Donald Trumpis a lot of things to a lot of people. Obviously, we’re putting things lightly. A business mogul turned powerful politician, Donald Trump’s term as 45th President of the United States has certainly rocked the cultural landscape of the United States, with plenty of ripples found throughout all facets of its pop culture. Of course, his brief time in office has also sparked plenty of controversy as well. A total offour concurrent indictmentshave been filed against Trump as of writing, with charges including the obstruction of official proceedings, concealing documents, falsifying records, and even a potential charge related to the Georgia RICO Act.
Obviously, we’re not here to pick sides: we’re here to talk about movies. Regardless of where you fall on the political spectrum, we found ourselves revisiting some of Trump’s favorite movies amid the media frenzy. Suffice it to say, some of Trump’s picks hit a bit differently in light of his recent legal troubles. Here are just a few of Trump’s favorite films and how they present an interesting form of irony given the current circumstances.
Trump and Goodfellas
We can’t fault Trump for likingGoodfellas. Chances are, if you ask anyone what theirfavorite Martin Scorsese movieis,Goodfellaswill outrank everything else by a wide margin. It’s funny, it’s dark, it’s memorable, and it’s even partially based on a true story.
Of course, the protagonist ofGoodfellas, Henry Hill, isn’t necessarily a “hero.” He’s pretty far from it, actually. Portrayed by the late Ray Liotta, Hill’s nefarious activities in the New York Mafia range from petty thievery and transporting stolen goods to flat-out murder. But while we’ll never forget to go home and get our shinebox, Hill’s gradual escalation into bigger and bigger crimes ultimately put him at the mercy of the law.
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While Trump hasn’t flushed thousands of dollars worth of cocaine down a toilet, like poor Henry Hill had to, some of his current indictments include charges that wouldn’t be out of place in a gangster movie. Falsified business records, a major charge found in the March 2023 indictment, would be the crux of Scorsese’s other major gangster film,Casino.
Trump’s comments on Truth Social about his current legal activities also remind us of another Scorsese movie. If you’ll recall, in Scorsese’sThe Irishman, infamous Teamsters' leader Jimmy Hoffa would be eventually pinched by the federal government on a charge of jury tampering, which came some time after the results of an election he too disagreed with.
Currently, the January 6 trial Trump is undergoing has led to the filing of a protective order to prevent the intimidation of witnesses and the disclosure of sensitive court materials. A similar issue has also presented itself with the Georgia indictment, as Trump directly mentioned that a specificwitness shouldn’t testify.
Trump and The Godfather
Speaking of gangster movies,The Godfatheris also purported to be a favorite of Trump’s. Based on the titular 1969 novel, this Francis Ford Coppola classic features Marlon Brando, Robert Duval, Al Pacino, and more in a chronicle of the Corleone mob family. It is classified as one of the greatest movies ever made and one whose influence can be felt in hundreds of productions since its release in 1972.
WithThe Godfatherbeing “the” mob movie, it’s interesting to note how the mob itself relates to one of Trump’s indictments. No, we’re not insinuating that Trump left a horse’s head in someone’s bed. Instead, the most recent charge coming out of Georgia’s 2023 indictment involves a statute originally developed by the federal government for tackling organized crime.
The Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, or RICO Act for short, has been utilized in a variety of sweeping legal cases ever since the 1970s, with applications made in instances of white-collar crime, fraud, and even political corruption. John Gotti and even the FIFA organization have been charged under the RICO Act at one point in time.
19 defendants are currently being charged inthe Georgia indictment, with one of the most prominent names attached being former Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani. What truly seals the connection betweenThe Godfatherand Trump is Giuliani himself, as Trump’s former legal counsel heavily utilized the federal version of the RICO Act in multiple cases against the New York mob throughout the 1980s. In a twist of fate, both Trump and Giuliani are now facing the Georgia state version of the RICO Act, which comes with some significant alterations from the federal RICO Act.
Trump and Citizen Kane
Another big favorite of Trump’s, and most film buffs in general, isCitizen Kane. A prototypical film for what wouldlead to modern filmmaking,Citizen Kanesees Orson Wells both directing and starring in a dramatic story told from multiple perspectives. When business mogul and newspaper giant Charles Foster Kane passes away, Kane’s friends and associates are interviewed to find meaning behind the last word he spoke prior to his death: “Rosebud.”
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The comparisons between both Trump and Kane are, at points, uncanny. Despite being painted as a tragic figure through flashbacks, Kane’s estranged marriage and ruthless business attitude cited by his colleagues do mirror the public view of Trump prior to his presidential bid.
If that wasn’t enough, Kane even attempted a political run later in his life, with the public backlash over an inter-marital affair ending his run for Governor of New York. Of course, we also have to mention how Kane handles his election loss. At Kane’s newspaper press, the editors are forced to print a headline they prepared should Kane have lost the election. The headline reads, “Charles Foster Kane Defeated,” underlined with the following phrase in bold lettering: “Fraud At Polls.”
These comparisons between Trump and Kane aren’t anything new. The parallels between the two have been noted from as early as 2016, a good while before the current political discourse surrounding Trump and his affiliates. Still, it seems as though the comparisons between the two have only ever become more prominent with time.
Frankly, a lot of Trump-related media feels strange to look back on in 2023. Chalk it up a variety of factors, be they growing political divisions or simple hindsight, but it all seems to hit a bit differently nowadays with everything that’s happened since their release. Even something as simple as a brief appearance inHome Alone 2can be interpreted in a different light.
Again, regardless of how you feel about the 45th President of the United States, there are certainly some interesting coincidences to be found between his current troubles and his favorite films.
