James Carville strengthens his tenacity by repeatedly watching The Bridge on the River Kwai.

At 80, political strategist and author James Carville shows no signs of slowing down anytime soon. Notably, he managed several key Democratic campaigns before helping Bill Clinton secure the presidency in 1992. Since then, he has been a fixture on cable news as a political pundit. He is also the co-host of the podcast War room politics along with journalist Al Hunt. And you can get a lot more insight into what makes him tick in Matt Tyrnauer’s new documentary. Carville: Winning is everything, stupid. The film highlights Carville’s significant behind-the-scenes role in the Democratic Party and his influence on this year’s presidential campaign.

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In his “Treat,” Carville explains why he watches the opening of the classic 1957 film. Bridge over the River Kwai almost every night. The film won several Oscars, including Best Director for David Lean and Best Actor for star Alec Guinness. The epic war film is based on Pierre Boulle’s 1952 novel and follows British prisoners of war who are forced to build a railway bridge for their Japanese captors in occupied Burma. Colonel Nicholson, played by Alec Guinness, stands out as a defiant figure who embodies the spirit of resistance that resonates with Carville. He says the film inspires him because it shows that no one can own you—circumstances be damned.

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This segment has been edited and condensed for clarity.

Almost every evening I watch the opening Bridge over the River Kwai. And why am I doing this? Because of the defiance on (Colonel) Nicholson’s face and the altercation between (him) and the commandant. You just look at it and say, “This motherfucker doesn’t give up, man, he’s defiant.” And I just always liked it. You know, I loved the theme, it was written by British soldiers, but it (essentially said) “you don’t own me.”.

I’ve probably seen this I don’t know how many times, but that opening scene for me was… you don’t own me. You may have all the power in the world over me, but you don’t own me. And I mean, if you think about real people who changed the world… Nicholson (the character) was a cranky old upper-class British guy, but he really had the same real defiance that people have, and that’s inspiring to me.

You know a movie is good if you’re 20% on the other side. You didn’t really hate this guy. He just did it, there was a lot of pressure on him from Tokyo. He needed to build a bridge. He had to, you know, he was afraid. You could just see that it was a very human thing.

The reason I was inspired is because no matter where you are, how much crap you’ve put up with, how much power you have over you, there are certain people who are just sassy. That’s what this movie said to me.