too busy saying, "Come on, really?" instead of enjoying the humor. It's still quite good, Hoffman and De Niro are spot on, but I can't help but think this could have been a classic for me if they would have cut 15-20 minutes.
Rated 01 Aug 2009
5
11th
Subtlety of a jackhammer. Yeah, we get it, we're all being manipulated.
Rated 18 Jun 2012
75
85th
That very rare thing in Hollywood - the political satire that is actually just a political satire. It doesn't have romance, it isn't a thriller, there are no 'humanising' subplots of sentimental moments beyond those on display being manufactured for the purposes of political manipulation. Not flawless, but everyone performs well and the writing is fairly consistently sharp. Overall an excellent project, of the sort I would like more of (instead of 'Bob Roberts', for instance).
Rated 14 Aug 2007
88
66th
A sharp political and media satire with dialogue by David Mamet and an incredible bevy of actors.
Rated 14 Aug 2007
57
31st
There are some occasional moments of insight as to manipulation of the media and public by the government, but not enough to pull this film from the quagmire of absurdity it unfortunately found itself rooted in too deeply.
Rated 23 Aug 2009
1
17th
A great cast and a great concept are let down by uninspired directing and a weak script. Some clever ideas and a lovely soundtrack keep the ship from sinking entirely.
Rated 13 Jan 2010
100
88th
Hilarious, amusing and cleverly written, Wag The Dog is a brilliant piece of filmmaking! When the President of the United States is caught up in a scandal involving an underage girl, a team of the President's aides start a fake war in order to direct the attention away from the scandal, and they hire a movie director to make it happen. Robert De Niro and Dustin Hoffman make an excellent team, there's lots of hilarity and ironic moments.
Rated 18 Dec 2009
1
12th
Incredibly boring and just tries way too hard. I don't think the people who made this know what the word "subtle" means. Enough plot holes to give any sane person a massive headache. But maybe I'm biased cause I really don't like politics at all and can't understand people that do. Really unsatisfying ending and there isn't a likable character in this movie, but hey I guess there aren't any likable people in politics either so uh good job movie? PS, hated the crappy cinematography.
Rated 01 May 2016
81
97th
19 years later and the perception is that nothing has changed. Creating fear, controlling the media narrative. manipulating the public - the same dynamic exists. Except now with social media you can directly invent your audience as well and play both sides of the story. At least we have things like bellingcat and WikiLeaks to try and redress the balance, but they aren't flashy like fox news so who would listen to them?
Rated 03 Mar 2012
74
79th
An interesting concept that would be impossible in this day and age thanks to camera phones and Twitter. Even so, it seems like a lot of trouble to go through to win an election when all you really need is to reprogram some voting machines in Florida.
Rated 14 Aug 2007
86
78th
This? This is nothing!
Rated 14 Aug 2007
73
77th
Interestingly this happened BEFORE the Monica Lewinsky thing, and Ken Star was actually asked about this movie on air. Both this and the movie are telling and amusing.
Rated 20 Dec 2010
84
70th
Amazing body of work both from De Niro and Hoffman. Brilliant political satire with smart plot.
Rated 30 Sep 2010
50
10th
It's a good comment on art but a terrible comment on politics. Performances and dialogue can't make it great.
Rated 27 Jul 2010
60
29th
Hysterical and over-the-top, "Wag the Dog" contains moments of inspiration and genuinely funny satire, but, overall it's too shallow and self-conscious to really take off. Good performances all around, but Hoffman is the one who shines in particular.
Rated 01 Apr 2010
90
61st
If this were a true story, I'd be really disturbed.
Rated 29 Jul 2012
74
31st
It has smart ideas, good performances, and is funny when it wants to be, but it never seems to build to anything that exciting.
Rated 09 Mar 2007
65
26th
Good idea poorly executed.
Rated 14 Aug 2007
75
33rd
Interesting, but not really my kind of movie.
Rated 14 Aug 2007
60
31st
I've just seen it again and hat to adjust the score downward. It's just not too entertaining all in all.
Rated 11 Sep 2007
93
94th
The fact that this is satire and not a documentary...
Rated 18 Nov 2020
73
61st
72.9.
Rated 15 Dec 2009
73
67th
A sharp, funny satire with great performances and excellent writing.
Rated 09 Jun 2009
77
85th
Poignant and funny, and I guess also a bit scary.
Rated 14 Aug 2007
70
63rd
Sadly clairvoyant. Believe nothing you see on the news, kids.
Rated 28 Feb 2023
80
80th
The last third lags badly, with the whole film changing dramatically after the Willie Nelson interlude. But the witty, fast paced first half is so perfect that if one can't forgive the rest at least one can turn it off.
Rated 03 Jan 2014
85
65th
Smart, well-acted, and uncomfortably prescient political satire from director Barry Levinson and and all-star cast.
Rated 15 Sep 2010
72
43rd
Admirable written and well acted by all involved, but the satire is laid too thick and becomes hard to swallow. Some entire scenes could've done with being edited out completely, as they could've been insinuated anyway.
Rated 22 Sep 2017
80
37th
Viewed September 20, 2017.
Rated 23 Oct 2011
69
73rd
It may not subscribe to your political leanings, but it should fulfill your quota of cynicism.
Rated 06 Jan 2020
60
44th
Dustin Hoffman is terrific in this interesting satire. The dialogues are a lot of fun and the main message is conveyed successfully, although there was arguably some room for improvement regarding believability.
Rated 22 Jan 2008
65
85th
Remarkably prescient media satire. Still feels a bit understated, which is strange.
Rated 03 Aug 2007
79
46th
Sharp and acerbic social filmmaking of the sort we haven't seen often since the 70s.
Rated 27 Apr 2007
65
20th
Whimsical
Rated 19 Aug 2009
80
35th
Entertaining look at media spin
Rated 14 Oct 2016
50
11th
Clever at times, and I love Dustin Hoffman in this. The cinematography is distracting, bouncing back and forth between a shaky, zoom-heavy documentary style and traditional shots. This was clearly done for some reason, but that reason was lost on me.
Rated 04 Jun 2022
50
38th
A Limited Hangout. Hollywood has a bad habit of doing this; taking an important and dark instance of CIA fuckery and turning it into a "fun" satire that renders the entire affair a triviality (see also: The Men Who Stare at Goats.) It's like, well sure, some news media is staged and fake, but it's only Robert De Niro in a tweed fedora having a good old time. Come on, Operation Mockingbird isn't real; and even if it is real, it's FUN. Lighten up guys! Jeez...
Rated 04 Nov 2010
46
61st
#00s(e)#, reviews, story, casting.
Rated 09 Mar 2008
55
26th
Boring.
Rated 01 May 2009
70
73rd
Hilarious. Very underrated.
Rated 21 Dec 2009
65
8th
Topical once, tedious now.
Rated 14 Apr 2012
60
36th
Political movies from the 90s are getting hard to watch. Here in 2012 we're watching a radical re-distribution of power play out. Global recession, an indeterminate number of wars, Arab Spring, all that stuff. It becomes frustrating watching movies from the 90s where their only major struggle is the fact that there's no Soviet Union anymore. Oh, the problems of a global hegemon! On top of that, even pre-Lewinsky movies are singularly obsessed with the President's sex life. Give me a break.
Rated 28 Jul 2008
87
63rd
Great political satire.
Rated 09 Feb 2012
74
26th
Could have been great.
Rated 26 Sep 2015
61
31st
The directing was a straight forward stand and deliver affair, with all the flair left to the script to explore. I noticed some hints of Network too, which in comparison is more grounded and intelligent. Wag the Dog really ascends into absurdity as we get closer to the end, that coupled with Hoffman's character running out of material & repeating dialogue, drops this flicks approval rating slightly.
Rated 15 Aug 2013
65
71st
Fairly accurate explanation of the performative pro-duction of contemporary politics. "What did television ever do to you?" "It destroyed the electoral process." Worth the price of admission for this line alone.
Rated 14 Aug 2007
88
85th
Interesting story, though somewhat dry. I appreciate this film.
Rated 26 May 2011
69
19th
This film starts out rather well, but after the halfway mark it gets so conceptually farfetched that it's difficult to connect to... anything. It's just a bunch of silly stuff that happens. Too political to be slapstick, too absurd to be taken seriously. Nobody's character really does anything or is interesting apart from Hoffman's, whose the clear shining star here. De Niro couldn't be more bland. I mean, it's fine satirical fluff, I guess, but Christ, they walk away from a plane crash.
Rated 20 Apr 2012
79
61st
Very funny and clever black comedy. The dialogue is fast and overlapping, but not hard to keep up. I like how everything is just part of the production, with the mulitple acts, product placements, back-end percentages, actors, computer enhancements, songs, etc. But I guess that's all news really is, a production, twisting things to fit the story they're trying to tell. Both Robert DeNiro and Dustin Hoffman are great.
Rated 22 Jun 2008
85
88th
This film is an indredibly amusing albeit dark satire. This film actually makes me question what is true and what isn't true. This film is all about political spin, manipulating the media, and therefore changing history. It's a very affecting film with a great cast.
Rated 14 Aug 2007
64
52nd
Probably one of the best ideas for a movie, EVER.
Rated 29 Mar 2007
90
86th
De Niro and Hoffman are the whole show. That's a very good show, however
Rated 20 Sep 2019
67
34th
This could have been so good- but it wasn't.
Rated 21 Aug 2007
80
80th
Excellent
Rated 19 May 2012
60
53rd
A rather lacklustre delivery hampers the overall impact of the otherwise clever satire.
Rated 04 Mar 2009
55
63rd
Cynical and clever.
Rated 14 Aug 2007
27
22nd
Painful, like most political movies.
Rated 26 Nov 2009
74
39th
Quite good and relevant to today's political landscape.
Rated 06 Dec 2014
80
55th
Only for the soundtracks, composed by Mark Knopfler, the movie can be watched.
Rated 08 Dec 2012
70
40th
Well-written with an intriguing, if unbelievable, premise.
Rated 09 Oct 2013
78
58th
78.000
Rated 14 Aug 2007
40
35th
Levinson, you suck.
Rated 27 Jun 2007
52
50th
Trying just a bit too hard, De Niro and Hoffman fail, but only barely, at making a black comedy.
Rated 02 Jul 2015
50
10th
Great casting, good concept, mediocre directing and script. A miss shot, sadly.
Rated 13 Jul 2009
65
51st
The first half is a prescient, witty and wildly funny political satire -- some of the best of its kind this side of Dr. Strangelove. Oh how the movie loses its way toward the end... While it's always exaggerated, the finale is way too cartoony to work. Harrelson is funny, but the movie starts collapsing as soon as it introduces his character. Walking away from a plane crash... Ugh. Some great performances and half of a great film make it worthwhile, but it squanders its potential.
Rated 22 Feb 2012
75
74th
Amazing movie with very talented actors. Reminds me a lot of the Lewinsky scandal.. Great plot and after this movie you really hope real wars arent started like this..! Mix fiction with reality and this is what you get!
Rated 21 Mar 2008
41
24th
eng
Rated 28 May 2014
85
76th
- 10/6/07
Rated 08 May 2011
40
11th
Barry Levinson is a really boring director, with an adequate but unexceptional command of cinematic language. This really shows in Wag the Dog, which feels like a TV movie. The only reason to watch this is Hoffman's performance, which may just be one of his best. But that's enough to elevate this (pleasant, but never as jagged and mean as it wants to be) satire to "worth a rental".
Rated 18 Jun 2012
65
33rd
I get it. It doesn't mean that I like it. Political satire just doesn't seem to resonate with me.
Rated 14 Aug 2007
40
25th
Pretty interesting with a good ending. Pictures like this run on idea not plot & after a bit we get the idea, and redundancy sets in.
Rated 08 Jan 2009
73
70th
This movie makes you think. And that's got to count for something.
Rated 04 May 2009
3
40th
"Great acting, great filmmaking, half-realised idea - but nonetheless entertaining."
Rated 09 Apr 2010
88
69th
great cast, story and message
Rated 23 May 2010
92
95th
One of my all time favorite political movie. It's dark, it fast and it''s really funny. Blame the albanians!
Rated 12 Nov 2009
80
85th
funny.. but in a sense also disturbing..
Rated 13 May 2008
65
30th
This film tries to depict the machinations of political campaigns the same way Network depicts television media in general. I never thought I'd say this about Network, but compared to Wag the Dog it's a fairly grounded and realistic movie. Wag the Dog is highly stylized and over-the-top, and it's crucial that you realize this if you don't want to spend your entire time watching the film rolling your eyes. As a parody it works for a while, but the film gets really derailed in the second half.
Rated 19 Aug 2007
63
66th
Not bad, sort of a weak (and annoying) political commentary.
Rated 03 Dec 2006
88
82nd
Levinson's best? A pitch-perfect satire lifted by a jaunty pace and game performances by all involved. Breezy enough to be a laugh-fest, but with enough incisive points to be worth discussing.
Rated 05 Jun 2008
75
89th
Excellent.
Rated 18 Nov 2018
74
45th
A timeless, eternal political/media critical satire. Sharp criticism on how the media can manipulate the masses and shows how the amoral, political, PR mind works. By the way the film also reflects on how the typical Hollywood movie is made nowadays. Well written and well casted ( esp. Dustin Hoffman steals the show), but sometimes it's vapid for me. The 'Don't change horses' ad clips are so brilliant. Worth watching!
Rated 13 Dec 2011
83
86th
This movie has a really good script and is a fun political satire. Dustin Hoffman is excellent and there are quite a few other good performances with this nice ensemble cast. There are some fun surprises, I highly recommend this film.
Rated 25 Feb 2008
80
64th
i have seen it again on TV some time ago and it is a classic political farce. with a very well plotted script which is, very near our reality.
Rated 14 Aug 2007
85
60th
Excellent
Rated 26 Oct 2011
79
63rd
79.250
Rated 04 Aug 2008
90
90th
Excellent
Rated 29 Dec 2010
70
76th
Good Movie
Rated 14 Aug 2007
45
33rd
The epigonic Wag the Dog wags a finger at the media two decades after Lumet's Network and four decades after Kazan's A Face in the Crowd. Not unlike them, it very quickly gets caught up in chasing its own tail. Wonder why Hoffman felt he had to do this after playing in the far superior Mad City by Costa-Gavras.
Rated 05 Aug 2011
74
49th
Good but not great, due to the total implausability of it I suppose.
Rated 13 Jul 2007
94
89th
A funny, pointed political satire.
Rated 03 May 2020
78
81st
Wag the Dog, sapasağlam bir hiciv örneği, sımsıkı işlenmiş bir politik taşlama. Buzdağının görünen ve görünmeyen kısmını, o ince çizgide dönen akıl oyunlarıyla işliyor. Halkın manipüle edilişini, kara mizahla dokuyor. De Niro ve Hoffman karşılıklı döktürmüş. "Gösteri devam etmeli" öyle değil mi?
Rated 30 Nov 2014
56
15th
Brilliant concept but I found the execution at times too forceful and at other times too light in its touch. Watch this and Enemy of the State for a good "wake up sheeple" double.
Rated 04 Jul 2013
73
12th
Not as good as The Network, but ahead of its time.
Rated 26 Jul 2012
85
84th
Must see.
Rated 16 Sep 2007
90
98th
Brilliant comedy/satire
Rated 03 Aug 2011
60
46th
The idea was good, but is not an outstanding movie, because is not that funny, it's just a movie of an one joke. However, worth a look.
Rated 14 Aug 2007
87
80th
A very saavy political comedy. Well written and acted with a fantastic cast. This movie reminds you to question everything you see on tv. Willie Nelson steals the movie. (An intersting side note: Saddam Hussain played this movie to the Iraqi people during the American missle attacks at the height of the Clinton/Lewinsky scandal).

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