The War Room

In this classic 1993 documentary, legendary filmmakers D.A. Pennebaker and Chris Hegedus take viewers behind the scenes of Bill Clinton's 1992 presidential run, from the New Hampshire primary to his election-night win. The War Room isn't so much a hard-hitting exposé as it is a nuts-and-bolts look at the way campaigns are run on a day-to-day level, as staffers schedule appearances, field questions/requests from reporters, and react to breaking stories and the continual eruption of new challenges. In fact, the candidate is largely off-screen here, while odd-couple consultants James Carville and George Stephanopoulos dominate the film, which in many ways made them into stars. Carville, with his striking features, heavy Southern accent, and constant stream of quotable remarks (such as calling Ross Perot's third-party effort “...the biggest single act of masturbation in the history of the world”), takes the lead, while the quieter Stephanopoulos is the bedrock behind the scenes. Almost 20 years old, the documentary depicts an already quaint era of media politics, marked by a slower news cycle, smaller landscape of cable news channels, and no defining Internet presence. But the basic internal workings still have contemporary relevance, and the cinema vérité style favoring the almost larger-than-life personalities makes it a very entertaining as well as revealing film. Making its second appearance on DVD and first on Blu-ray, this Criterion Collection edition features plenty of excellent supplements, including the follow-up 2008 documentary Return of the War Room, a panel discussion (with surprise guest Clinton), interviews, and a booklet. Highly recommended. (S. Axmaker)