Memorable Political Films

With big changes coming from Tuesday's mid-term elections, Washington is on the minds of most Americans. It's not often that Hollywood and Washington make for an entertaining combination. In fact most of the time, most of us would like for celebrities to keep their many opinions to themselves.  The exception, of course, is when Hollywood makes a political movie. From the completely comical to edge-of-your-seat action, Fox411 has compiled a list of some of the most memorable political flicks from the present-day to the distant past. So get to clicking ...

The 1962 political thriller is based on the 1959 book by Robert Condon. The original starred Frank Sinatra and Janet Leigh, while the 2004 remake starred Denzel Washington and Meryl Streep. (MGM) <a target="_blank" href="http://twitter.com/@fox411">Follow FOX411.com on Twitter.</a>

 “Citizen Kane” was Orson Welles’ first feature film and yet it’s often touted as the "greatest movie of all time." The film centers around the death of a publishing tycoon (Welles) whose last words bring paranoia and confusion to the news reporters that he left behind. (Mercury Theater) <a target="_blank" href="http://twitter.com/@fox411">Follow FOX411.com on Twitter.</a>

This comedy, based on the popular book by Joe Klein, was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay. John Travolta reportedly gained 30 lbs. to play Jack Stanton, the Southern governor who decided to run for president. (Universal Studios) <a href="http://twitter.com/@fox411" target="_blank">Follow FOX411.com on Twitter.</a>

This 2008 dramedy focuses on a regular "Joe" named Bud Johnson (Kevin Kostner), whose single vote will ultimately decide the presidential election. (Touchstone Pictures) <a target="_blank" href="http://twitter.com/@fox411">Follow FOX411.com on Twitter.</a>

This satirical mockumentary was Tim Robbins directorial debut. He also starred in the flick, based on his “Saturday Night Live” character from 1986. (Paramount) <a target="_blank" href="http://twitter.com/@fox411">Follow FOX411.com on Twitter.</a>

This thriller, based on the 1946 Pulitzer Prize-winning novel by Robert Penn Warren, has been adapted for the screen twice. The 1949 version took home the Academy Award for Best Picture, while the 2006 version, starring Sean Penn, was a critically acclaimed commercial flop. The plot centers around the political rise of Willie Stark, a Southern populist governor loosely based on Governor Huey Long of Lousiana. The 2006 poster is seen at left. (Columbia Pictures)

Warren Beatty co-wrote and co-produced this film that was rumored to be based on his friend, politician John Jay Hooker. Beatty also stars as the lead, Senator Jay Bullington Bulworth, a U.S. Senator who is trying to get re-elected. (20th Century Fox) <a href="http://twitter.com/@fox411" target="_blank">Follow FOX411.com on Twitter.</a>

This 1992 film, based on the Tom Clancy novel and starring Harrison Ford, centers on CIA Analyst Jack Ryan, who becomes the target of Irish Republican terrorist Sean Miller's revenge after Ryan kills Miller's brother in a botched terror attack. (Paramount Pictures)

Based on Tom Clancy’s book of the same name, this film is the sequel to 1992’s “Patriot Games.” Jack Ryan (Harrison Ford) is a CIA agent who discovers that his colleagues are keeping him in the dark about a covert operation in Columbia. (Paramount Pictures) <a href="http://twitter.com/@fox411" target="_blank">Follow FOX411.com on Twitter.</a>

When the president is left in a coma after an extra-marital affair, his doppelganger ,Dave (Kevin Kline), must step in and take his place so that the president’s administration doesn’t fall apart. (Warner Bros.) <a target="_blank" href="http://twitter.com/@fox411">Follow FOX411.com on Twitter.</a>

Shirley MacLaine and Peter Sellers star in this 1979 film based on the novella by Jerzy Kosinski. The film centers on a gardener named Chance (Sellers), who has never left the estate of his wealthy employer. When his employer dies, he is put out on the street with no knowledge of the outside world. After he is nearly killed by a limousine, he becomes the guest of an ailing businessman and his wife, and an unlikely political insider as a result. (Warner Bros.) <a target="_blank" href="http://twitter.com/@fox411">Follow FOX411.com on Twitter.</a>

This 1997 dark comedy features Dustin Hoffman and Robert De Niro working as cohorts trying to distract voters from a sex scandal.  (New Line Cinema) <a href="http://twitter.com/@fox411" target="_blank">Follow FOX411.com on Twitter.</a>

Ron Howard directed this film, based on the play of the same name, about the 1977 "Frost/Nixon" interviews.  The 2008 movie stars Frank Langella as Richard Nixon and Michael Sheen as David Frost. (Universal Pictures) <a target="_blank" href="http://twitter.com/@fox411">Follow FOX411.com on Twitter.</a>

This 1972 flick about a political specialist (Peter Boyle) who has to find a candidate to unseat a U.S. Senator, won an Academy Award for best writing.  (Warner Bros.) <a href="http://twitter.com/@fox411" target="_blank">Follow FOX411.com on Twitter.</a>

Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn star in this 1948 film version of a play by the same name. It's based on a newspaper magnate's desperate attempt to make her lover (Tracy) president of the United States. (Liberty Films) <a target="_blank" href="http://twitter.com/@fox411">Follow FOX411.com on Twitter.</a>

Kristen Dunst and Michelle Williams star in this 1999 parody of the Watergate Scandal. (Columbia Pictures) <a href="http://twitter.com/@fox411" target="_blank">Follow FOX411.com on Twitter.</a>

This 1998 spy-thriller stars Will Smith as Robert Clayton Dean, a labor lawyer who gets set up by a former friend and soon finds himself in a heap of trouble. (Touchstone Pictures) <a href="http://twitter.com/@fox411" target="_blank">Follow FOX411.com on Twitter.</a>

This 2008 thriller gives different perspectives on an assassination attempt on the U.S. President.  (Columbia Pictures) <a target="_blank" href="http://twitter.com/@fox411">Follow FOX411.com on Twitter.</a>

This 1993 crime thriller, based on John Grisham's novel by the same name, stars Denzel Washington as a reported and Julia Roberts as a law student who investigate the mysterious assassinations of two Supreme Court Justices. (Warner Bros.) <a target="_blank" href="http://twitter.com/@fox411">Follow FOX411.com on Twitter.</a>

This 1939 drama is about a governor who has to choose who will replace a recently deceased Senator.  The movie, which stars James Stewart and Jean Arthur was nominated for a whopping 11 Academy Awards. (Columbia Pictures) <a target="_blank" href="http://twitter.com/@fox411">Follow FOX411.com on Twitter.</a>

Robert Redford and Dustin Hoffman star in this 1976 political thriller based on the book of the same name by Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein.  (Warner Bros.) <a href="http://twitter.com/@fox411" target="_blank">Follow FOX411.com on Twitter.</a>