War Room

Colour, 35 mm
USA, 1993, 96 min
Section: Forum of Independents

Synopsis

The War Room was the name for Bill Clinton’s campaign center in Little Rock, Arkansas. Although the press weren’t usually permitted inside this small warren of chaos, filmmakers D. A. Pennebaker and Chris Hegedus managed to secure partial access and shot nearly 35 hours of footage there. At the center of The War Room are the two men who guided Clinton’s ship from the beginning: James Carville, the fiery, charismatic Cajun who manages the campaign with a mixture of Southern charm and unrelenting passion; and George Stephanopoulos, the brilliant, handsome Rhodes scholar who, as communications director, calmly but surely mobilizes his staff. The War Room is a compelling and enlightening adventure story about two remarkable men and about the monumental effort, determination and chutzpah required to conduct and win a political campaign in the modern age.

About the director

Chris Hegedus (b. 1952), director, editor, cinematographer, producer, began co-directing with D. A. Pennebaker in the mid-seventies. She has since partnered him on a host of acclaimed films, including 1993’s The War Room, which received an Academy Award nomination for Best Documentary. Chris Hegedus was awarded the prestigious 2002 Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Documentaries for Startup.com. Most recently Hegedus completed a film about political satirist Al Franken, Al Franken: God Spoke. Films as director: Energy War (1977), Town Bloody Hall (1979), DeLorean (1981), Rockaby (1983), Jimi Plays Monterey (1986), 101 (1989), Jimi Hendrix Live (1989), The Music Tells You (1992), Jimi Hendrix at Woodstock (1992), The War Room (1993), Keine Zeit (1996), Moon Over Broadway (1997), Down from the Mountain (2000), Startup.com (2001), Only the Strong Survive (2003), Al Franken: God Spoke (2006).