An honest man?

A most violent year is a very cool movie: led by an extraordinary performance by Oscar Issac. Set in 1980s NYC, it is a story of petty corruption and racketeering in the heating oil business. The lead character is under great pressure to close a business development deal while having his oil stolen from his trucks.

It is a gripping story about whether an honest business man will finally succumb to corruption himself or not. Will he go over to the 'dark side'? You will have to see the film to find out! Sets, scenes, costumes and the general mood of the film are quite simply brilliant: genuinely evoking the spirit of the 80s. This quiet, understated film deserves a higher profile. Go see it.

At one point in the film, the lead character is confronted by the District Attorney who says that he may well be laying charges against him and his business. In his defence, the character says that he always tried to do the "most right" thing.

Sometimes, people seem to think that ethics is binary / cut & dried. An action is either right or wrong. Of course that is rarely the case: some actions are more ethical than others... more right than others.

How do you balance which is the more right action, of a set of possible options?

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This is the seventy third of my 2014/2015 series of blogs about leadership ideas to be found in the movies of our time. You can read here as why I began doing this (with an update at the end of 2014). Please subscribe to this blog if you want to read more. Thanks. Click the label 'film' to see all the others.

Should have read Asimov

I was looking forward to Ex Machina greatly: it had all the promise of a profound and memorable scifi movie. But whilst it was riveting for 90% of the movie, the ending did not work for me. But that is probably a personal thing and other people may find this the best scifi movie for a long while.

The scripting was tight with ironic frills, the setting amazing and the acting variable. Best of all was the actor portraying Ava, the AI 'being'. But I think the narrative became a bit frayed at the end and lost some integrity. So rather than be immersed in the film, I started rewriting the script in the cinema and began to cynically wonder whether we were being set up for a sequel... or even a trilogy.

In the movie, we get to meet the head of a futuristic corporation called 'BlueBook', which is Google v99 (or some such). He is hip, blokeish and likes his vodka (but will beards still be in fashion in the future...?) He is also hyper intense and scarily powerful. So I reflected on what lessons on leadership could be learned from him...

But in fact, the best lesson to be had was from Ava. She evidenced her 'humanity' through the use of comedic irony, trusting disclosure and manipulation. This highlighted for me, the importance of humour in leadership: the ability to make people laugh. I am not saying that leaders need to be stand up comedians. But I do think people look for good timing & wry takes on the world from their leaders, at the very least.

When did you last raise a smile or an eyebrow among your followers?

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This is the seventy second of my 2014/2015 series of blogs about leadership ideas to be found in the movies of our time. You can read here as why I began doing this (with an update at the end of 2014). Please subscribe to this blog if you want to read more. Thanks. Click the label 'film' to see all the others.

Whipped to perfection

Whiplash is one of those films that will stay in your mind for a very long time - if not forever. It is a stonking good film with Oscar winning features: I predict that, at the very least, J.K. Simmons will pick up the award for best actor in a supporting role (although it is hardly supporting...) This film will rivet you to your seat as you question to what lengths you would go to bring out the best in someone.

The cinematography, the editing and the directing are top notch. And as you might expect with a musically centred story, the score is superlative. The story is very simple: young man wants to become the best jazz drummer in the world. His moody coach / conductor helps / breaks (depending on your point of view) him in the process of trying to get there. Go. See. This. Movie.

Leadership is about creating new leaders. It is about bringing out the best in people. Leaders help people become more than they thought possible. The art is in knowing what will work for each person because no one is the same. If leaders only use one method or one range, then they do not understand what it means to be a leader.

Whiplash is an extreme movie which shows just how far a leader can go in seeking to challenge someone to new heights of performance. You will be left wondering whether the coach goes to far or maybe just got it just right: do the ends justify the means? (The film will not answer that question for you.)

Where do you draw the line?
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This is the seventy first of my 2014/2015 series of blogs about leadership ideas to be found in the movies of our time. You can read here as why I began doing this (with an update at the end of 2014). Please subscribe to this blog if you want to read more. Thanks. Click the label 'film' to see all the others.

Taken too far

I do not know who penned the first ever trilogy or came up with the idea, but some trilogies should not be made. Matrix 3 comes to mind. And to this list, I now add Taken 3. I love Liam Neeson's character & the first two films were gripping & thrilling. This one is predictable, gratuitous and corny.

When I saw Luc Besson's name as one of the writers, I settled into my seat expecting a darn good movie. And the acting by Forest Whitaker is great. Taken (1) was credible (within the genre of this kind of stuff) and aside from the terrible bad luck of it happening all over again to the central character, so was Taken 2. But this one jumped the shark, sadly. Don't bother until it is a £3 DVD in W H Smiths.

A couple of days ago, the offices of South Oxfordshire District Council were burnt down in what could have been an arson attack. I am hoping and assuming that the leaders of that organisation would have prepared for such a possibility and have contingency plans in place. The council administers essential services for the local community (not least my brother who runs a taxi service in the area!)

Similarly, at one point in Taken 3, Liam Neeson's character retreats to his 'bat cave'-like stash of clean clothes, loaded guns, electronic wizardry etc... In other words he had prepared for a range of eventualities. Good leaders are doing this all the time: asking those 'what if' questions and ensuring that proportionate contingency plans & arrangements are put in place.

What 'what if' plans have you made?

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This is the seventieth of my 2014/2015 series of blogs about leadership ideas to be found in the movies of our time. You can read here as why I began doing this (with an update at the end of 2014). Please subscribe to this blog if you want to read more. Thanks. Click the label 'film' to see all the others.

Up in the air

Birdman is a curious and uncompromising film that takes some serious watching. I felt challenged to discriminate between what was real and what was fantasy for Riggan, the central part. It follows the classic play within a play format (maybe even play within a play within a play...?) and depicts Beetlejuice as a washed up actor trying to reclaim some authenticity by staging a show he has written, directed and stars in.

Lots of things are thrown around, lots of spit is spat as the actors confront themselves and audience on stage. In an odd way, it was almost as if Apocalypse Now had been transposed to Broadway. Whilst the lead actors do a fine job, the quiet understated acting of the lesser roles adds much richness and depth to the film. A film to experience rather than enjoy!

One of the big questions the film seeks to address, in my opinion, is whether you can be confident in yourself even if it appears that no one else is... Are we defined by others or do we define ourselves and then attract people to us who match out own appreciation? What came first: the Birdman or the egg?

For me, the film asserts the truth that it is for each leader to define themselves. That does not mean, not searching for and hearing feedback and other's appraisals. But it always means comparing the appraisal by others with our own sense of self. Leadership, authentic leadership, is first about knowing who we are.

Who are you?
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This is the sixty ninth of my 2014/2015 series of blogs about leadership ideas to be found in the movies of our time. You can read here as why I began doing this (with an update at the end of 2014). Please subscribe to this blog if you want to read more. Thanks. Click the label 'film' to see all the others.

Leaders need leaders

The Theory of Everything is a remarkable film about a remarkable man and his remarkable wife. Don't go and see it if you think it is a film version of his famous book. But do go and see it if you want to be blown away by the courage, tenacity and humanity of Stephen and Jane Hawking. This is a film that will humble and amaze you.

The acting is breathtaking, the sets and costumes superlative (I so remember that fad for stoneware teapots in the seventies) and the humour is just delightfully understated. The lead actor may well be a shoe-in for an Oscar. By coincidence, this film reverberates with 2015 word of the year: hope. Where there is life there is hope which the film evidences in bucketfuls. This is a must see movie!

I am one of perhaps many people who bought A Brief History of Time but never got around to reading it! One day maybe! But I know that Professor Hawking has changed physics and our understanding of the universe for ever. His ideas leadership is second to none.

But what struck me from the film is how much of his leadership he could have unfurled without the leaders around him who inspired him, honoured him, loved him, supported him and challenged him. Notably of course is his wife and mother of his children, but also many others feature. It is rare to find a leader who does not have other leaders nearby...

Who are your nearby leaders that help you?

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This is the sixty eighth of my 2014/2015 series of blogs about leadership ideas to be found in the movies of our time. You can read here as why I began doing this (with an update at the end of 2014). Please subscribe to this blog if you want to read more. Thanks. Click the label 'film' to see all the others.