Curator Watchlist
A sharp, polished political drama with strong performances and a cynical edge. It’s not especially subtle, but it’s effective if you like campaign intrigue, moral compromise, and watching idealism get ground down by power.
Where to watch: Buy
Fri · 1h 41m
Director: George Clooney
Starring: Ryan Gosling, George Clooney, Philip Seymour Hoffman
Dirty tricks stand to soil an ambitious young press spokesman's idealism in a cutthroat presidential campaign where 'victory' is relative.
George Clooney
Ryan Gosling, George Clooney, Philip Seymour Hoffman
A sharp, polished political drama with strong performances and a cynical edge. It’s not especially subtle, but it’s effective if you like campaign intrigue, moral compromise, and watching idealism get ground down by power.
The Ides of March is less interested in the mechanics of an election than in the emotional cost of believing in one. It follows a young staffer whose confidence in the candidate and the system starts to crack as the campaign gets dirtier, and the movie works best as a study of compromise, ambition, and self-deception.
George Clooney directs with a clean, controlled style that keeps the pressure on even when the story feels familiar. The cast is the main attraction: Ryan Gosling gives the film its wounded center, while the supporting players bring real weight to the backroom maneuvering.
It can feel a little too tidy and a little too on-the-nose, especially if you’ve seen enough political dramas to know the beats. But as a polished, adult studio drama about how idealism gets negotiated away, it remains solid and watchable, with enough bite to linger after the credits.
Josh Lewis (3★) · 1285 likes
Imagine a Democratic candidate running on redistribution of wealth and anti-imperialism.
tildafan19 (3★) · 637 likes
ryan gosling can abandon me at an abortion clinic any day
Megan Bitchell (2★) · 618 likes
Suffers from the poster being too amazing
theo (3.5★) · 556 likes
the current political situation makes this look like a technicolor musical
Matt Singer (3.5★) · 410 likes
Clooney on what he'd say if he ran for office and why he never will. Likely the most autobiographical film he'll ever make.
A tense, adult corporate drama about a fixer trapped between loyalty, conscience, and institutional rot.
Shares the same polished, newsroom-adjacent cynicism and a strong sense of public image as performance.
A classic campaign film that captures the seduction and emptiness of modern political messaging.
A sharp, satirical look at a presidential campaign and the compromises required to survive it.
Focuses on political pressure, public image, and the cost of staying principled inside a hostile system.
A darkly comic companion piece about spin, manipulation, and manufacturing reality for voters.
A procedural about pressure, institutions, and the slow uncovering of what powerful people want hidden.
Another serious adult drama about conscience colliding with corporate and public power.
Shares the controlled tension, moral pressure, and sense of a man trying to stay clean in a dirty system.
A newsroom-and-power drama that pairs institutional stakes with ethical decision-making under pressure.
A tightly wound ensemble drama about smart people making compromised choices inside a collapsing system.
A sharper, more satirical take on persuasion, messaging, and the art of defending the indefensible.
political corruption, campaign strategy, idealism vs pragmatism, moral compromise, power and ambition, institutional cynicism, coming-of-age disillusionment, media and image management
political drama, campaign intrigue, cynical tone, adult drama, moral ambiguity, ensemble cast, backroom power plays, disillusionment, 2010s cinema, prestige drama