In 1997, New Line Studios released a film titled “Wag the Dog” — a political satire in which a Hollywood producer (played by Dustin Hoffman) and a spin doctor (Robert De Niro) are hired by the U.S. government to fabricate a war with Albania in order to distract the public from a presidential sex scandal expected to break just weeks before an election.

If you think the plot sounds vaguely like art imitating life, you’re not wrong. But that’s just the beginning; check out these lines from the script, as spoken by Dustin Hoffman’s character:

“It’s all, you know, thinking ahead thinking ahead. . . . Yeah, it’s like a plumber: do your job right and nobody should notice. But when you fuck it up, everything gets full of shit.”

Or this . . .

“Look at that! That is a complete fucking fraud and it looks a hundred percent real. It’s the best work I’ve ever done in my life, because it’s so honest.”

. . . and my particular favorite:

[gunshot]
“Oh, god, he’s dead. Oh, my god . . . oh, my . . . oh . . .”
[opens door]
“Wait a minute, wait a minute, he’s not dead. He’s all right . . .”
[second gunshot]
“Strike that.”

*. *. *

That’s more than just art imitating life; it’s real life being played out on a screen 28 years before it actually happened, with only the names changed to protect the guilty.

I really need to watch that movie again. Care to join me?

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
1/12/26