Goal Setting In The Movies
While most people look at movies is simply entertainment, I’ve started looking at them from a different angle. Quite a few can be seen in the light of setting goals. In fact, looking back, quite a few of my favorite films do with goal setting. For instance…
The Poseidon Adventure. It’s New Year’s Eve. The luxury cruise liner Poseidon is hit with a freak tidal wave, tipping the ship 180°. A small group of survivors, led by a defrocked priest, make a plan to climb to the bottom of the ship to await rescue. This is a riveting film about heroism, perseverance, and goal setting. With their world upside down, the survivors must work together to get out alive whilst some of them live to see another day. The Poseidon Adventure is still one of the great classics of the disaster movie sub genre. Starring Gene Hackman, Ernest Borgnine, Red Buttons and Leslie Nielsen.
Jaws. During the Fourth of July week on Amity Island, a force visits the residents and destroys their peace and quiet. This force is a 25 foot long Great White Shark. No one is safe if they go in the water, and it’s up to a trio of brave men to venture out into the ocean to take on this force of nature. Psychologists have pointed out that the three men represent the Id, the Ego and Super-Ego. Some see it as a Monster Movie, pure and simple. For me, it’s a great take on setting goals and not going back on them because to do so would mean dying. Jaws is also remembered for being the very first summer movie blockbuster. Starring Roy Scheider, Richard Dreyfuss and Robert Shaw.
Zulu. January 23, 1879. 140 British soldiers find themselves about to be attacked by 4000 elite Zulu warriors. The British only have the very small station called Rorke’s Drift to defend themselves in. The day before, 1500 British troops had been massacred by the same Zulu warriors. With sheer determination and a will to win, Lieutenants Chard and Bromhead must come up with a plan to defend the fort and not get killed. In perhaps the greatest military victory of the 19th century, the 140 men actually win the day against the 4000 Zulu warriors. The British had nowhere to run, and almost literally had their backs against the wall. Here is a great story about winning against overwhelming and impossible odds. Must viewing if you want something that will uplift your spirits and give you hope with your goals. Starring Michael Caine, Stanley Baker and Nigel Green.
The Guns Of Navarone. During World War II, the Germans have put 2 enormous missile firing guns in the sheer cliffs of the island of Navarone, near Greece. A small group of British commandos must make their way there, against incredible odds, and destroy the guns before the British fleet sails by several days later. If the guns are not destroyed, the entire British fleet will be sunk, and so with it World War II. The commandos have a simple goal: to destroy the guns. What it takes to get to the island and get to the German base and get the guns is one of the most exciting and nail-biting suspense thrillers ever made. Starring Gregory Peck, David Niven, Anthony Quinn and Stanley Baker.
Where Eagles Dare. An American general is being held in a castle on top of a mountain in the Bavarian Alps. A group of commandos is sent in to get him out alive before he can spill the beans about the D-Day invasion. Capt. Smith has a plan that is timed to the very minute to get them in and out. This is goal setting at its finest. Smith has a big goal, and has broken it down into many small goals. While the big overall goal might seem impossible, each little goal is very doable and leads them forward into the next goal. This is a great action flick, the equal or better to anything that’s come before or since, including Raiders of the Lost Ark. Starring Richard Burton and Clint Eastwood.
Tom, the High Traffic Wizard