10 Best Leadership Films
This is a list of films that provide the best examples of leadership in action.
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- DirectorSidney LumetStarsHenry FondaLee J. CobbMartin BalsamThe jury in a New York City murder trial is frustrated by a single member whose skeptical caution forces them to more carefully consider the evidence before jumping to a hasty verdict.One man shows the power of persuasion over eleven who stand against him. The number one film case study used in business schools in America.
- StarsKenneth BranaghEve BestMark TandyThe true story of Shackleton's 1914 Endurance expedition to the South Pole, and his epic struggle to lead his twenty-eight man crew to safety after his ship was crushed in the pack ice.The true story of Shackleton's 1914 Endurance expedition to the the South Pole and his epic struggle to lead his 28 man crew to safety after his ship was crushed in the pack ice.
- DirectorRobert AldrichStarsJames StewartRichard AttenboroughPeter FinchAfter an oil company plane crashes in the Sahara, the survivors are buoyed with hope by one of the passengers, an airplane designer who plans for them to build a flyable plane from the wreckage.After a plane crash, the twelve survivors attempt to rebuild the plane out of the wreckage. Great depiction of the difficulties of working as a team under stress.
- DirectorHenry KingStarsGregory PeckHugh MarloweGary MerrillA tough-as-nails general (Gregory Peck as General Savage) takes over a B-17 bomber unit suffering from low morale and whips them into fighting shape.Gen Frank Savage must turn around a bomber unit that is plagued by inefficiency and bad morale. One of the first films used as a leadership case study.
- DirectorJerry ZuckerStarsSean ConneryRichard GereJulia OrmondLancelot falls in love with Guinevere, who is due to be married to King Arthur. Meanwhile, a violent warlord tries to seize power from Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table.King Arthur must do battle against the evil rebel leader, Prince Malagant. Great comparison between true leadership and dictatorial leadership.
- DirectorLeni RiefenstahlStarsAdolf HitlerHermann GöringMax AmannThe infamous propaganda film of the 1934 Nazi Party rally in Nuremberg, Germany.An example of "anti-leadership." The infamous propaganda film of the 1934 Nazi Party rally in Nuremberg, Germany.
- DirectorRon HowardStarsTom HanksBill PaxtonKevin BaconNASA must devise a strategy to return Apollo 13 to Earth safely after the spacecraft undergoes massive internal damage putting the lives of the three astronauts on board in jeopardy.The failed manned moon project demonstrates excellent leadership from Jim Lovell in the command module and Gene Kranz at Houston Control Center.
- DirectorRon MaxwellStarsTom BerengerMartin SheenStephen LangIn 1863, the Northern and Southern forces fight at Gettysburg in the decisive battle of the American Civil War.The story of the epic Civil War battle in 1863 provides rich examples of leadership, particularly from the Union Generals John Buford and Joshua Chamberlain. Chamberlain's speech to the mutineer troops is a classic of leadership voice.
- DirectorRandall WallaceStarsDiane LaneJohn MalkovichMargo MartindalePenny Chenery Tweedy and colleagues guide her long-shot but precocious stallion to set, in 1973, the unbeaten record for winning the Triple Crown.The amazing story of Penny Chenery who takes over the family stables and against all odds, surprised the racing world by fostering the horse that would be the first Triple Crown winner in twenty-five years.
- DirectorRandall WallaceStarsMel GibsonMadeleine StoweGreg KinnearThe story of the first major battle of the American phase of the Vietnam War, and the soldiers on both sides that fought it, while their wives wait nervously and anxiously at home for the good news or the bad news.Lt Col Hal Moore's leadership in the first major battle of the Vietnam War. His speech to the troops before going into battle is one of the greatest leadership speeches on film.