Are ‘Wag’s’ Ads Taking Real Life by the Tale?

Is New Line Cinema attempting to capitalize on the troubles at the White House to promote its political satire “Wag the Dog”?

As the crisis has intensified over allegations that President Clinton had an affair with a former intern, an advertisement for the film seems to draw comparisons to the real-life drama unfolding in Washington.

Directed by Barry Levinson, the film is about how a presidential spin doctor works with a Hollywood producer to fake a war with Albania to divert the nation’s attention from a White House sex scandal.

On Saturday, New Line ran an ad in the Los Angeles Times and the New York Times showing the film’s stars--Dustin Hoffman, Robert De Niro and Anne Heche--standing against a backdrop of the White House.

The first quote at the top of the ad is from a New York Daily News film review published in December--long before Clinton’s latest political problem surfaced--quoting the critic: “The action starts with a crisis in the White House!” (The exclamation point was not in the original review.)

New Line ran a similar full-page ad on Friday, but it did not contain either the Daily News blurb or the White House image. The quote disappeared in Monday’s and Tuesday’s ads, but Wednesday’s New York Times ad featured it again. New Line says the ads are appearing in various markets, but denies there has been any attempt to piggyback on the Clinton case.

“We change our ads and headlines all the time, just like every other studio in town,” the spokesman said. “We did it to keep our creative advertising and print campaign fresh.”

The film, which is in limited release nationally, has grossed about $24 million in just over five weeks. Last weekend, the film had a 27% box-office drop from the previous week, but New Line reported a modest 5% increase in ticket sales in the Washington, D.C., area.