Movies I’d Show the Presidents
Who’s watching Home Alone, Seven Samurai, and Titanic?
For this Presidents’ Day, I had to combine some of my greatest passions: movies, presidential history, and writing. I stumbled upon a writing prompt years ago which asked, “What movie would you show the protagonist of your story?” This got me thinking, which movies would I show to each of the presidents, having at the time been working on a story about Theodore Roosevelt. And here we are. Some are more serious than others, but all are chosen based on the president’s interests, events corresponding with their administration, or personality. With that, let’s dive in.
George Washington — Gladiator (2000)
A self-professed admirer of the Roman Empire and the philosopher emperor, Marcus Aurelius, and his Meditations, I could see Washington, the military strategist and first Commander-in-Chief that he was, enjoying this sword-and-sandal classic
John Adams — Frankenstein (1931)
This requires a bit of a story. Adams had a one-sided feud with author Mary Wollstonecraft, to such a degree that he wrote some 10,000 words in response to her sympathetic account of the French Revolution. Now one can imagine how Adams would respond to a movie based on the writings of Wollstonecraft’s daughter, Mary Shelley!
Thomas Jefferson — Jurassic Park (1993)
Jefferson was fascinated with fossils and collected and sought to identify several prehistoric creatures including wooly mammoths, giant ground sloths, and the American mastodon. How excited would he be with the prospect of walking amongst (or running away from) such creatures?
James Madison — Amadeus (1984)
A fan of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s opera Don Giovanni, I can’t help but imagine the primary author of the Constitution and Bill of Rights finding a kindred spirit in the mad-dash writings of a musical genius to create something of importance.
James Monroe — Booksmart (2019)
Monroe was himself book-smart, but like the movie’s protagonists, he was unafraid to let loose and party, a bit too much at times it seems. Monroe was recalled from his position as Minister to France after indulging in one too many parties. Booksmart too is an ideal feel-good movie, perfect for the president who presided over the Era of Good Feelings.
John Quincy Adams — The Godfather (1972)
The Adams family (no, not *that* Addams family) was one of the first American political dynasties, with father and son rising to the presidency. Yet Adams’s life was marked with tragedy and death, made survivable thanks to his resilient, stubborn spirit. Though the Adams’s were often progressive in beliefs and ideals, there’s no denying a connection with the equally ambitious yet tragic legacy of the Corleone’s. This would also help Adams pick up on some Italian, a language he admitted he wished he knew more of.
Andrew Jackson — True Grit (1969)
Rough around the edges and tough as…well…Old Hickory, I can’t imagine Jackson being anything but completely entertained by this western tale of courage and vengeance, with some sharp shooting thrown in too.
Martin Van Buren — Turkish Delight (1973)
The only president whose first language was not English but Dutch, it feels necessary to show Van Buren the most successful Dutch movie of all time.
William Henry Harrison — 1917 (2019)
For a man most known for his lengthy inaugural address, what better movie to show Harrison than one which is shot to look like one long take. It also helps that both this movie and his speech are about the same length.
John Tyler — Dave (1993)
A man who finds himself thrust into the presidency through a series of unusual circumstances. Hard to tell if this describes the movie or Tyler’s sudden ascent to the presidency. The movie about an accidental president is perfect for a president nicknamed “His Accidency.”
James K. Polk — No time for a movie
Probably the busiest man to have occupied the Oval Office, Polk once remarked, “No president who performs his duties faithfully and conscientiously can have any leisure.” There is simply no time to watch a movie.
Zachary Taylor — Full Metal Jacket (1987)
Who else wouldn’t want to see “Old Rough and Ready” up against R. Lee Ermey’s Gunnery Sergeant Hartman?
Millard Fillmore — Seven Samurai (1954)
Arguably the greatest accomplishment of the Fillmore administration was forcing Japanese ports to open and trade with the United States. It seems fitting to show Fillmore himself one of Japan’s greatest movies, itself having influenced countless American classics.
Franklin Pierce — Easy A (2010)
One of Pierce’s lifelong friends was author Nathaniel Hawthorne, who not only wrote a biography on his friend and president but died just feet from Pierce after the pair had gone on a trip together. Pierce would likely wish to see a movie of Hawthorne’s most famous work, The Scarlet Letter, and for a president known as “the saddest president,” one would hope that a more humorous adaptation would be almost necessary.
James Buchanan — A Single Man (2009)
The title alone is appropriate for the only bachelor president. The movie is even more appropriate given its subject matter; the struggles of a closeted gay man following his partner’s death.
Abraham Lincoln — The Tragedy of Macbeth (2021)
Some of Lincoln’s earliest reading materials were the works of William Shakespeare and in his own words, “Nothing equals ‘Macbeth.’”
Andrew Johnson — Gone with the Wind (1939)
A Southern president enjoying *the* southern movie.
Ulysses S Grant — Sleepy Hollow (1999)
Grant admitted he did not much enjoy fiction, but surprising for a man with an adverse fear of blood, he loved the work of Washington Irving and Edgar Alan Poe along with other gothic tales.
Rutherford B. Hayes — Ben-Hur (1959)
A deeply religious man, Hayes I image would be drawn to one of the grandest biblical narratives put to screen.
James A. Garfield — Dead Poets Society (1989)
A lifelong lover of poetry and a former teacher himself, Garfield could immediately connect with seeking to inspire others with prose and to laud individualistic leadership in a classroom setting.
Chester Alan Arthur — To Kill a Mockingbird (1962)
Prior to his presidency, Arthur served as an attorney and worked specifically on civil rights cases, including representing a black woman who was denied a seat on a streetcar due to her race. Arthur’s successful representation led to the desegregation of New York City streetcar lines. Arthur may find a kindred spirit with Harper Lee’s central figure, Atticus Finch.
Grover Cleveland — Liar Liar (1997)
Cleveland campaigned on a platform of being ‘Grover the Good,’ hailed for his honesty, transparency, and desire to rid the federal government of cronyism. Spending a day with an attorney incapable of lying, particularly one played as outlandishly as Jim Carrey, would tickle this honest-seeking president pink.
Benjamin Harrison — Titanic (1997)
Remembered by an unfortunate nickname, Harrison was chilly towards other people in social settings so became known as the “Human Iceberg.” I don’t mean to spoil the movie here, but an iceberg makes an appearance.
William McKinley — Phantom Thread (2017)
Perhaps no president was as close to his wife as McKinley was to his beloved Ida. McKinley would help Ida with her frequent seizures and other ailments throughout their marriage. Moments after being shot, McKinley told his secretary, George Cortelyou, “My wife — be careful, Cortelyou, how you tell her — oh, be careful.” As McKinley slowly succumbed to the assassin’s bullet, Ida would cry at his bedside, “I want to go, too. I want to go, too.” If you know Phantom Thread and see the parallels between sickly spouses and an undeniably strong bond, this is not coincidental.
Theodore Roosevelt — The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)
A larger-than-life person deserves a larger-than-life movie, and Roosevelt is one of those people I feel would be completely enthralled with the spectacle and intimacy of J.R.R. Tolkien’s world on screen. A lover of sweeping epic stories such as Anna Karenina, War and Peace, and Don Quixote, Roosevelt could easily enjoy a tale of hobbits as well as a tale of Napoleon. (Is that a height joke? Perhaps).
William Howard Taft — The Natural (1984)
Presidents have a long history with baseball, but that history began with Taft, who started the tradition of throwing the first ball at a Major League Baseball season opener. Who else would enjoy this triumphant baseball story of a natural player than Taft?
Woodrow Wilson — Get Out (2017)
Wilson has many accomplishments in his life and his presidency, but one of them certainly was not race-relations, Wilson being one of, if not the, most racist president in history. It’s only fitting that the president who screened the first movie in the White House, the KKK-propaganda silent movie, The Birth of a Nation, be treated to something a little different than his usual viewing preferences.
Warren G. Harding — The Great Gatsby (2013)
Not only was Harding president at the start of the ‘Roaring Twenties’ when Jay Gatsby’s parties were in full swing, but Harding would have likely loved nothing more than to spend a night at Gatsby’s. Harding threw lavish parties with thousands of guests at the White House while allegedly gambling White House China due to a bad hand in poker.
Calvin Coolidge — In the Loop (2009)
Known for his sharp wit and dry humor, as well as his personal beliefs about holding one’s tongue to avoid embarrassment and conflict, this mockumentary style movie bursting with pointed dialogue about slip-ups on the international stage could get a chuckle out of “Silent Cal.”
Herbert Hoover — A River Runs Through It (1992)
No other president has loved fishing quite like Hoover, who went so far as to write books on the subject. A movie about generations enjoying fly fishing seems like a Hoover approved viewing experience.
Franklin Delano Roosevelt — Lawrence of Arabia (1962)
The four-term president deserves a movie of grand scale and ambition that only a movie such as this can truly offer, Lawrence of Arabia appropriately clocking in at just under four hours. It helps that Roosevelt himself was an admirer of T.E. Lawrence and his Seven Pillars of Wisdom.
Harry S Truman — Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964)
The defining decision of Truman’s presidency was whether or not to deploy nuclear weapons to end World War II. Regardless of one’s opinions on Truman’s decision, it would make for fascinating commentary to sit beside Truman and see what he makes of Stanley Kubrick’s satirical take on a high-stakes military situation gone haywire amid the Cold War.
Dwight D. Eisenhower — Caddyshack (1980)
Eisenhower played golf roughly 800 times during his eight years in office. Need I say more beyond, “It’s in the hole!”
John F. Kennedy — Casino Royale (2006)
The last movie Kennedy watched prior to his assassination was reportedly Sean Connery’s second outing as James Bond in From Russia with Love, Kennedy having also been a fan of the book and arguably being the one to help introduce American audiences to 007. Why not introduce Kennedy to not only one of the strongest Bond movies in its 60-year history but look at the M16 agents very first mission based faithfully on Ian Fleming’s first book.
Lyndon B. Johnson — Pulp Fiction (1994)
Johnson was a Character with a capital C. It’s hard to imagine a wilder man as president than Johnson, who enjoyed pulling terrifying pranks, holding meetings while in the bathroom, going on rants about his…well…last name, and swearing. Johnson’s language was “salted with profanity” and was perhaps the most creative Swearer-in-Chief. So, a movie bursting with memorable characters, colorful language, and wild, over-the-top moments like Pulp Fiction would be perfect for this president.
Richard M. Nixon — There Will Be Blood (2007)
There are some striking parallels and cautionary lessons learned with this movie and that of Nixon’s own life. Daniel Plainview and Nixon were both California men, ambitious, often saw the worst in people, deployed tactics such as religiosity to advance their agendas, and experienced tremendous defeats. I would be fascinated to see if and what Nixon saw while watching this.
Gerald Ford — Home Alone (1990)
Ford’s self-professed favorite movie, this is almost too good to be true when it comes to a president known for being a bit of a klutz (despite being one of the most athletic men to have held this office). Does Ford have sympathy for the plights of the bumbling Wet Bandits?
Jimmy Carter — All the President’s Men (1976)
Like his predecessor, this movie is one of Carter’s self-professed favorites and this would make for an engrossing viewing experience with Carter, who became president thanks in part to the events detailed in the movie (Watergate and The Washington Post reporting) and its aftermath.
Ronald Reagan — Vertigo (1958)
Jimmy Stewart was one of Reagan’s long-time friends, Stewart visiting the White House on several occasions and Reagan awarding him the Medal of Freedom in 1985. Vertigo has arguably become Stewart’s most critically acclaimed performance, but it wasn’t always so (similar to his work in It’s a Wonderful Life). I’d be curious to see what the “Gipper” thought of his friends work in this Alfred Hitchcock classic.
George H.W. Bush — Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011)
Having served as the Director of Central Intelligence, Bush was a man who understood and championed the methodical, slow-moving process of bureaucracy, investigations, and foreign affairs, not dissimilar to the story and themes unfolding in this mystery. In many ways, I can see Bush mirroring not only the fictitious George Smiley, but the author of the book the movie was adapted from, John le Carré, himself a member of MI5 and MI6.
Bill Clinton — An American Werewolf in London (1981)
A more tongue-in-cheek selection, Clinton was a Rhodes Scholar and attended University College, Oxford. At the time, Clinton sported quite a mane of bushy hair along with a beard. The movie, like Clinton, is very much a “fish out of water” story, just a little harrier.
George W. Bush — Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery (1997)
There’s no highbrow, character, or plot dissection with this pick. I just think Bush would laugh at Austin Powers.
Barack Obama — Drive My Car (2021)
Selected by Obama as his favorite movie of 2021, this three-hour, patient Japanese drama seems par for the course for a president known for his patience and slow speech patterns.
Donald Trump — Home Alone 2: Lost in New York (1992)
“Down the hall and to the left.”
Joe Biden — Contagion (2011)
A presidency which so far has been dominated by the COVID-19 pandemic, a movie about a pandemic and the response thereafter would make for an apt viewing experience to see what is going well, what needs to be improved, and how can we overcome the latest variant united.
Each president is unique, as is each movie. Some presidents may like certain movies while others would likely hate them. What I hope to achieve with this piece on is to not idolize or deify any individual in this position of power, but to recognize they were/ are a person just like you and I who would enjoy some laughs, thrills, chills, and tears through the medium of film.
