The War Room (1993)

A documentary of the Bill Clinton 1992 presidential campaign and the organization who ran it.

Directors:

Chris Hegedus, D.A. Pennebaker

Stars:

James Carville, George Stephanopoulos, Heather Beckel

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 6 wins & 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
James Carville	...	Self
George Stephanopoulos	...	Self
Heather Beckel	...	Self
Paul Begala	...	Self
Bob Boorstin	...	Self
Mike Donilon	...	Self (as Michael Donnilon)
Jeff Eller	...	Self
Stanley Greenberg	...	Self (as Stan Greenberg)
Mandy Grunwald	...	Self
Harold Ickes	...	Self
Mickey Kantor	...	Self
Mary Matalin	...	Self
Mitchell Schwartz	...	Self
Dave Anderson	...	Self
Collier Andress	...	Self

Storyline

A behind-the-scenes documentary about the Clinton for President campaign, focusing on the adventures of spin doctors James Carville and George Stephanopoulos. Bill Clinton himself is almost never seen.

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Plot Keywords:

primary election | on the road | campaign | presidential campaign | president | 

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Taglines:

They Changed The Way Campaigns Are Won.

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Genres:

Documentary | History

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG for language

Did You Know?

Trivia

From 1:08:19 to 1:08:29, you can see a man in a gray suit pickpocket a camera operator on the right side of the screen.

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Quotes

James Carville: It's the economy, stupid!

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Connections

Followed by The Return of the War Room (2008)

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Soundtracks

Vote Baby Vote
Written by Deee-Lite
Performed by Deee-Lite
Published by EMI/Virgin Music

User Reviews

Nothing new here

I don't profess to know anything about the inner workings of a political machine, so I was really interested in seeing a behind the scenes look at what goes on. As ignorant as I am, The War Room didn't tell me anything new. There seemed to be a consciousness (either on the part of the "war room" staff or the filmmakers) that this movie was in no way to smudge Clinton's image. So, we see a whole lotta Clinton supporters with no cracks showing in their dedication. The Clinton campaign machine comes off as the good guys while choosing to show Bush at his most offensive. These scenes were, I'm sure, included to make me appalled at the tactics employed by Bush, but instead it just made me realize that I'd probably learn more about campaigning if I were allowed 90 minutes in the REPUBLICAN war room.

James Carville was quite impressive in all of his tic-riddled glory. If I were running for anything, I would certainly want him in my corner. But the most clear-headed person to hit the screen was the enemy, Mary Matalin. She may not be charismatic, but she seemed to be the only who truly believed in her candidate instead of the hype.

Details

Official Sites:

The Criterion Collection

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

January 1994 (USA)

Also Known As:

The War Room

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$15,264, 7 November 1993

Gross USA:

$901,668

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$901,668

Company Credits

Production Co:

Cyclone Films, McEttinger Films, Pennebaker Associates

Technical Specs

Runtime:

96 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1