25 best election movies ever

Napoleon Dynamite (2004)

If you don’t already own a Vote For Pedro t-shirt, chances are you haven’t seen Napoleon Dynamite. That also means you don’t know how a liger is bred, how to not chat up a girl or how to throw a steak to knock a man off a bike – all reasons you should rent, buy, download or stream this quirky indie comedy with a school presidential election at its heart.

Black Sheep (1996)

With Chris Farley and David Spade heading the bill, Black Sheep could only be a bumbling physical comedy. The story: a gubernatorial candidate hires an assistant just to stop his incompetent brother from ruining his campaign. The verdict: movie critic Gene Siskel said it was the first film he’d walked out of in a career spanning 26 years.

All The King’s Men (2006)

In the South, y’all, governors ain’t what they might seem, a fact not lost on one Louisiana reporter. Despite a cast counting Sean Penn, Jude Law, Kate Winslet, James Gandolfini, Mark Ruffalo, Patricia Clarkson and Anthony Hopkins among its number, All the King’s Men met with a lukewarm critical reception.

Dave (1993)

Presidential ribbon-cutting double Dave Kovic (Kevin Kline) finds himself taking a rather larger slice of the administrative responsibilities when the White House incumbent falls into a coma. Sigourney Weaver and Ben Kingsley are also cast in this likeable comedy.

Wag the Dog (1997)

Spin doctor Robert De Niro hires movie producer Dustin Hoffman to stage a war as a smokescreen to cover a presidential affair in the lead-up to election night. There’s a rare pang of sympathy for political PR when the plan starts to spin radically out of control.