The making of a leader

"What makes a good leader?" Perhaps the question HBO original movie, The Gathering Storm would like to post, especially for us Filipinos who, in less than 70 days from now, will elect a new president and witness hopefully a smooth turnover of power.

The Gathering Storm, which premieres tonight at 8:30 over HBO, is a tale of Winston Churchill’s personal and political life. It’s about his struggles as a private person away from the public eye. These are supported in the scenes which picture Churchill’s battle with problems caused by bankruptcy, his drinking habits and depression. Thus, the movie has shown the human, er sometimes vulnerable, side of Churchill’s signature image of a big, critical and serious man with a huge cigar.

The one-and-a-half hour movie also depicts Churchill as a hard-working, perfectionist political figure and boss. A painter and an animal lover, does his homework and speeches regardless of circumstances – whether he taking a bath, dressing up for work or even having his sumptuous meal.

Though Churchill’s strong character affects his affairs with his immediate family like his wife, the man, a humble soul, is not afraid to admit his faults and shortcomings.

The dramatic part of all is how these unknown battles of Winston Churchill mold him in becoming a survivor and great leader.

The movie also portrays Churchill as a family man and a good provider to his supportive wife Clementine and four children. There are also scenes in his Chartwell house, showing how he seeks refuge in the place, especially when his colleagues criticize his ideas and consider them nothing but foolish acts. The house figuratively serves as a security blanket to Churchill.

The highlight of the movie is when he has foreseen the Nazis as a big threat to his country. As a leader, Churchill has gathered intelligence reports about German rearmament. Through his eloquence and power to influence fellow leaders, he has also tried to avoid the conflict his country might suffer in the hands of the Nazis.

The Gathering Storm, which stars Albert Finney as Winston Churchill and Vanessa Redgrave as Clementine Churchill, gives its viewers a clear insight of what it takes to become a great leader in the person–Winston Churchill.

Having countless world leaders in the past, The Gathering Storm has vividly described the classic image of a leader – whether it be a prime minister, a president or a king. The image is of a pensive leader with strong character and conviction. He can foresee what lies ahead of his country. In the case of Winston Churchill, he anticipated through contemplating the course of events how the Nazis could be a threat not only to his country but to the entire humanity. As a navy admiral, he led his countrymen through a World War until he eventually became Prime Minister. With Churchill’s vision, he was able to lessen the effect of war on his country. Whether from a dream, sheer talent or destiny, Churchill’s being visionary is not surprising because he has the qualities of both great races. Winston is English on his father side and American on his mother side. No wonder why Winston is portrayed as a great leader in the movie.

In the movie, one can get a time warp with the performance of four-time Oscar nominee Albert Finney and Oscar winner Vanessa Redgrave. Both had prior character studies through researches to realistically execute the demands of their roles. In fact, Finney watched a TV footage and speeches of Churchill to have a close semblance of the latter’s manner of speaking and walking. Thus, Finney seems to be the real Churchill, not to discount the physical preparations Finney made like having a shaved head and thin hair. On Vanessa’s part, she was given the opportune time to interview the surviving daughter of Churchill and Clementine to get personal insights and inspirations of the Churchill matriarch.

With clean direction and cinematography, the movie is like moving image/s taken from the pages of the history.