Best Movies About The Emergence of a Leader

Just finished watching Michael Collins, which I thought was a very good movie about a leader

What other movies provide inspiring/powerful portrayals of how someone rose up to become a leader and achieve his goals?

I may get flamed for this, but I am pretty sure everyone knows my appreciation for it, but I'd have to say the best is Triumph of the Will. Hitler's rise to power is beautiful and complete. The hordes of his followers, the throngs and masses, the depiction of Hitler falling from the sky like some sort of Messiah.


The fact that this is the same Hitler would massacre millions and conquer Europe faster than Julius Caesar's wet dream is completely inconsequential.

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really? when the movie had been shown? and whose the major characters of this movie? for me, the best movie was brave heart of Mil Gibson...

Good old Mil! His career went off the rails somewhat afterwards - I blame the drenk.

Emergence of a leader films? If I was writing an essay on that subject I'd include some of the following:

The Godfather Trilogy (Beardy Frank)
Henry Vee (Ken Branagh)
Life of Brian (Terry Jones)

Note: One of these suggestions might not be entirely what you were looking for, but it's make for an interesting discussion.

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The Godfather Trilogy is really one great movie that shows emergence of a leader...

This isn't really true. Godfather, Part I was about the fall of a great leader in Vito. In Part II, the flashbacks with a young Vito show the emergence of a great leader, but these flashbacks merely illustrate the ineffectiveness of Michael's rule.

Vito is shown to be the perfect Godfather, and Coppola spends all of I and II showing how poorly Santino and Michael compare to their father.

Since when has the thread been about a great leader?

Gandhi is a good one.

I see your point, but I do not think that applies. If the Godfather were about the emergence of a poor leader then it would work, but it's really about the fall of the house of Corleone--about Michael's inability to fill Vito's shoes.

I did not think of this film, which I think is a great choice here.

Which explores more notions of leadership (good, bad or indifferent it doesn't matter) than a lavish, though ultimately one-dimensional, biopic like Gandhi.

Leadership is about decision making. Decisions which have repercussions on the 'leader' and their subjects, anyway. Michael Corleone has just as much place at that particular table as Alexander the Great, Gandhi, Henry V, Richard III, Mel Bloody Gibson, Big Neeson's Rob Roy or any number of classical characters. His set of obstacles could be seen as rather more parochial if you're basing an argument on Kings, prophets, statesmen and messiahs but, cinematically, I don't see any difference.

If The Godfather is just about the fall of the Corleone family from mobsters to ... errr ... mobsters (which is a thread in itself) then who takes the family down a particular path? You guessed it!

Gotta disagree with you there! In Godfather, Vito never falls. He maintains control of his family even after being seriously wounded, negotiates a deal that brings Michael home, passes the rule to his son and expertly advises him on how to watch for traitors and how to avenge his family and gain even more power, which Michael accomplishes. The fact that Vito dies doesn't mean he falls--death is natural, something he can't avoid, but he leaves the family in good hands and a better position than it previously had.

Godfather II traces Vito's beginning, but we already know he's a success. But in Godfather II we also see Michael's development as he takes the family beyond New York into the very lucrative casinos of Las Vegas, how he maintains power through the manipulation of a US Senator, following in his father's footsteps of owning politicians. Michael avoids assassination while forming some powerful relationships with other Mafia leaders, but he also recognizes and avoids an unsound investment in rebel-infested Cuba and returns home safely while his powerful enemy is killed. Again, by the end of the film, his position and his family are more powerful than ever. He proves himself every bit as capable as his father. His surviving brain-damaged brother is never a major factor from start to finish, just another person for Michael to take care of, with no more say in family business than their sister. Michael also is smarter and more reasonable than his hot-headed older brother Sonny who tips his hand to the opposition and is lured to his murder.

Godfather III on the other hand was about a dying old man and was not up to the standards or storylines of the two original films. It's not worth discussing.

When it comes to watching the development of leadership, it's hard to beat Henry Fonda as Young Mr. Lincoln, directed by John Ford in 1939; as the stubborn juror in 12 Angry Men (1957) and as a migrant farmer turned labor activist in Grapes of Wraith (1940).

Fonda was already a leader by rank and example at the start of Mister Roberts, but you see him develop a worthy replacement in Jack Lemmon.

Gregory Peck already has the rank of general but he has to win over a poorly performing bomber squadron through his leadership and develop more leaders in that group in 12 O'Clock High.

Jimmy Stewart doesn't even know he's a community leader until an angel forces him to review his life in It's a Wonderful Life.

Gary Cooper develops from a worthless hillbilly into a national hero in Sergeant York.

Tyrone Power demonstrated two very different kinds of leadership in The Long Gray Line (1955) and Nightmare Alley (1947).

You also see two very different forms of leadership between James Cagney and Pat O'Brien in Angels With Dirty Faces (1938), with Cagney proving how tough it can be to be a leader sometimes.

Van Heflin and Alan Ladd develop leadership in Shane. There's another movie starring Ladd and Sydney Portier playing infantry sergeants in Korea that is all about leadership, but I can't recall the title.

I've seen the movie you're talking about. It's been roughly ten years ago or so however. All the Young Men.

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That's the one! It was one of the first films to address race relations in the integrated armed services of the 1950s. In the film, the officer leading a combat platoon in Korea is killed and command passes to the next highest rank, in this case a black sergeant in an otherwise all white platoon, most of whom don't trust his leadership and want the next ranking NCO, Alan Ladd, to take over. It's a damn good film.

The first "emergence of a leader" movie that came to my mind was Lion King and now I can't think of any that aren't kids movies so here are a few of those.

An American Tail (Fievel)
A Bug's Life (Flik)
D2: The Mighty Ducks (Charlie Conway)
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (Harry Potter)
Land Before Time (Littlefoot)

The Godfather was probably the best for me

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I know people are gonna hate me for this but (come on, look at my name!!) I'm going with ...

Independance Day!

Almost every main character had gained some sort of co-operative leadership qualities by the end of the movie.
Also after hearing Bill Pullman's presidential speech before the battle I'd vote for him!

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General Maximus Decimus Meridius in Gladiator.Seriously what an awesome movie that pretty much the whole point of the movie is him emerging as leader!

stole the words right out of my mouth, except for the third movie...i might be the only person who enjoyed Godfather III, its nowhere near as good as the first two, but it has its place...and if you want to continue the whole leadership thing, michael passes it on to vincent mancini, who changes his name to corleone at michaels allowance...thus continuing the family tree, however, if there were to be another godfather, i dont think vincent would be the best godfather, he was just like his father, all hotheaded and what not...

other titles would be
1. scarface - a quick rise, followed by an extremely quick fall
2. star wars (prequel trilogy) - anakin moves from being a friend of the republic to a strong leader in the empire
3. star wars (original trilogy) - luke comes into his own as a jedi and becomes a great leader for the rebels
4. menace II society - take over an urban gang territory

and plenty more...

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The Godfather