In an interview with Italian newspaper La Repubblica (partially translated by The Hollywood Reporter) the Argentina-born pontiff has revealed some of his favourite films. As the child of Italian parents, it’s not a big surprise he has particular affection for many classics of Italian cinema. Federico Fellini’s La Strada, Luchino Visconti's The Leopard and Roberto Rossellini’s Rome, Open City are three of the classic films mentioned by the Pope as personal favourites. All three films are regular fixtures on critics’ ‘best films of all time’ lists.
What about other people of influence? What films are they particularly fond of when they are granted the rare opportunity to watch one?
Barack Obama
Obama has called the Godfather Part I and II his favourite films, while wisely rejecting the much maligned Part III. He’s also mentioned some favourite TV shows, including labelling The Wire ‘one of the greatest shows of all time’. We’re inclined to agree with the man.
Joe Biden
The US Vice President has named Chariots of Fire as his favourite film. He observes “the truth of the matter is the thing about it, there is a place where someone put personal fame and glory behind principles. That to me, is the mark of real heroism, when someone would do that.”
George W. Bush
Baseball drama Field of Dreams has been cited as the former US President’s favourite movie, apparently reminding him of his own childhood fondness for the sport. Other Presidential favourites include Bill Clinton’s choice of High Noon and Richard Nixon’s beloved Patton. You can read more about other US Presidential favourites here.
David Cameron
There are several potential candidates here. The UK Prime Minister has been reported to be particularly fond of films such as Lawrence of Arabia, Where Eagles Dare and All The Presidents’ Men. One of the more unexpected Cameron choices is Lindsay Anderson’s anti-authority classic If….
Kim Jong-un
The North Korean leader is said to be a big fan of Jackie Chan. His cinema fandom has nothing on his father’s obsessions, though. Kim Jong-Il wrote a book called On the Art of the Cinema during his time as culture minister. Allegedly, Jong-il even went and kidnapped a South Korean filmmaker and tried to force him to make a localised, socialist version of Godzilla. You can read about that bizarre situation here.
Vladimir Putin
Putin has expressed his enthusiasm for The Shield and the Sword - a 1968 Soviet film about a Russian agent who manages to infiltrate Germany’s SS during World War II.
Enda Kenny
The Taoiseach’s all-time favourite remains a tad unclear, but he has been outed as a Spielberg fan. Following on from the pair’s meeting earlier this year, Spielberg said “he has seen lots of my films, not Lincoln yet, but all the other ones”
