The International Movie Data Base is probably the singe best source for information about films and television programs. The links provided in this post are to IMDb
In my opinion, these are the ten of the best films from which to learn valuable lessons about the business world, listed in the order in which they were first released.
Citizen Kane (1941): One of the best films ever made, with a focus is on the career of Charles Foster Kane (Orson Welles) who bears striking resemblance to William Randolph Hearst. Notable quote:
Kane: “You’re right, I did lose a million dollars last year. I expect to lose a million dollars this year. I expect to lose a million dollars *next* year. You know, Mr. Thatcher, at the rate of a million dollars a year, I’ll have to close this place in… 60 years.”
It’s a Wonderful Life (1946): Yes, this is one of the best-loved Christmas films but also one of the most cynical studies of a kind and generous man who feels betrayed that his kindness and generosity threaten to ruin him. He becomes despondent. Check out the scene in which George Bailey (Jimmy Stewart) meets with Potter, the evil banker (Lionel Barrymore). Notable quote:
Potter: “You’re worth more dead than alive! Why don’t you go to the riffraff you love so much and ask them to let you have $8,000? You know why? Because they’d run you out of town on a rail. But I’ll tell you what I’m going to do for you, George. Since the state examiner is still here, as a stockholder of the Building and Loan, I’m going to swear out a warrant for your arrest. Misappropriation of funds, manipulation, malfeasance….”
Wall Street (1987): A very ambitious young stockbroker, Bud Fox (Charlie Sheen) becomes a protégé of Gordon Gecko, a ruthless and cunning corporate raider. Both fly higher and higher until….Notable quote:
Gecko: “I am not a destroyer of companies. I am a liberator of them! The point is, ladies and gentleman, that greed, for lack of a better word, is good. Greed is right, greed works. Greed clarifies, cuts through, and captures the essence of the evolutionary spirit. Greed, in all of its forms; greed for life, for money, for love, knowledge has marked the upward surge of mankind. And greed, you mark my words, will not only save Teldar Paper, but that other malfunctioning corporation called the USA.”
Glengarry Glen Ross (1992): The comments by Blake (Alec Baldwin) in the first scene leave no doubt about how brutal sales competition can be. Great cast in a film based on David Mamet’s great play. Notable quote:
Dave Moss (Ed Harris): “I don’t gotta sit here and listen to this shit.”
Blake: “You certainly don’t pal, ’cause the good news is — you’re fired. The bad news is – you’ve got, all of you’ve got just one week to regain your jobs starting with tonight. Starting with tonight’s sit. Oh? Have I got your attention now? Good. “Cause we’re adding a little something to this month’s sales contest. As you all know first prize is a Cadillac El Dorado. Anyone wanna see second prize? Second prize is a set of steak knives. Third prize is you’re fired. Get the picture? You laughing now? You got leads. Mitch and Murray paid good money, get their names to sell them, you can’t close the leads you’re given you can’t close shit. You ARE shit. Hit the bricks, pal, and beat it ‘cause you are going OUT.”
Jerry Maguire(1996): Maguire (Tom Cruise) is a sports agent who struggles to retain his integrity while competing in a world that often resembles a Cuisinart machine. Notable quote:
Jerry Maguire: [babbling and struggling] “I love you. You… you complete me. And I just….”
Dorothy (Renée Zellweger): “Shut up,”
[pause]
Dorothy: “just shut up.”
[Pause]
Dorothy: “You had me at ‘hello.’ You had me at ‘hello.’”
The Devil Wears Prada (2006): What would it be like to be Alice, an admin to the Queen of Hearts in Wonderland? Here’s a trivia item: On the first day of filming, Meryl Streep (Miranda Priestly, based on Anna Wintour) told Anne Hathaway (Priestly’s second assistant, Andy Sachs), “I think you’re perfect for the role. I’m so happy we’re going to be working together.” Then she paused and followed it up with, “That’s the last nice thing I’ll say to you.” And it was.
Here’s a notable quote from the film:
Miranda Priestly: Do you know why I hired you? I always hire the same girl- stylish, slender, of course… worships the magazine. But so often, they turn out to be- I don’t know- disappointing and, um… stupid. So you, with that impressive résumé and the big speech about your so-called work ethic- I, um- I thought you would be different. I said to myself, go ahead. Take a chance. Hire the smart, fat girl. I had hope. My God. I live on it. Anyway, you ended up disappointing me more than, um- more than any of the other silly girls.”
Up in the Air (2009): What’s it like to have a successful career but be (in effect) homeless, without a personal life? Ryan Bingham (George Clooney) spends more than 300 days a year flying all across the U.S.A. terminating employees selected by his firm’s clients. Notable quote:
Bingham: “To know me, is to fly with me the airport is where I temporary live. When I run my card the system automatically prompts the desk clerk to greet me with this exact statement “pleasure to see you again” it’s these kinds of systematized friendly touches that keeps my world in orbit every once and a while I do speaking engagement motivational kind of stuff but Gold Quest? We’re talking Major Tony Robbins shit.”
The Big Short (2010): Based on Michael Lewis’ bestseller, this film examines how four clever operators profited substantially from one of the worst recessions/depressions ever. Notable quote:
Mark Baum (Steve Carell): “We live in an era of fraud in America. Not just in banking, but in government, education, religion, food, even baseball… What bothers me isn’t that fraud is not nice. Or that fraud is mean. For fifteen thousand years, fraud and shortsighted thinking have never, ever worked. Not once. Eventually you get caught, things go south. When the hell did we forget all that? I thought we were better than this, I really did.”
Margin Call(2011): A brilliant analysis of how a highly respected, major financial firm (somewhat based on Lehman Brothers) committed organizational suicide because its top executives followed a CYA strategy, thereby destroying the firm’s credibility as well as its relationships with strategic allies and business partners. Notable quote:
John Tuld (Jeremy Irons): “There are three ways to make a living in this business: be first, be smarter, or cheat.”
Equity(2016): What happens when a senior investment banker, Naomi Bishop (Anna Gunn), is threatened by a financial scandal and struggles to untangle a web of corruption. Notable quote:
Marian Wright Edelman, Founder and President of the Children’s Defense Fund: “You can’t be what you can’t see.” This quote went on to become the tagline of Equity, and it is a succinct, accurate, and powerful description of some of the challenges facing women today in making women’s leadership and presence visible. In industries dominated by men, which is most, it is hard to convince young girls that opportunities await them when there are so few visible role models for them to aspire to.