Hollywood confronts the Trump era

FBI battles with the White House. Revelatory government leaks on the front page. Soldiers haunted by unwinnable wars. Courtroom clashes over civil rights.

Movies take years to make, but many of this fall’s films may feel almost preternaturally programmed for the President Trump era. Some have been in development for more than a decade, others have been fasttracked since the election. But moviegoers will soon have no shortage of films offering timely reflections on America and the policies of its president.

The fall movie season has much more than politics on its mind. There are a string of major releases — “Blade Runner 2049’’ (Oct. 6), “Thor: Ragnarok’’ (Nov. 3), “Justice League’’ (Nov. 17), “Star Wars: The Last Jedi’’ (Dec. 15) — that many expect will reverse the brutal summer boxoffice slide. And of course, many Oscar contenders are also lined up, including festival hits “Call Me By Your Name’’ (Nov. 24), “The Florida Project’’ (Oct. 5) and “Mudbound’’ (Nov. 17).

But even the typically all-consuming Oscar horse race might be secondary this fall — and not just because “Dunkirk,’’ ‘’Get Out” and ‘’Wonder Woman” have already emerged as potential awards contenders. Instead, one of the fall’s most captivating dramas might be between Hollywood and the White House.

Writer-director Peter Landesman (“Concussion’’) found himself making a film about the FBI battling White House interference while a curiously similar conflict played out between Trump, James Comey and the FBI. His movie, “Mark Felt: The Man Who Brought Down the White House’’ tells the story of Felt (played by Liam Neeson), the legendary Watergate source known as Deep Throat, who was the No. 2 official at the FBI during the scandal. It’s been in the works since 2005.

“This movie could have been made 10 years ago or five years ago. The fact that it’s coming out this year has a supernatural relevance,’’ said Landesman.