10 Greatest Portrayals Of Political Figures In Movies

Titanic figures of the silver screen.

Fox Searchlight PicturesFox Searchlight PicturesInspiring, villainous, controversial, benevolent, and divisive: political figures can be remembered as any of these things, but that rarely reflects the whole story. Filmmakers have long strived to put more complete portraits of these men and women to screen €“ whether or not they get it right is another matter entirely. Certainly, the lives of our most controversial leaders, politicians and activists can make for gripping drama, and to this end, Hollywood has served the market wonderfully over the years. More often than not, these portrayals rest at the centre of some bloated political biopic, where more attention is paid to cramming in key events than to the figures on whose shoulders the entire narrative rests. The greatest portrayals endeavour to bring vulnerabilities and vices to these often-impenetrable figures in an attempt to make them more human. These films understand that while there might be definitive interpretations of someone€™s career and of political events, there can never be a conclusive understanding of a person. Moreover, these portrayals rely on more than a rousing performance and some convincing prosthetics. The film that encompasses each figure must be selective of the material that it covers, decisive over its tone and at all times interesting and engaging €“ the greatest portrayals of political figures are only as good as the films they€™re found in.
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