I thought Lawrence of Arabia was admirably realist, though my understanding of that word appears quite difference from that of some others.

Prof. Walt, for example, begins his realist thinking with alienation from Bush administration neoconservatism and a certain sentimentality about foreign governments and political factions who share that orientation, and proceeds from there. I don't think he is particularly realist at all.

The main characters in Lawrence, with the exception of the title character, all know what they want, the first necessary condition of realist thinking. Lawrence himself does as well; it's just that what he wants varies wildly during the course of the film. This renders him at first inspiring (to Arabs thrilled that he appears to share their objectives and can help attain them), but later makes him an object of manipulation (by Allenby, who values Arab aid to the British war effort but has no interest in Arab political aspirations). Ultimately, Lawrence finds himself considered disposable: by Allenby, and also by Faisal. Both men, knowing what they want, recognize when Lawrence is no longer needed to help them get it. Even Sharif Ali has moved on from Lawrence -- to "learning politics," a task beyond Lawrence's powers -- by the end of the film.

I'm trying to think of another film with a compatible theme, and am not having much success. There's certainly a famous realist reference in Star Trek VI, but it's not what most of the film is about. I can't really think of any others -- though in the Star Trek universe, realism was deeply embedded in the Deep Space Nine television series for most of its run. I am obligated to mention Babylon 5 as well, though its realist elements kept getting drowned out by story lines with apocalyptic themes. Apocalyptic themes don't mesh well with realism, but their much easier to put on screen: everything either ends (or blows up) by the end of the movie or it doesn't. Realism tells us that everything just goes on, and who wants to make a movie about that?

I'd give the Lion in Winter a nod as a realpolitik film. Try out this scene between Henry II (Peter O'Toole) and Philip II (Timothy Dalton).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CxZdTLa4CWA

Precious little idealism here...

The UN discussion and military manoeuvring was shown as less important as wheeling and dealing at the Soviet embassy.

And maybe the Star Trek DS 9 serie

Medium sized, but aspiring power celebrates its recent victories, but is thrown into political turmoil and civil war, for then to be conquered by an foreign army, who have moved in under the guise of a terrorist hunt.
Its wonder there have not been an African or South East Asian version yet

Throw in Titus Andronicus, King Lear, and Richard the 3. as well

I think that you are probably right that Hollywood is well, shy, about producing films which suggest that people are basically untrustworthy and that the world is unrelentingly dangerous. However, there are some standouts...

1. First, a gimme---"Lord of the Flies." Liberal cooperation and coalition building under anarchy = defeat. Jackal bandwagoning = victory.

2. Among my favorites: "Before the Rain." (1994) This film centers on the spiral to ethnic violence and war in the Balkans.

Themes: spiral models, (esp. security dilemma,) misperception, inefficacy of international peacekeeping institutions.

3. "Red Tide" (this was the film about the USS Alabama, a nuclear submarine that loses contact with the National Command Authority AFTER it has received an initial order to launch its payload, but before a countermanding order can be received.)

Themes: deterrence (credibility, capability and commitment);

4.) "Paths of Glory" (1957). Portrays an officer on the front during WWI, and the disconnect between the General Staff and the reality of troops facing the new technologies of concentrated machine-gun fire and long-range artillery.

Themes: strategic beliefs, offense / defense balance, cognitive closure

There is plenty of balancing of threats and a pretty good nod to realism in the Lord of the Rings Trilogy.

The various "Kingdoms of Men" don't get along when there isn't an orc army breathing down their necks; before the battle begins, there are questions about credibility and resolve betwee the various "Kingdoms of Men." The elven army showing up at Helm's Deep is also a balancing behavior, attempting to balance against the threat of the gathering orc army. When the Orcs finally show up, you see the orcs involved in the development of leading sectors technologies - the orcs developed gunpowder and were able to blow open the fortress of Helm's Deep, which realism would argue is an important military capability, thus translating into power. Eventually, the "Kingdoms of Men" renew their dormant alliance and fight and defeat the orc amries at Helm's Deep.

At Minas Tirith, men fought the orcs again, and brought in new allies - this time the army of spirits and stemmed the tide again. You can also throw in the efforts of the "Ents" - you know, the walking, talking trees - to open up an additional front int he war against Saruman, and eventually help the good guys win the war.

What do you think?

Someone already mentioned Paths of Glory, but I think all of Kubrick's films have a realpolitik/idealism tension. Dr. Strangelove, for example, plays the President's peaceful ideals off against Gen. Turgidson's realism.

This movie is a cautionary tale about the perils of appeasement and idealism.

Dan:

I think the criteria you are using is too strict and actually reflects the problem with IR theory in general. As in life, most films will have elements of both 'realist' and 'idealist' thought. Realism doesn't make the empirical claim that all people act in a Hobbesian way all of the time (at least, structural realism doesn't), but that many do and in certain situations ignoring these dynamics will bring

That being said, I think you could add The Road to the list. The book and the movie do a great job of not only depicting the dynamics under anarchy, but also the practical dilemma faced by actual people in terms of their moral/ethical instincts and the structural realities they face in that kind of environment. Good people can and will do bad things under different circumstances.

"Forget it, Jake. It's Chinatown." etc.

apologies if someone already mentioned these, but the conflict between Matt Damon and Leonardo DiCaprio in The Departed - waged with Thucydidean ruthlessness - show the zero-sum logic of a bipolar world. (Yes, The Godfather shows the instability of a multipolar world.)

And perhaps this plays better in the book than the movie - but how many tales don't - but THE QUIET AMERICAN?

It is not a movie, but a tv series. Check how they interact with other gangs, and how they make decisions. Sometimes it seems like Morgenthau himself had writen the script.

Films are a wonderful way of showcasing stories---the stories can be fiction or non-fiction. While they can be a drama or comedy--the issues depicted in the story are very real.

Examples of political films include "The Manchurian Candidate" (1959), "The President's Analyst" (1967), "The Anerican President" (1995), "The Distinguished Gentleman" (1992), and the documentary "Our Brand is Crisis" (2005)--about political campaign marketing strategies and their fall-out.

Failsafe (Henry Fonda, Larry Hagman) --the serious version of Dr Strangelove, concluding with a realpolitik US President authorizing the bombing of NYC (while his wife is in town!) to convince the Russians that the US bomber strike on Moscow was an accident and that he is truly committed.

the forgettable "The President's Plane is Missing" where Air Force One crashes and Buddy Ebsen becomes President with his explicitly rat-choice, game theory quoting NSC advisor pushing for a nuclear showdown with the Russians (or is it the Chinese?). The President turns up alive having been in secret negotiations with the Chinese to play them off against the Russians, but having had to keep everyone in the dark because revealing he was alive would have derailed the talks. Peter Graves plays the intrepid reporter for the early 1970s film.

Start Trek II: The Wrath of Khan.

Robin Hanson likes Kelly's Heroes.

I'd offer first, The Proposition (2005). Australia's lawless, barren countryside serves as an appropriate backdrop to the unmitigated violence, cunning and deceit of a group of outlaw brothers evading the local, ruthless sheriff. Dissolution of brotherly bonds, strategic miscalculations ensue. Indeed, very nasty and brutish.

The subterranean (ultra-violent killing machine) humanoids of 2005's The Descent throw a bit of a wrench into the seemingly watertight institution of the sisterhood portrayed. A tight-knit groups of women unravels shockingly quickly when attacked; alliances formed in the confusion and mistrust that follows almost immediately fail, and some women clearly get the idea that they might be able to survive without the other weaker links. A series of critical misunderstandings and misjudgments dooms what should have been a group of relatively tough, stable women able to survive.

Malcolm Tucker is a case study in realpolitick.

He's also the funniest politician ever captured on film.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1226774/