Top 10 Movies Every Business School
Student Must See
By Edmund Wilson and Flip Pidot, Class of 2002
Movies have a long, sneaky
tradition of slipping in messages, lessons, and hidden morals among
the explosions, car chases, and sinking sea liners. Try as we might
to ignore them, one occasionally makes its way through and manages
to make an impact. We’ve conducted an exhaustive search of all such
films and selected the ten we feel bear most directly on the lives
of today’s business school students.
Those expecting Wall Street,
Barbarians at the Gate, or Bonfire of the Vanities will be
disappointed, however. This is a cinematic collection with messages
far more insightful than not to engage in insider trading or the
importance of staying out of the Bruckner Boulevard turn lane while
in the South Bronx. We recommend immediate viewing of any you
haven’t seen. And for those you have, we feel their considerable
relevance to tomorrow’s business leaders warrants a second look.
1. Cool Hand Luke
The 1967 classic starring Paul
Newman as a prisoner who doesn’t let “The Man” keep him down. He
rejects conformity and takes every opportunity to express his
individuality, including the consumption of 50 hard-boiled eggs.
Convention and conformity can be
dangerously easy and financially rewarding for MBA students, but
Luke shows us the nobility and honor that come from making a stand.
Sure, he gets his ass kicked periodically, but that’s a price we all
have to pay at some point.
It should also be noted that this
is considered one of the sweatiest movies of all time, for whatever
that’s worth.
Words to live by: “Callin’ it your
job don’t make it right.”
2. The Jerk
Steve Martin’s 1979 movie debut
chronicles the ambitious and mysteriously Caucasian son of a poor,
black sharecropper family. Despite his humble beginnings and a
drastic lack of intellect, his unbound optimism and entrepreneurial
zeal bring him untold – albeit fleeting – wealth.
The Jerk teaches us that even the
most dire disadvantages can be overcome in pursuit of one’s dreams.
It also reminds us that one class-action lawsuit can wipe you out
and leave you back in the gutter you crawled out of, clutching a
thermos and a paddle ball game.
Words to live by: “Lord loves a
workin’ man.”
3. Braveheart
If you want to learn anything at
all about leadership (and if you don’t, you should question the
financial bloodletting involved in an MBA education), watch
Braveheart. Not because it stars Mel Gibson, but rather to see how
his character, William Wallace, manages to inspire and lead a group
of mangy Scotsmen to charge boldly into nearly certain death as they
fight for their country.
Wallace leads by doing and takes
care to remain true to his humble origins. In so doing, he
establishes such credibility and honor that he gains tremendous
respect among not only his people, but the enemy as well. If you’re
a fan of large-scale epics with lots of bloodshed and men wearing
skirts, this movie will do the trick.
Words to live by: “Your heart is
free. Have the courage to follow it.”
4. Office Space
If you see only one movie from this
list, see this one. Born of the mind that gave us “Beavis and
Butthead”, this is one of the funniest films of the past 10 years,
and its satirical depiction of the vast wasteland known as corporate
America is so accurate you will be pointing your finger at the
screen yelling “I did that!”, “Yeah, the printer always drove me
nuts, too”, and “Omigod, he’s EXACTLY like my last boss”.
Laugh your way through this movie,
but don’t forget the central dilemma as you re-enter the work-world
– Is it better to do absolutely nothing, or something which
completely sucks?
Words to live by: “I did absolutely
nothing all day, and it was everything I thought it could be.”
5. Jerry Maguire
Are you kidding? Did you think we
could leave out a movie that can incorporate lines from “Show me the
money!” to “You had me at hello”? Tom Cruise suddenly realizes his
road to fame and fortune is paved with bullshit, so he bands
together with Cuba Gooding, Jr. as his final sports client. Plenty
of laughs, laced with romantic scenes that are tolerable to the
authors of this list, which might suggest that some may even find
them interesting.
The tale here is really one of
finding success by becoming a better person, rather than trying to
screw other people. Gooding helps Jerry understand the importance of
loyalty, honesty, even providing for a family, all of which
eventually pay off for both characters. And Gooding’s touchdown
dance has yet to be topped by any NFL players.
Words to live by: “Guys are just
different when they’re hanging on to the bottom rung.”
6. The Shining
We are compelled to include this
Kubrick horror movie classic if for no other reason than the phrase
“All work and no play make Jack a dull boy”, which Nicholson spews
for hundreds of pages in a losing battle against writer’s block. The
message is simple and clear, that some mix of work and play is
healthy and will ultimately lead to better productivity.
A second message is even clearer –
don’t housesit a massive, haunted hotel on an isolated mountain
through a fierce winter, as this is likely to drive almost anyone to
running around with an ax.
Words to live by: “For some people,
solitude and isolation can of itself become, uh… a problem.”
7. Mr. Mom
A gem of the 80’s, we find Michael
Keaton’s role-reversed anthem to the great, laid-off masses to have
renewed relevance to today’s young workforce. A suddenly unemployed
auto worker with a wife and three kids to feed, our hero now finds
himself charged with unfamiliar duties from laundry to carpool to
ironing grilled cheese sandwiches, as his wife takes a job with a
successful marketing firm.
This film reminds us of the
importance of embracing equality in the workforce, shedding typical
gender roles, and marrying someone with an advanced degree. For
those of us still without that golden ticket to gainful
post-graduation employment, it also gives us valuable insights on
proper beard-growing, soap opera-watching, and general hygiene
neglect.
Words to live by: “You can’t feed a
baby chili.”
8. The Secret of My Success
Brantley Foster is Carlton
Whitfield? Michael J. Fox’s comedic opus reveals the shocking
nepotism, sexual harassment, and general ethical compromise
infecting the corporate bureaucracy. An opportune tryst with his
aunt, a fake nameplate, and some borrowed documents are all it takes
this charming Kansas farm boy to fake his way from the mailroom to
the board room and bring some dignity back to the company.
Fox’s big city adventures
undoubtedly involve messages about corporate responsibility and the
value of determination, but this film’s truest lesson lies in its
horrifyingly accurate portrayal of a typical New York “starter”
apartment. Manhattan-bound second-years, viewer discretion is
advised.
Words to live by: “If there are any
bugs in here, or rats, or anything that has more legs than I do, you
just stay on your side of the room and I’ll stay on mine.”
9. Sabrina
While capably remade in the mid
90’s with Harrison Ford and Julia Ormond, we give the nod to the
original Bogart/Hepburn classic. Sabrina is the tale of Linus
Larrabbee, a highly successful New York businessman who finds
himself faced with the challenge of disillusioning his womanizing –
though engaged – younger brother with the limo driver’s daughter
(Sabrina), an attraction which promises to sour a proposed merger
with the company owned by the brother’s fiancée’s family. In the
process, Linus is swept up by Sabrina’s humble, yet worldly charms
and finds himself for the first time valuing something beyond mere
financial success.
Hokey perhaps, but the cast (of
both versions) is outstanding and the message is nonetheless
relevant. The message of course is that if your brother is already
engaged, it’s okay to steal his girlfriend.
Words to live by: “More isn’t
always better. Sometimes it’s just more.”
10. Crazy People
This Dudley Moore/Daryl Hannah
comedy about mental patients taking over as slogan writers for an
advertising firm is a true masterpiece in the realm of corporate
communications. “Volvo, they’re boxy, but they’re good” and “AT&T,
we’re tired of your crap” are just a couple of the less racy truisms
spawned along the way.
Between the guy who likes to say
“Hello” and the lofty promises of the Jaguar ads, you might find
yourself busy laughing as the insightful business lessons soar right
by. But the film is choc full of astute examples of team dynamics,
leveraging the unique and diverse talents of employees, and
understanding and communicating effectively with customers.
Words to live by: “Metamucil. It
helps you go to the toilet.”
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