Mr. Smith goes to Washington (1939 Apple TV):

One of the prime examples of "Capra-corn", this Frank Capra classic has naive Jefferson Smith (James Stewart), leader of the Boy Rangers, selected by a crooked party machine to replace a deceased senator. But Smith isn't as dumb and pliable as they had hoped and when he learns a bill he is set to work on is a front for corruption he decides to try to do something about it, even when he's framed. With a fine cast - including Claude Rains as Smith's conniving mentor and Jean Arthur as the cynical secretary who's transformed by Smith's honesty - this comedy-drama was released in a big year for classic films (Gone With the Wind, The Wizard of Oz, and many more) but holds its own nicely. If only politics were like this.

Quote: "You think I'm licked. You all think I'm licked. Well I'm not licked. And I'm gonna stay right here and fight for this lost cause."

Trivia: The film was nominated for 11 Oscars and won for best original story.

If you like this, try: Mr Deeds Goes to Town; You Can't Take It With You.

The Manchurian Candidate (1962, Apple TV):

Richard Condon's novel was adapted into this wild Cold War thriller directed by John Frankenheimer. Korean War veteran Raymond Shaw (Laurence Harvey) is honoured for bravery and this is used by his mother, Eleanor Iselin (Angela Lansbury) to advance the political career of her senator husband. But the bizarre recurring nightmares of military intelligence officer Bennett Marco (Frank Sinatra), Shaw's former superior, and some other things that don't make sense lead to frightening discoveries about what's really happening. See if you can figure out what Janet Leigh's role is supposed to mean. Forget about the remake.

Quote: "Why don't you pass the time by playing a little solitaire?"

Trivia: Lansbury was only three years older than her screen son, Harvey (but wholly convincing - she was nominated for a best supporting actress Oscar).

If you like this, try: The Thirty-Nine Steps (1935); Dr. Strangelove.

Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964, Apple TV):

In one of those coincidences that happen from time to time, two movies released the same year shared the same premise: the unauthorised release of US nuclear missiles heading towards the USSR leads to a terrifying situation. But while Fail Safe is dead serious, this Stanley Kubrick film is blackly comic. Unhinged General Jack T. Ripper (Sterling Hayden) unleashes a nuclear bomb attack on the Russians and B-52 pilot Major "King" Kong (Slim Pickens) and his crew gamely fly towards their target. RAF aide Group Colonel Lionel Mandrake (Peter Sellers) tries to reason with Ripper, who's barricaded the air base. Once alerted, US president Muffley (Sellers) has a conference in the War Room with the Russian ambassador - who says the Soviets have a Doomday Device that will trigger its own bombs in case of attack - and advisers including ex-Nazi Dr Strangelove (Sellers for the third time) and gung-ho General Buck Turgidson (George C. Scott).

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Quote: "Gentlemen, you can't fight in here! This is the War Room."

Trivia: Sellers was originally supposed to play Kong but suffered an injury and was replaced by Pickens.

If you like this, try: Fail Safe; The Manchurian Candidate.

Wag the Dog (1997, Apple TV):

This dark comedy was intended as satire but quickly came to seem prescient (see below). The US president is embroiled in a sex scandal weeks before an election. Spin doctor Conrad Brean (Robert De Niro) is called in and decides to divert public and media attention by creating a fictional war in Albania with the help of Hollywood producer Stanley Motss (Dustin Hoffman). The CIA gets involved and the hoax gets more elaborate to keep attention focused on the "war". Also in the cast are Woody Harrelson as a sleazy "war hero". Hilary Henkin and David Mamet adapted the novel American Hero by Larry Beinhart.

Quote: "A good plan today is better than a perfect plan tomorrow."

Trivia: Not long after the movie opened, news broke of president Bill Clinton's relationship with intern Monika Lewinsky. Six months later, on the day Lewinsky was to appear before a grand jury, Clinton launched 75 Tomahawk missiles at al-Qaida targets in Afghanistan and Sudan.

If you like this, try: In the Loop; Dr Strangelove.

The Queen (2006 Apple TV, Binge, Foxtel Now):

Here's a reminder that the Windsors have faced crises before the recent Andrew and Harry debacles. A few months after the Labour government is elected in 1997, Princess Diana is killed in a car accident. The media dub her the "People's Princess" and there's a wide outpouring of public grief but Queen Elizabeth II (Helen Mirren) and prime minister Tony Blair (Michael Sheen) have different ideas on how to deal with the situation. The Queen wants to keep things private but Blair thinks the royals need to address the situation more openly and sympathetically as public opinion turns against them.

Quote: "Sleeping in the streets and pulling out their hair for someone they never knew. And they think we're mad!"

Trivia: Mirren won the best actress Oscar.

If you like this, try: Darkest Hour; The Last King of Scotland.

In the Loop (2009, Apple TV):

This movie spin-off from Armando Iannucci's caustic and hilarious sitcom The Thick of It In the Loop takes things to the international level. The US and British governments are contemplating military intervention in the Middle East, which leads to a series of stuff-ups and shenanigans. Peter Capaldi steals the show as the foul-mouthed Malcolm Tucker, the prime minister's director of communications.

Quote: "Climbing the mountain of conflict"? You sounded like a Nazi Julie Andrews!"

Trivia: Only three characters are carried over from the TV show.

If you like this, try: The Ides of March; Wag the Dog.