Navigating by stars

David Cronenberg is not known for his frothy romcoms, so I was not expecting to 'enjoy' Maps to the Stars. I was correct. This is a dark movie about not just Hollywood's 'underbelly' but the desperation between its toes and under its fingernails... This is a gripping and tragic film that will draw you inexorably into its sticky and glutinous morality.

The acting is steely, cold and understated: delivering performances that will chill and greatly impress you for their naked honesty. If you want to see how ambition, arrogance and greed can corrupt people, this is the film for you. And be impressed by the make-up too: it cannot be easy to make someone look like they are not wearing make up quite so well. This is a film strictly for hacks & fans, I would say. And which probably explains why there were only a dozen people in the cinema watching it on a Friday night. Nonetheless it is a film to see.

A central theme of this film is about saying sorry and seeking forgiveness and thence capacity of the wronged people to be able and willing to forgive. It is not easy doing either, as the film so graphically shows.

I saw a poll the other day which listed the qualities of politicians that people respect the most (and dislike the most). High on the list, if not at the top from my recollection, was the capacity and willingness to apologise.  I think we expect the same of any leader. We all make mistakes and leaders are no different. The mark of an excellent leader is one who can truly say sorry (something I have blogged about before) when the need arises.

How good are you at saying sorry?

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This is the fifty third of my 2014 series of blogs about leadership ideas to be found in the movies of our time. You can read here as why I am doing this. Please subscribe to this blog if you want to read more. Thanks. Click the label 'film' to see all the others.

Not the Oxford that I know...

I lived in Oxford for twenty years. Even so, I was always aware that much of it was hidden to me behind the bowler hatted door stewards and alluring gates to the various quads. The Riot Club appears to open a few doors on a side of Oxford I was only dimly aware of...

This is a chilling film that will lower the temperature of your bones. The basic story: boys club plus tribal arrogance plus copious alcohol results in some very unsavoury things happening. You get the gist I am sure. It is tightly acted and directed with the visual treat of an Oxford stage. This is a film to see and speculate on how much of it could be true...

The clear message of this film is that all the members of the club are future legendary leaders of the country who will be bound by the chivalrous pack of one for all and all for one. It is a tale of deep clan loyalty built on shared self interest. (There are no prizes for guessing the connections this story is seeking to make...)

One of the questions the film left me with was: how much of leadership power is borne of credibility built on action by the leader her/himself, and how much does this power arise from past loyalty & favours bestowed or sealed? And what is the optimal balance?

From where does your leadership power arise?

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This is the fifty second of my 2014 series of blogs about leadership ideas to be found in the movies of our time. You can read here as why I am doing this. Please subscribe to this blog if you want to read more. Thanks. Click the label 'film' to see all the others.

Is sex funny?

Sex Tape starts with the interesting premise: to what lengths would you go if you thought that a private video of you & your partner having sex had been made public against your intentions? The movie suggests, short of murder, quite a long way... Ignoring some of the glaring narrative holes in the plot line, this film is funny in parts... but also rather cringe-worthy in other parts.

The two main actors are, of course, very bankable stars with deep comedic roots. But if I was left wondering whether Jason Segel co-wrote this just so that he could get naked with Cameron Diaz, then I am not sure the film works. I ought to have been immersed in the story rather than looping out into wondering about the film's provenance. The best bit was Jack Black ironically dispensing relationship advice. The film is OK but it is not brilliant. It is certainly not a date movie unless you have been with your partner for quite a while...!

Part of the comedic tension rests on the conflict between the public and private personas of the main characters, especially the one played by Ms Diaz. The risk is that her image will be tainted by the disclosure of the other...

Even before the advent of social media and 'the cloud' (which, as Ms Diaz points out in the movie, is merely someone else's computer), leaders have faced this challenge. It is called 'walking the talk', professional integrity or ensuring your deeds match words etc. Of course every leader believes she/he has integrity. But in a leadership role it is about what other people think... So it is vital that leaders get this feedback.

Who gives you honest feedback on whether your words and deed match? 

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This is the fifty first of my 2014 series of blogs about leadership ideas to be found in the movies of our time. You can read here as why I am doing this. Please subscribe to this blog if you want to read more. Thanks. Click the label 'film' to see all the others.

I am amazed that some films are made

I saw Maze Runner in a cavernous auditorium surrounded by whispering Serbs reading the subtitles. So it was maybe not the best place to appreciate this movie. The film is something like a cross between Lost, Lord of the Flies and Sinbad. It left me cold and with an overwhelming desire to take the 'copy & paste' function away from CGI programmers.

The acting, plot line and direction were as clunky and wooden as a puppet on a string. The twists were 'meh' and it contained about as much suspense as salt & sugar bag of popcorn (gosh... will this be a sweet or a salty mouthful...?!). The end features one of the most shameless set-ups for a sequel that I have ever seen. So don't bother: not even if I you are bored late at night in an Eastern European city...

"Hey, look... I think I can see a story in there somewhere... maybe?"

Leadership is a big theme within the film: as in 'who exactly is the leader?' But among the staged fights, heroic deeds and muscular camaraderie, there is a quieter form of leadership that relies upon thinking, contemplation and analysis. Without this kind of leadership, the story could not have ended (well... sort of ended: see above).

Of course, there will always be the need for bold & extrovert leadership that provides a visible focus for people to focus their energies and spirit upon. But where there is yang, there must also be yin to achieve balance and sustainable progress.

Does yin leadership balance with yang leadership in your organisation?

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This is the fiftieth of my 2014 series of blogs about leadership ideas to be found in the movies of our time. You can read here as why I am doing this. Please subscribe to this blog if you want to read more. Thanks. Click the label 'film' to see all the others.

Twist & shaking off the past

SPOILER ALERT: I went to see Before I Go To Sleep last night.

Having just about recovered from a trailer to a horror movie that I am definitely not going to see, I settled down to the film billed as "an intriguing amnesia thriller with an extraordinary twist!" This meant I spent almost the whole time trying to guess what the twist was going to be. (Please note Cineworld: declaring there to be a twist is akin to a spoiler - which is why I have put this at the top of this blog)

As for the movie, it just was not taut enough for me. I am not sure how many 'amnesia thrillers' there have been (is this a genre that I need to study more?) but I don't think this is one of the best. It just felt a bit too heavily ladled with clue hints to the audience. Technically the movie is proficient, the acting solid (as you would expect from the cast) but something was missing. But maybe all the narrative twists have been deployed before?

Leadership is about change and developing organisations to do things differently in a changing world. Learning new skills, exploring new outlooks on the world and adjusting personal, as well as organisational, strategies is mix of acquiring something new and forgetting something old.

In other words, learning something new is also almost invariably about unlearning something old. So as a leader, it is your job not only to usher in the new, but also assist yourself and others unlearn the old. This means, at the very least, highlighting this fact and allowing people time to decouple themselves from the old ways. A bit of managed amnesia, if you like.

When was the last time you helped someone forget an old skill or outlook? What did you learn about how best to do this?

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This is the forty ninth of my 2014 series of blogs about leadership ideas to be found in the movies of our time. You can read here as why I am doing this. Please subscribe to this blog if you want to read more. Thanks. Click the label 'film' to see all the others.

Baseball movies usually do nothing for me...

Being a Brit, I have always failed to grasp the quasi religious obsession that America has with baseball and therefore baseball based movies. But Million Dollar Arm is different. Not many films make me punch the air with elation, but this one did! This is a peach of film that will leave you glowing like the Taj Mahal at sunset. Go see it. You will be uplifted.

The acting is superb: understated but completely authentic. The story, as all true stories are, is a classic mix of ups & downs, "will he/she/they, won't they/she/he" moments and a sumptuous & satisfying conclusion. The photography is evocative & ironic. It all comes together so well. Indeed, I was driven to buy an Indian take-away on the way home: that is how sensory the film is.

There is only one character who doesn't go on a journey in this film, but I will leave you guess who I think this is. Some long distances are traveled geographically but these are short compared to the spiritual treks the remaining characters have. But this isn't a film about enlightenment. This is a film about self belief and confidence.

I was asked to design a series of modules for a leadership programme the other day which I happily listed to include strategy development & application, coaching, process redesign, change management... yada yada. But actually what I would like to do, is just show them this movie... Because in the end, how fast and accurately you throw the (leadership) ball is far less about technique and far more about self belief.

What do you believe you can become?

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This is the forty eighth of my 2014 series of blogs about leadership ideas to be found in the movies of our time. You can read here as why I am doing this. Please subscribe to this blog if you want to read more. Thanks. Click the label 'film' to see all the others.