Comingsoon.net is headed to the nation’s capital to find the best movies set in the District. Check out our selections in the gallery below!
Our nation’s capital has been home to all kinds of action throughout film history—some of it much more destructive than anything seen in the real world, thankfully. Still, time after time, Washington, D.C. continues to be subjected to plenty of intrigue and excitement at the hands of Hollywood filmmakers. Whether it be a tense court trial or a high-stakes rescue mission or something else entirely (like some paranormal activity), D.C. takes it all like a champ.
Maybe it’s because Washington, D.C. is where all our political discourse is housed. Maybe it’s because it’s the metaphorical engine to the machine that is the United States. Whatever it may be, one can be certain that a D.C. setting in a feature film is bound to yield exciting results.
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A Few Good Men (1992)
Probably the definitive DC courtroom drama, A Few Good Men features an all-star cast delivering some of the most-quoted monologues in recent memory. You can’t go wrong with Rob Reiner at the helm and Tom Cruise, Jack Nicholson, and Demi Moore in front of the camera.
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All the President's Men (1976)
Based on the true takedown of a sitting US president, All the President’s Men details the Watergate scandal with intimate detail. Starring Dustin Hoffman and Robert Redford in one of their best (and earliest) roles, this movie makes the most of its DC setting.
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Burn After Reading (2008)
One of the more recent entries in this slideshow, Burn After Reading is one of many 21st century masterpieces from the Coen brothers. Following a group of clueless gym employees who stumble upon government secrets and the agent tasked with protecting said information, the film is as relevant as ever over ten years after its release.
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Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1963)
Speaking of relevancy, it’s impressive just how pertinent Dr. Strangelove remains the further we get from the early 60s when Staley Kubrick made it. Skewering political discourse, the military industrial complex, and foreign policy, this satire is one of the best DC-set films we’ve ever encountered.
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In the Line of Fire (1993)
Clint Eastwood has always been so cool. In the Line of Fire is an early 90s entry in the actor’s illustrious filmography that sees him trying to protect the president thirty years after failing to save John F. Kennedy.
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In the Loop (2009)
A satire that comes close to the genius of Dr. Strangelove, In the Loop is a political comedy that manages to lampoon both American government and British government in one breath. It’s a real two birds, one stone scenario.
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Independence Day (1996)
While Independence Day pales in comparison to the quality of these other films, we’d be foolish not to include it here. It might be ridiculous, but Will Smith and Jeff Goldblum are too iconic to leave out—besides, that shot of the White House has gone down in action movie history.
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Jackie (2016)
Despite going somewhat under the wire upon its release, Pablo Larrain’s Jackie is worth a second look (or third, or fourth….). Natalie Portman delivers a career-highlight performance as the former First Lady in the wake of her husband John F. Kennedy’s assassination, wandering around the empty White House like a ghost in mourning.
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Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939)
The oldest entry in this slideshow, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington set the stage for every other film here. None of these political thrillers or political satires would be possible without the work of Frank Capra and James Stewart.
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The Exorcist (1973)
This one’s different than all the others here: it’s a horror film that’s not not overtly political at all (unless you look a little deeper and make of it what you will). William Friedkin’s magnum opus, The Exorcist provides a different kind of DC terror.
