Top 15 Movies for Every Post War President

Harry S. Truman

“The Best Years of Our Lives” (1946)

Following FDR's death during the final year of World War II, his former Vice President, Truman, oversaw the country's return to peacetime and witnessed the transition of its veterans. Those coming home, and Truman himself, would have to adjust to the new status quo, and no film better captured that whiplash than “The Best Years of Our Lives.” The movie followed three veterans returning and readjusting to their civilian lives, and the unexpected struggles that came with the transition. The performances of the returning men, as well as the families they returned to, struck a chord with audiences at the time, and the film won seven competitive Oscars, including Best Picture and Best Supporting Actor for non-professional actor, veteran, and amputee Harold Russell.

Dwight D. Eisenhower

“On the Waterfront” (1954)

By the time Eisenhower was sworn in, the Cold War was in full swing, with tensions between the United States and the Soviet Union reaching a boiling point. McCarthyism had swept the US, and distrust and tensions between citizens was at an all time high. This was especially true in Hollywood. Testimonies were made at the House Un-American Activities Committee, outing supposed communists, with people like director Elia Kazan naming names. The backlash from these actions led to Kazan directing “On the Waterfront,” a tale of corruption and weighing the benefits of standing up to powerful organizations. As the CIA was enacting coups and installing dictatorships across the world with Eisenhower’s go-ahead, the film mirrored the loss of trust in institutions that many felt.

John F. Kennedy

“To Kill a Mockingbird” (1962)

Although it was set decades earlier, the trial where Atticus Finch, played by Gregory Peck, defends a falsely accused black man, Tom, perfectly captured the tensions present in the civil rights movement. It’s not difficult to draw parallels between Finch and JFK, who would become a pioneer for civil rights and an icon of hope for the country at large. Both classicly handsome men and talented orators, the fictional story involving Atticus and the real life presidency of Kennedy ended in tragedy. Just as calamity befell Tom after the trial, Kennedy was assassinated before the Civil Rights Act he championed was passed in 1964.

Lyndon B. Johnson

“In the Heat of the Night” (1967)

After unexpectedly succeeding JFK, Texas Democrat LBJ continued the latter's racial reforms. This came during a time when much of his native South was fighting these reforms. Perhaps no actor better captured the moment during the Civil Rights Era than Sidney Poitier. His film “Guess Who's Coming to Dinner” saw him in an interracial couple and the struggles that came with an older generation accepting that. In the same year, he portrayed Philadelphia detective Mr Tibbs, investigating a Mississippi murder in “In the Heat of the Night.” Seen as lesser because of the color of his skin, Tibbs refused to back down in his pursuit of justice, working with racist cops and delivering one of the most famous slaps in cinema history.

Richard Nixon

“The Conversation” (1974)

Following a surveillance expert played by Gene Hackman, “The Conversation” was a twisting thriller that came out at the perfect time to capture what the nation was experiencing. Hackman’s character, Harry, accidentally stumbles across a crime, leading to a crisis of conscience about what to do with damning evidence. Despite being written years earlier and wrapping filming before many details about the Watergate break-in had come to light, the parallels between the film and the scandal were eerie. Facts about how Republicans had illegally wiretapped and how Nixon had covered up the evidence during his 1972 campaign were coming to light during the film’s theatrical run. Ironically, even the audio equipment used in the film was the same used at Watergate.

Gerald Ford

“All the President's Men” (1976)

Thanks to Nixon’s resignation, as well as former VP Spiro Agnew’s own due to separate corruption charges, Gerald Ford became the first person to ever become President without being elected to either office. He stepped into the presidency as trust in the institution was at an all-time low, as Watergate, along with the final days of the Vietnam War, had eroded public faith. This was reflected in the films of the time, particularly “Network,” which followed the machinations of a fictional TV studio. Commenting even more directly on corrupt offices, however, was “All the President's Men,” detailing how two real reporters were instrumental in breaking the Watergate scandal. The film stood as an example of the power of the press to fight corruption.

Jimmy Carter

“Invasion of the Body Snatchers” (1978)

While the 1956 original played on American fears of outsiders, namely communism and the Soviet Union, the remake of “Invasion of the Body Snatchers” played on paranoia about our own neighbors. Over the decades, many Americans began to feel as if they had lost their sense of individuality, while the revolutionaries of the 1960s slowly conformed. Jimmy Carter’s single term was marred by stagflation, as inflation and consumerism ran rampant, a phenomenon harshly criticized by the film. The former hippies, many of whom would have voted for Carter after decrying Nixon and Ford’s conservative policies, had lost their drive, something made explicit in “Invasion of the Body Snatchers” where they were replaced with actual pod people.

Ronald Reagan

“RoboCop” (1987)

In office from 1981 to ‘89, former actor Ronald Regan defined the 80s with his economic ideals and conservative values taking hold of the nation. His policies, which drove income inequality and corporate greed, were reflected in films like “Wall Street,” which famously coined the phrase, “Greed is good.” However, the films of the 80s were louder, more violent, and action driven than the largely auteur New Hollywood films of the 70’s. The decade was perfectly summed up in the hyper violent “Robocop,” with its condemnation of Reaganomics, corporate greed, gentrification, and police overreach. However, its perfect satire and political commentary were far from the only thing it had going for it; “Robocop” was one of the best and bloodiest action films of the decade.

George H. W. Bush

“Do the Right Thing” (1989)

Unlike “In the Heat of the Night,” set in the rural south, “Do the Right Thing” focused on racial tension and inequality in a major metropolitan area, New York City. Spike Lee’s film, which also saw the director in the lead role, focused on the strain between black and Italian-American residents on the hottest day of the year. The tension and tragedy seen in the film reflected circumstances for many Americans in large cities that had to deal with gentrification, racism, and police brutality that were intensified by Bush Sr. keeping policies in line with his predecessor. Life would imitate art later in Bush’s term when, after Rodney King was killed and officers using excessive force were acquitted, riots erupted in Los Angeles.

Bill Clinton

“The Truman Show” (1998)

Thanks to the recent rise of reality TV and the early days of internet access, distorted information was on the rise during the Clinton years. People began to question if what they were seen and told could be believed and a number of films in the late 90s ran with that theme. Many featured men questioning the seemingly idyllic suburban life around them, and none did this more perfectly than “The Truman Show.” Living his entire life as the star of a reality TV show he wasn’t aware existed, the film chronicles Truman’s search for the truth. While being a grounded critique of the time’s media landscape it’s also an existential journey about self-discovery, religion, consumerism, and so much more.

George W. Bush

“Zodiac” (2007)

No president’s tenure was as defined by a single day as George W. Bush’s was by September 11th, 2001. The events of that day and the response to it defined the nation during Bush’s two terms. Bush’s war on terror saw the country grappling with an enemy that was nebulous and with an ideology for inflicting violence that they did not understand. Despite being set decades earlier, the hunt for the nefarious serial killer, known only as the Zodiac, showed the paranoia and obsession the country experienced. “Zodiac” featured a talented ensemble cast, headed by Jake Gyllenhaal in a career defining role as Robert Graysmith. The film details Graysmith falling further into his single-minded desire to catch the killer as the world largely moved on.

Barack Obama

“The Social Network” (2010)

By the 2008 presidential election, the media landscape had changed forever, and Obama’s willingness to utilize social media paid dividends for him. Thanks in large part to he and his team building engagement on sites like Twitter and, of course, Facebook, he captured the primary and eventually the general election. The way we engaged with not just politics but other people had changed forever as a result of these social media sites. Thus, “The Social Netweork,” became a defining film of the era, not just because of how it chronicled the rise of Facebook. It also showed how people started to see each other by telling a story of betrayal, the rise of tech bros, and the cult of personality that dominated those spaces.

Donald Trump (1st Term)

“Get Out” (2017)

Released just weeks into Trump’s initial term, “Get Out” captured the fear and unease that many, particularly minorities, felt. However, the horror film was not simply critical of conservatives, but of progressives and white liberals seeking to commodify and use black bodies. With elements of body horror and psychological thriller, it followed a black man, Chris, visiting his white girlfriend’s family, where he was in danger of losing his identity and becoming a prisoner in his own body. The original ending, where Chris was arrested, was even changed. Director Jordan Peele realized it was truer, but that audiences needed a little hope with a happy ending.

Joe Biden

“Oppenheimer” (2023)

Chronicling the life of J. Robert Oppenheimer, the man who helped create the atomic bomb, Christopher Nolan’s epic was powerful and harrowing. The film is non-chronological, alternating between the exciting and hopeful time in Oppenheimer’s life, and the hearings years later where he was stymied by bureaucracy. Those elements were reflective of a country that was embracing science in order to claw its way out of a pandemic, but that was met with challenges from those acting in bad faith. While initially hopeful that his life’s work had prevented evil, the film ends with a sense of dread for Oppenheimer, that something even worse was coming, a feeling familiar to many who saw what was on the horizon for US politics.

Donald Trump (2nd Term)

“One Battle After Another” (2025)

Almost immediately, Donald Trump's return to the presidency was marked by seemingly endless attempts at an expansion of executive power alongside mass deportations. “One Battle After Another” is about those resisting the overreach and oppression of the administration, as a washed up revolutionary and his daughter are targeted. As military troops led by a would be white supremacist leader descend on a sanctuary city, aggressively agitating and kidnapping people to cover their own agenda, the people fight back. It accurately portrays the power grabs and abuses of current times as well as the spirit of those fighting back, while being one of the best action thrillers in years.

Which films do you think perfectly described these presidential terms? Let us know in the comments below!