Movie Review We Were Soldiers Once
Movie Review: We Were Soldiers Once Angela Lewis Student ID# 5849
Mountain State University, GIDS 504
Dr. Kenneth Miller
There is a plethora of exemplary leadership examples depicted in the movie entitled We Were Soldiers Once. Mel Gibson was brilliant in his leading role as Lt. Colonel Hal Moore who led his brigade into battle in Vietnam by being and doing exactly what he expected of his troops. He led by example. He modeled the way. He also exemplified the same leadership qualities portrayed on the battlefield in his roles as father and husband. Not only did Moore signify leadership qualities in his roles, but he expressed his commitment to leadership at all levels of his battalion by delegating that responsibility to all his soldiers. He was not afraid of enlisting others. He told them “every one of you will learn the job of the man over you and every one of you will teach the man under you your job.” (Moore, Galloway, & Wallace, 2002) This demonstrated his understanding of enabling and empowering people to do their job well. Exemplary leaders should always enable and empower their subordinates. Enabling subordinates causes them to take initiative in times of uncertainty which is often experienced in war and it also fosters collaboration within an organization. This is a key element to successful leadership regardless of the endeavor. Collaboration builds confidence and establishes trust. Colonel Moore was able to establish trust from his men on many occasions but particularly when he followed through on the promise made during his pre-deployment speech when he stated “when we go into battle, I will be the first step foot on the field and I will be the last to step off and I will leave no one behind. Dead or alive, we will all come home together.” He was truly a leader of leaders. Colonel Moore modeled the way or led from the front which is exactly what it took to build cohesive teams and lead his platoon to a successful outcome
Mountain State University, GIDS 504
Dr. Kenneth Miller
There is a plethora of exemplary leadership examples depicted in the movie entitled We Were Soldiers Once. Mel Gibson was brilliant in his leading role as Lt. Colonel Hal Moore who led his brigade into battle in Vietnam by being and doing exactly what he expected of his troops. He led by example. He modeled the way. He also exemplified the same leadership qualities portrayed on the battlefield in his roles as father and husband. Not only did Moore signify leadership qualities in his roles, but he expressed his commitment to leadership at all levels of his battalion by delegating that responsibility to all his soldiers. He was not afraid of enlisting others. He told them “every one of you will learn the job of the man over you and every one of you will teach the man under you your job.” (Moore, Galloway, & Wallace, 2002) This demonstrated his understanding of enabling and empowering people to do their job well. Exemplary leaders should always enable and empower their subordinates. Enabling subordinates causes them to take initiative in times of uncertainty which is often experienced in war and it also fosters collaboration within an organization. This is a key element to successful leadership regardless of the endeavor. Collaboration builds confidence and establishes trust. Colonel Moore was able to establish trust from his men on many occasions but particularly when he followed through on the promise made during his pre-deployment speech when he stated “when we go into battle, I will be the first step foot on the field and I will be the last to step off and I will leave no one behind. Dead or alive, we will all come home together.” He was truly a leader of leaders. Colonel Moore modeled the way or led from the front which is exactly what it took to build cohesive teams and lead his platoon to a successful outcome
Cited: Hesselbein, F., & Shinseki, E. K. (2004). Be, Know, Do. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Schmidt, A. L., Lemley, J. (Producers), Moore, H., Galloway, J. L., Wallace, R. (Writers), & Wallace, R. (Director). (2002). We Were Soldiers Once and Young [Motion Picture]. Paramount Pictures.