Bringemovies
← Browse Movies
Wag the Dog
TITLE DETAILS

Wag the Dog

1997-12-25 · 97 min · ★ 6.9

Comedy · Drama

During the final weeks of a presidential race, the President is accused of sexual misconduct. To distract the public until the election, the President's adviser hires a Hollywood producer to help him stage a fake war.

Open detail page

Trailers are previews, not full movies.

No authorized playback source configured. Use the legal watch options below.

Production details

Directors
Barry Levinson
Production companies
New Line Cinema, Tribeca Productions, Baltimore Pictures, Punch Productions
Countries
United States of America
Status
Released
Budget
USD 15,000,000
Revenue
USD 64,256,513

Top Cast

Dustin HoffmanDustin HoffmanStanley Motss
Robert De NiroRobert De NiroConrad Brean
Anne HecheAnne HecheWinifred Ames
Woody HarrelsonWoody HarrelsonSergeant William Schumann
Denis LearyDenis LearyFad King
Willie NelsonWillie NelsonJohnny Dean
Andrea MartinAndrea MartinLiz Butsky
Kirsten DunstKirsten DunstTracy Lime
William H. MacyWilliam H. MacyCIA Agent Charles Young
David KoechnerDavid KoechnerDirector
Michael BelsonPresident
Suzanne CryerSuzanne CryerAmy Cain
John Michael HigginsJohn Michael HigginsJohn Levy
Suzie PlaksonSuzie PlaksonGrace
Jason CottleJason CottleA.D.
Harland WilliamsHarland WilliamsPet Wrangler
Sean MastersonSean MastersonBob Richardson
Bernard HockeBernard HockeTechnician
Jenna ByrneJenna ByrneSharon
Maurice WoodsKid with Shoes

Title information and images are supplied by TMDb. Explore our discovery guide for advice on comparing metadata and legal viewing options.

Where to watch

Availability provided by JustWatch via TMDb. Offers can change. Provider links are listed on TMDb; full playback requires a separately authorized source.

Rental

Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

Purchase

Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

View authorized watch options on TMDb

Recommendations

Primary Colors
★ 6.2
Primary Colors1998Comedy · Drama

In this adaptation of the best-selling roman à clef about Bill Clinton's 1992 run for the White House, the young and gifted Henry Burton is tapped to oversee the presidential campaign of Governor Jack Stanton. Burton is pulled into the politician's colorful world and looks on as Stanton -- who has a wandering eye that could be his downfall -- contends with his ambitious wife, Susan, and an outspoken adviser, Richard Jemmons.

Seven Days in May
★ 7.4
Seven Days in May1964Drama

A U.S. Marine Corps colonel alerts the president of a planned military coup against him.

Truth
★ 6.5
Truth2015Drama

As a renowned producer and close associate of Dan Rather, Mary Mapes believes she’s broken the biggest story of the 2004 election: revelations of a sitting U.S. President’s military service. But when allegations come pouring in, sources change their stories, document authenticity is questioned, and the casualties begin to mount.

Speak
★ 7.1
Speak2004Drama

Freshman high-school student Melinda has refused to speak ever since she called the cops on a popular summer party. With her old friends snubbing her for being a rat, and her parents too busy to notice her troubles, she folds into herself, trying to hide her secret: that star senior Andy raped her at the party. But Melinda does manage to find solace in her art class headed by Mr. Freeman.

Power
★ 5.8
Power1986Drama

Pete St. John is a powerful and successful political consultant, with clients spread around the country. When his long-time friend and client Ohio senator Sam Hastings decides to quit politics, he is rapidly drafted to help with the campaign of the man destined to succeed him, unknown and mysterious businessman Jerome Cade...

Charlie Wilson's War
★ 6.5
Charlie Wilson's War2007Comedy · Drama

A Texas congressman sets a series of events in motion when he conspires with a CIA operative to aid Afghan mujahideen rebels fighting the Soviets.

Fair Game
★ 6.5
Fair Game2010Drama

A devoted wife and mother leads a secret life as a CIA agent until her husband’s article exposes a scandal, putting her identity and loved ones at risk. As her world crumbles, she must navigate the fallout of her double life.

Official Secrets
★ 7.2
Official Secrets2019Drama

The true story of British intelligence whistleblower Katharine Gun who—prior to the 2003 Iraq invasion—leaked a top-secret NSA memo exposing a joint US-UK illegal spying operation against members of the UN Security Council. The memo proposed blackmailing member states into voting for war.

The Fifth Estate
★ 6.0
The Fifth Estate2013Drama

A look at the relationship between WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange and his early supporter and eventual colleague Daniel Domscheit-Berg, and how the website's growth and influence led to an irreparable rift between the two friends.

The Middle Man
★ 6.1
The Middle Man2021Comedy · Drama

Frank Farrelli takes on the job as a middle man in the God-forsaken town of Karmack, USA, a community in a depression so deep that they need a middle man to professionally communicate more of the bad news.

The Sum of All Fears
★ 6.4
The Sum of All Fears2002Drama

When the president of Russia suddenly dies, a man whose politics are virtually unknown succeeds him. The change in political leaders sparks paranoia among American CIA officials, so CIA director Bill Cabot recruits a young analyst to supply insight and advice on the situation. Then the unthinkable happens: a nuclear bomb explodes in a U.S. city, and America is quick to blame the Russians.

The House on Carroll Street
★ 5.9
The House on Carroll Street1988Drama

A reporter, fired after refusing to give names to a 1951 House Un-American Activities Committee, takes a part-time job as companion to an old lady. While working she overhears a noisy argument in the neighboring house, being conducted largely in German and involving her HUAC prosecutor. She begins to investigate, enlisting the help of the FBI Agent initially detailed to surveil her.

Undercover Brother
★ 5.9
Undercover Brother2002Comedy

An Afro-American organization, the B.R.O.T.H.E.R.H.O.O.D., is in permanent fight against a white organization "The Man" defending the values of the black people in North America. When the Afro-American candidate Gen. Warren Boutwell behaves strangely in his presidential campaign, Undercover Brother is hired to work undercover for "The Man" and find what happened with the potential candidate.

W.
★ 6.1
W.2008Drama

The story of the eventful life of George W. Bush—his struggles and triumphs, how he found both his wife and his faith—and the critical days leading up to his decision to invade Iraq.

Jack the Bear
★ 6.3
Jack the Bear1993Comedy · Drama

Story of the relationships between two sons and their father, who moves the family to California and becomes a tv horror show host after the death of his wife.

Game Change
★ 6.9
Game Change2012Comedy · Drama

During the Republican run of the 2008 Presidential election, candidate John McCain picks a relative unknown, Alaskan governor Sarah Palin, to be his running mate. As the campaign kicks into high gear, her lack of experience, in both political and media savvy, becomes a drain upon McCain and his strategists.

JFK
★ 7.6
JFK1991Drama

Follows the investigation into the assassination of President John F. Kennedy led by New Orleans district attorney Jim Garrison.

All the President's Men
★ 7.7
All the President's Men1976Drama

During the 1972 elections, two reporters' investigation sheds light on the controversial Watergate scandal that compels President Nixon to resign from his post.

Real Men
★ 6.0
Real Men1987Comedy

A womanizing CIA agent and an insecure insurance agent are paired together to make sure a deal goes through with aliens for the future of mankind.

Will Ferrell: You're Welcome America - A Final Night with George W. Bush
★ 6.5
Will Ferrell: You're Welcome America - A Final Night with George W. Bush2009Comedy

After playing George W. Bush on Saturday Night Live for many years, funny man Will Ferrell brings his impression to Broadway to send up the 43rd President of the United States of America.

Similar titles

Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back
★ 6.4
Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back2001Comedy

When Jay and Silent Bob learn that their comic-book alter egos, Bluntman and Chronic, have been sold to Hollywood as part of a big-screen movie that leaves them out of any royalties, the pair travel to Tinseltown to sabotage the production.

The Light
★ 6.8
The Light2004Drama

Camille arrives in Ouessant, the island of her birth off the Brittany coast, to sell the family home. She spends a last night in the house during which she discovers a secret. In 1963 a man came to work with her father, who was the Jument lighthouse operator. He only stayed two months, but his presence proved to be a disturbing catalyst.

The Man Outside
★ 6.5
The Man Outside1967Drama

Bill MacLean is a former CIA agent living in London. He had been fired when he stuck up for one of the men in his command who turned out to be branded a Russian defector. The embittered ex-agent combines forces with another operative to deliver a top Russian secret police official for a price. Before he can deliver the Russian, a trail of corpses and double crosses changes his plans. When his partner who concocted the scheme is murdered, MacLean returns the check to the CIA. They offer him his old job back, but the proud man refuses.

Belle Époque
★ 6.7
Belle Époque1992Comedy · Drama

In 1931, a young soldier deserts from the army and falls into a country farm, where he is welcomed by the owner due to his political ideas. Manolo has four daughters, Fernando likes all of them and they like him, so he has to decide which one to love.

The Bourne Ultimatum
★ 7.4
The Bourne Ultimatum2007Drama

Bourne is brought out of hiding once again by reporter Simon Ross who is trying to unveil Operation Blackbriar, an upgrade to Project Treadstone, in a series of newspaper columns. Information from the reporter stirs a new set of memories, and Bourne must finally uncover his dark past while dodging The Company's best efforts to eradicate him.

The Tailor of Panama
★ 6.0
The Tailor of Panama2001Drama

A British spy is banished to Panama after having an affair with an ambassador's mistress. Once there he makes connection with a local tailor with a nefarious past and connections to all of the top political and gangster figures in Panama. The tailor also has a wife, who works for the Panamanian president and a huge debt. The mission is to learn what the President intends to do with the Canal.

The Diary of Anne Frank
★ 7.2
The Diary of Anne Frank1959Drama

The true, harrowing story of a young Jewish girl who, with her family and their friends, is forced into hiding in an attic in Nazi-occupied Amsterdam.

The Adventures of Werner Holt
★ 7.9
The Adventures of Werner Holt1965Drama

Two 17-year-olds, Werner Holt and Gilbert Wolzow, are pulled out of school and into Hitler's army. Gilbert becomes a fanatical soldier; but at the front, Werner begins to understand the senselessness of war.

Lenin in Paris
★ 4.4
Lenin in Paris1981Drama

1911. Lenin organizes the first Bolshevik party school near Paris, in the small town of Longjumeau. Through a chain of historical parallels and associations, this time is intertwined with the events of the Paris Commune, the October Revolution and the political struggles of the post-revolutionary years.

Unalienable Rite
★ 10.0
Unalienable Rite2019Drama

As the United States government’s ability to handle civilian matters spirals out of control, an opportunistic military group seizes power…

The Salvation
★ 6.5
The Salvation2014Drama

In 1870s America, a peaceful American settler kills his family's murderer which unleashes the fury of a notorious gang leader. His cowardly fellow townspeople then betray him, forcing him to hunt down the outlaws alone.

Best Friend
★ 7.5
Best Friend2020Comedy · Drama

A leader of the opposition party in 1980s South Korea struggles to outwit the government who, unbeknownst to him, has placed a surveillance team in the house next door. Based on the life of Kim Dae-jung, the 8th President of South Korea.

The Life and Death of Ferdinand Luce
★ 7.5
The Life and Death of Ferdinand Luce1977Drama

A West German concern is conducting secret negotiations on the production of an atomic bomb with an interested state. The son of the head of the concern, realizing the monstrosity and scale of his father's activities, interrupts the negotiations and returns home with the intention to publicize his father's activities.

It's a visiting day
Not rated
It's a visiting day2016Drama

Hye-sook plans to visit her son in the army, when she receives a call from him asking her to bring his girlfriend along.

Midnight Cowboy
★ 7.5
Midnight Cowboy1969Drama

Joe Buck is a wide-eyed hustler from Texas hoping to score big with wealthy New York City women; he finds a companion in Enrico "Ratso" Rizzo, an ailing swindler with a bum leg and a quixotic fantasy of escaping to Florida.

Bad Company
★ 5.5
Bad Company2002Comedy

When a Harvard-educated CIA agent is killed during an operation, the secret agency recruits his twin brother.

Baise-moi
★ 4.8
Baise-moi2000Drama

Nadine and Manu are two mad women, as tidy as can be, almost perfectionists. They have several things in common: extreme sex, drugs, beer and the trigger. They find the solution to their problems with guns and beware to those who dare to get in their way!

Limbo
Not rated
Limbo2020Drama

Killed in war, a man must overcome the various obstacles he encounters in limbo to save his life and thus meet his son, about to be born.

Gods and Monsters
★ 6.9
Gods and Monsters1998Drama

It's 1957, and James Whale's heyday as the director of "Frankenstein," "Bride of Frankenstein" and "The Invisible Man" is long behind him. Retired and a semi-recluse, he lives his days accompanied only by images from his past. When his dour housekeeper, Hannah, hires a handsome young gardener, the flamboyant director and simple yard man develop an unlikely friendship, which will change them forever.

Hard Candy
★ 6.8
Hard Candy2006Drama

Hayley’s a smart, charming teenage girl. Jeff’s a handsome, smooth fashion photographer. An Internet chat, a coffee shop meet-up, an impromptu fashion shoot back at Jeff’s place. Jeff thinks it’s his lucky night. He’s in for a surprise.

Your favorites

Recently viewed

Watch

Choose an authorized server.

Full video from an operator-configured authorized source. Official trailers use a separate player. If a server fails, retry or select another authorized server.

Legal watch options

Official trailer

Trailer preview only. Press Play to start.

Privacy choices

Favorites stay in your browser. Movie images load from TMDb. YouTube trailers contact YouTube only after you allow external media and choose a trailer. Advertising consent, if ads are enabled, is managed separately by the operator’s certified CMP.

Privacy policy

After allowing external media, choose the trailer button to load its player.