If we’re looking at movies that might influence today’s new U.S. President Barack Obama, it’s rather worrisome to note that his favorite movie is The Godfather. Hoping that Obama doesn’t turn out like Don Vito Corleone, those tireless film archivists at Future of Classic have parsed their DVD libraries for movie presidents whose onscreen behavior might influence the incoming president positively. We disagree with some of their picks, as you will learn below, but we love the idea. Here, then, are Future of Classic’s 5 Model Movie Presidents.

1. President Tom Beck (Morgan Freeman in Deep Impact, 1998)

Steadfast in the face of disaster, Freeman brought some reserved class to the White House just as the real place was swarming with sex scandals. He was honest and trusting about the impending disaster (a comet hurtling towards Earth), whereas our leaders have tended lately to not warn us until we were already underwater. Beck teaches to be honest with and have faith in the sane behavior of his people.

2. President Thomas J. Whitmore (Bill Pullman in Independence Day, 1996)

We don’t completely agree with this pick, but that might have to do with the film’s politics as a whole as much as its president’s wimpy, insulated behavior. On the one hand he makes the unbearable speech, on the other hand he hops in a fighter jet to take on the aliens alongside African-Americans and Middle-Americans, so he can’t be that bad right? The message provided here must be something about times for action versus times for talking, and knowing which is which.

3. President Bennett (Donald Moffat in Clear and Present Danger, 1994)

In a kind of contemporary Cuban Missile Crisis, this president is beset on all sides with policy and intelligence people pushing and prodding with information and agendas. Bad things happen, and we come out wishing people could set aside their self-serving interests for the greater good. For Obama and his team, President Bennett highlights the importance knowing one’s colleagues and cabinet members, and of being able to anticipate their biases.

4. President Merkin Muffley (Peter Sellers in Dr. Strangelove, 1964)

At the height of the film’s tensions, President Muffley speaks to the Russian President Dimitri, underlining the importance of being able to cut through conflicting national cultures and political traditions in times of crisis. A useful lesson in these crisis-riddled times.

5. President Bill Mitchell (Kevin Kline in Dave, 1993)

This entry should be seeded higher, as its plot involving a newcomer who steps in for a president in a coma is quite similar to what’s happening today: an energetic administration taking over from what that’s dead in the head. At film’s end, the stand-in President Mitchell is perfectly willing to cede power, adding a touch of humility and maturity to our often ugly political culture.

Strangely Absent: President Jackson Evans (Jeff Bridges in The Contender, 2000)

Though given props in the “honorable mentions” category, Bridges should be nearer the top for this mostly terrific president. When political opponents pile up sexist accusations against his VP candidate (Joan Allen), he stands by her despite the Puritan moral police’s outrage and in the end she prevails. The fact that he has to know the truth behind the media circus in the final scene is an unfortunate ending, but also a potent reminder that socialized sexism reaches all the way to the nation’s top job.

President James Dale (Jack Nicholson in Mars Attacks!, 1996)

Staying optimistic, personable and friendly in the face of global devastation and an unstoppable interplanetary invasion, President Dale offers the lesson of manners and calm under extreme stress. Of course, he’s killed moments after the clip above ends, but the message is still valid.

Was your favorite vote for best movie president left out? Let us know below.