Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

… gradually, and then suddenly.

“Jesus paying for the sins of everyone is an insult to those who paid for their own sins.”

When we show up, we win.

There are a lot more evil idiots than evil geniuses.

When you’re in more danger from the IDF than from Russian shelling, that’s really bad.

Just because you believe it, that does not make it true.

Pessimism assures that nothing of any importance will change.

Teach a man to fish, and he’ll sit in a boat all day drinking beer.

Sitting here in limbo waiting for the dice to roll

He wakes up lying, and he lies all day.

A democracy can’t function when people can’t distinguish facts from lies.

When someone says they “love freedom”, rest assured they don’t mean yours.

This really is a full service blog.

I did not have this on my fuck 2025 bingo card.

There are times when telling just part of the truth is effectively a lie.

They are not red states to be hated; they are voter suppression states to be fixed.

Relentless negativity is not a sign that you are more realistic.

Hi god, it’s us. Thanks a heap, you’re having a great week and it’s only Thursday!

All hail the time of the bunny!

Jesus, Mary, & Joseph how is that election even close?

If you’re gonna whine, it’s time to resign!

“I was told there would be no fact checking.”

Do not shrug your shoulders and accept the normalization of untruths.

Stop using mental illness to avoid talking about armed white supremacy.

You are here: Home / Balloon Juice / Readership Capture / Turn on the TV, shut out the lights

Turn on the TV, shut out the lights

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I figured people could use a fun thread to take their mind off Alabama.

What are the best movies, tv shows, and books about politics? Please don’t say West Wing.

Let’s interpret politics both narrowly and broadly.

For movies narrowly about politics, the only good movie I’ve seen is “The Candidate”. For movies broadly about politics, I’d go with “Chinatown” (it begins with some kind of city public hearing right, that’s got to count).

For books, “All The King’s Men” is my favorite of all time, by far.

I’ve never seen a tv show about politics that I liked, unless you count “Benson”.

Reader Interactions

93Comments

  2. 2.

    dmsilev

    For books, there are so many great biographies of political figures. Picking just one, I’d say The Power Broker, about Robert Moses.

  5. 5.

    guachi

    I liked Dave. It was cute. Bonnie Hunt is hysterical as a White House Tour Guide “We’re walking… we’re walking…”

    Also, I saw it with a girl I had a major crush on. So that helps.

  6. 6.

    Aussiesmurf

    TV shows – Yes (Prime) Minister, by a country mile. Superb satire still relevant today.

    Movie – All the President’s Men is deservedly a classic.

  7. 7.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    I think Veep is hilarious, but it seems a little less polished, a bit more ham-fisted since Ianucci left

    The original, British House of Cards

  10. 10.

    Sask_Ex_Pat

    Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail ’72 was a fun read if you are into Hunter S. Thompson.

  13. 13.

    CaseyL

    My faves are all astonishingly old, but very good:

    “They’ve Shot the President’s Daughter!” a novel by Edward Stewart. Nice conspiracy novel.

    “The Last Best Hope,” by Peter Tauber. Follows a group of politically active friends through their lives from the 1950s through the Kent State shootings.

    “The Wanting of Levine,” Michael Halberstam. (David’s brother, who was killed by a burglar shortly after the book was published.) A Jewish guy sort of accidentally runs for President.

  14. 14.

    David ??Merry Christmas?? Koch

    The Best Man (1964)

    The Distinguished Gentleman (1992)

    A Face in the Crowd (1957)

    Charlie Wilson’s War (2007)

    Gabriel Over the White House (1933)

    Also too, Nixon was phenomenal. Here’s an amazing outtake of Nixon and CIA in-fighting over Cuba (video)

  15. 15.

    RPh

    At this point, considering where we are & headed … I’m going with “Americathon”, just with a more despicable tone … and outcome

  19. 19.

    Jumbo76

    Bob Roberts still feels relevant.

    I like the politicians in O Brother Where Art Thou? “Pappy, you need to get some of that Reeeform.”

  24. 24.

    Kraux Pas

    The politics of Game of Thrones are interesting and may serve well as a guide for a future after Trump has finished having his way with America.

  25. 25.

    phein55

    Books: If you’re ready to go beyond Hunter S.:

    The Dance of Legislation, by ‘Ric Redfield: The true story of the passage of one piece of legislation during the Nixon Era
    Congress: Keystone of the Washington Establishment, by Morris Fiorina: How the power of the purse rules all
    Boys on the Bus, by Tim Crouse: The ‘true’ story of the 1972 campaign as seen from the reporter’s bus
    Boss, by Mike Royko: How Chicago operated under the first Mayor Dailey

    All of these are cheap paperbacks and address America in the early 1970’s, but if you love American politics, you’ll love these books.

  26. 26.

    randy khan

    Most of my choices already have been mentioned – All the President’s Men, the original British House of Cards, and Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail. But I feel like I also have to mention Timothy Crouse’s 1972 campaign book, “The Boys on the Bus,” which focused on the press. It really helped me understand how political coverage worked. Also, he and Thompson both were writing for Rolling Stone, and there’s an amusing crossover between the two books at the point of the ibogaine incident.

  27. 27.

    SiubhanDuinne

    I’ve never seen the American House of Cards but I am insanely in love with the original BBC series.

  28. 28.

    Nunca El Jefe

    For a TV show about politics I nominate any Ali G interview with a politician as some of the best I’ve ever seen.
    ETA: I, Claudius was also crazy great

  32. 32.

    CaseyL

    Political movies I like:

    “The Candidate”

    “All the President’s Men”

    “The Unbearable Lightness of Being” – about a doctor and his wife in Czechoslovakia during Prague Spring and after the resultant Soviet crackdown in 1968.

    “Captain America: The Winter Soldier” – has a surprisingly strong political undercurrent.

    I’m thinking/hoping “The Papers,” the new movie coming out about Katherine Graham and the WaPo’s publication of the Pentagon Papers, will also prove to be a favorite. Can’t wait to see it!

  35. 35.

    phein55

    OK, we’re how long into this thread and no one has mentioned Malcolm Tucker and “In the Loop”?

    This is the best description by a politico of anything ever

  37. 37.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @WaterGirl: (not SD, but…) Have you looked at Acorn TV? a streaming service you have to pay for that’s very heavy with older BBC stuff. the original HOC trilogy is, I think, still streaming on Netflix

  47. 47.

    frosty

    if you’re going to read Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail, be sure to read Boys On the Bus about the journalists covering the same election. I think that’s where I read the quote about Thompson: “After the revolution, we’ll all be able to write like him.”

  49. 49.

    Schlemazel

    1947’s “The Farmers Daughter”

    Not that great a movie but there are a couple of things I love about it. The naive farm girl is impressed by the excitement displayed by the convention crowd. The worldly, cynical Congressman’s aide says something like “Oh these people are nuts they will cheer anything!” She doubts that, he stand up and shouts “FRESH FISH!” and the crowd goes crazy cheering. I find that surprisingly true to life

  53. 53.

    mawado

    For broadly defined: His Girl Friday, journalist tries to stop politicians from executing an innocent man. Remake from 80’s Switching Channels pretty good too.

    For Narrowly defined: I’m gonna throw out a current one: The Mayor – I always at least try something w/ Larry Wilmore attached. This one has a good foundation and has a lot of potential to get better. Maybe my best shot at description is modern, urban, Andy Griffith.

    Try it, you’ll like it.

  55. 55.

    Formerly disgruntled in Oregon

    Chuang Tzu, Vonnegut, and Pratchett are alright…

    Really enjoyed Station Eleven by Emily St John Mandel

  60. 60.

    Aussiesmurf

    @Raven: Not high profile, but I always loved this exchange :

    Lord Kitchener: Needless to say, the Germans couldn’t give a damn about the Boers. Its the diamonds and gold of South Africa they’re after.
    Major Bolton: They lack our altruism, sir.
    Lord Kitchener: [beat] Quite.

  61. 61.

    Ceci n est pas mon nym

    Nobody has mentioned My Fellow Americans yet? Very funny movie, James Garner and Jack Lemmon as two ex-presidents on the run from current President Dan Ackroyd.

  64. 64.

    Le Comte de Monte Cristo, fka Edmund Dantes

    I love Seven Days in May, the original Manchurian Candidate and Fail Safe.

    For historical stuff, I love Lincoln, A Man for All Seasons, The Borgias, The Medicis and Marco Polo.

    For bad, hands down the Advise and Consent series by Allen Drury.

  65. 65.

    JohnO

    I was apparently one of the only people who enjoyed Bullworth, and count me as another strong vote for HST’s FaL on the Campaign Trail ’72.

  70. 70.

    Johannes

    @RedDirtGirl: Yes, the series is better than the movie—though The whole “purview” bit from “In the Loop” is possibly Capaldi’s finest moment as Tucker.

  72. 72.

    Original Lee

    One book that helped me understand city politics was “Little Flower: The Life and Times of Fiorello LaGuardia,” by Lawrence Elliott. Not just politics, of course, but deeply fascinating to this transplanted Midwesterner.

  73. 73.

    Minstrel Michael

    Baroque SF author Neal Stephenson wrote an SF campaign novel called Interface. One of the candidates has a stroke early in the campaign. They plant a chip in his head by way of treatment. Trouble ensues, or should I say, the plot thickens.

    For movies, Ican’t think of any that haven’t already been mentioned (except The Ruling Class, which is not so much about politics except that the idiot son is running for the House of Commons), but I enjoyed Dave, My Fellow Americans, and Bulworth.

  77. 77.

    NotMax

    Sticking solely to items done in a comedic, tongue in cheek, or slyly satirical vein (and also trying to not duplicate any of the fine entries above at the time of typing) in which politics plays either a central or a lesser but crucial role, a not intended to be comprehensive list:

    Dreamland (original title Utopia), Aussie TV series
    W1A, British TV series
    The Alan Clarke Diaries, British TV series
    The News Statesman, British TV series
    A Wonderful World (original title Un Mundo Maravilloso), film (Mexico)
    The Perfect Dictatorship (original title La Dictadura Perfecta), film (Mexico)
    The Witness (a/k/a Without A Trace, original title A Tanú), film (Hungary)
    The Great McGinty, film (U.S.)
    The Great Man Votes, film (U.S.)
    The Dark Horse (1932), film (U.S.)
    The Great Dictator, film (U.S.)
    The Monster X Strikes Back: Attack the G8 Summit, film (Japan) – (had to include one fully cheesy entry)

  78. 78.

    Just one more canuck

    @Jumbo76: “these boys are gonna be mah brain truhhst”

    “For that you sold your everlasting soul?
    Well I wasn’t using it “

  81. 81.

    clay

    Relevant, since there’s a movie coming up:

    The Christopher Priest run of the Black Panther comic book had several arcs that dealt very intelligently with national and international politics. (And several arcs that were more in a high adventure mode.) The title character, after all, is an African king. I highly recommended it.

    Also, Ta-Naehisi Coates is the current writer of the title, and from what I’ve read of it, leans into the political side of things as well.

  82. 82.

    bartkid

    By chance, tonight, I’m re-watching A Very British Coup.
    Americathon is next; thanks for the reminder. It’s been decades.

  84. 84.

    JAFD

    Edwin O’Connor, _The Last Hurrah_ – can’t believe I’m the first to mention it
    +1 to _All the King’s Men_

    The two best books on ‘America in the 1960’s’ (IMAO, as one who lived through them) are, actually, both novels – James Carroll’s _Prince of Peace_ and George R.R. Martin’s _The Armageddon Rag_

    There was a 1973 novel by Julian Moynahan, _Garden State_, and a novel titled _The Governor_ – about a campaign for that office in Massachusetts, sometime in the late ’60’s or 1970’s, with an eccentric New England Puritan as the Republican candidate. I remember both of these as quite readable and informative, thru the mists of time. Unfortunately tracking down the author and publication date (sometime in the ’70’s) of the latter is not helped by ye Google’s listings of ye Walking Dead novels… If you remember it, can provide info, would most thankful be.

  86. 86.

    ShadeTail

    Defining “movies about politics” somewhat broadly, I think my favorite would be The Great Race. It has a fair amount of the 19-aughts suffrage movement in its background. Though it takes a rather insulting angle of women being more powerful than men by virtue of hen-pecking them all the time. It’s far more of an (unintentional) study on 1960’s era gender stereotyping rather than an exposé on the women’s suffrage movement.

    It’s also a really funny movie.

  87. 87.

    fourmorewars

    Because if you haven’t, you can count on two votes in the next election. Yours -and the District attorney’s!

  88. 88.

    JAFD

    Hello again!

    Found ! Thank you, Library Of Congress Online Catalog (your tax dollars at work)

    _The Governor: Being an Embittered and Bemused Account of the Life & Times of the Brother of the Irish Christ_, pub 1970, by Edward R. F. Sheehan

    writer and foreign correspondent, most noted for _The Arabs, Israelis and Kissinger_, which precipitated a hunt for his sources…

  89. 89.

    galanx

    “Ivy Day in the Committee Room” short story by James Joyce, in ‘Dubliners’.
    ‘Renegade in Power:The Diefenbaker Years’ by Peter C.Newman- Canadian politics ( I know, I know) in the late 50s/early 60s.

  91. 91.

    David ??Merry Christmas?? Koch

    ooops, how could I forget:

    All the Way (2016)

    also too — The Falcon and the Snowman (1985)

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