The world’s most powerful leader is a film buff. Donald Trump, the former US President, has previously shared his fondness for cinema, and his choice of favourites might raise some eyebrows.
He holds a particular affection for the golden era of Hollywood, with classics like ‘Gone with the Wind’ (1939) and ‘Citizen Kane’ (1941) among his top picks, but he also has a penchant for a gripping gangster movie.
Trump’s cinematic passion dates back to his early years, as reported by the LA Times: “Before following his father into real estate, Trump at one point harbored dreams of being a studio mogul not unlike the ones who had made those movies. After graduating from New York Military Academy in 1964, Trump briefly considered attending USC’s film school.
“I was attracted to the glamour of the movies, and I admired guys like Sam Goldwyn, Darryl Zanuck and most of all Louis B. Mayer,” he and Tony Schwartz penned in the 1987 bestseller “Trump: The Art of the Deal.
“But in the end I decided real estate was a much better business.”
The president has made guest appearances in several films, including “Home Alone 2: Lost in New York” and “Zoolander”, and has shown a diverse taste in cinema over the years. His love for film isn’t limited to critically acclaimed classics – he once praised ‘Bloodsport’, a movie that didn’t receive a single Oscar nomination, in a 1997 New Yorker profile, calling it “an incredible, fantastic movie.”
He also expressed admiration for the spaghetti western, “The Good, The Bad and The Ugly”, featuring Hollywood icon Clint Eastwood. He told Movieline that the well-developed characters of the 1966 film sometimes reminded him of individuals he’s encountered in his business career.
Three of the president’s top five films have been mentioned above – Citizen Kane, Gone with the Wind and The Good, The Bad and The Ugly. His remaining two favourites belong to the gangster genre.
He labelled “The Godfather” (1972) and its sequel, “The Godfather: Part II,” (1974) as “classic.”
Both films were directed by Francis Ford Coppola. His other gangster favourite is Martin Scorsese’s 1990 masterpiece “Good Fellas.”, which he lauded for its “a stellar cast”.
These three films collectively bagged ten Oscars.
Robert De Niro, famed for his role in Goodfellas, has openly expressed his disdain for the 45th and 47th president of the United States, despite Trump’s appreciation for the gangster film genre that De Niro has frequently graced. The Hollywood icon didn’t mince words when he stated: “Today, we have a weird twisted president who thinks he’s a gangster, who’s not even a very good gangster. Gangsters have honour, you shake a hand and they have your word and you have theirs and that’s it. But with this guy, it’s not the case.”