The American Ruling Class (2005)

User Rating:

6.2/10   

Director:

John Kirby

Writer:

Lewis Lapham (written by)

Release Date:

1 March 2007 (USA)

Genre:

Documentary | Music

Tagline:

America Rules the World! But Who Rules America?

Plot:

In this first of its kind "dramatic-documentary-musical", Lewis Lapham takes two young Ivy-League graduates on a tour of the corridors of power. The novice careerists must decide: should they seek to rule the world, or to save it? |

Plot Keywords:

Elite | Politics | Economics | American Ruling Class | Career Guidance

Cast

Robert Altman	...	Himself
James Baker III	...	Himself - Frm. Secretary of State
Bill Bradley	...	Fmr. U.S. Senator
Harold Brown	...	Himself - Fmr. Sec. of Defense
Caton Burwell	...	Jack Bellamy
Paul Cantagallo	...	Mike Vanzetti
Hodding Carter III	...	Himself - Fmr. State Dept. Spokesman
William T. Coleman	...	Himself - Fmr. Sec. of Commerce
Walter Cronkite	...	Himself - Fmr. CBS News Anchorman
Barbara Ehrenreich	...	Herself - Journalist
Vartan Gregorian	...	Himself - President Carnegie Corporation
Doug Henwood	...	Himself - economic essayist
Lewis Lapham	...	Himself - Fmr. editor Harper's Magazine
Mike Medavoy	...	Himself
Joseph S. Nye	...	Fmr. Acting Sec. of Def.
John Perkins	...	Himself - 'The Economic Hitman'
Michael Rainin	...	Blues Harmonica Player
Pete Seeger	...	Himself - Folksinger
Jessica Silver-Greenberg	...	Taylor Meade
Arthur Sulzberger	...	Himself - Chairman, New York Times Company
Lawrence H. Summers	...	Fmr. Pres. - Harvard U. - Cheif Econ. - World Bank
Kurt Vonnegut Jr.	...	Himself - Novelist
Hollis Witherspoon	...	Emily Gann
Howard Zinn	...	Himself - U.S. Historian

Runtime:

88 min

Country:

UK | USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Certification:

USA:Unrated

Unlike anything you've ever seen before...biting satirical call to reform

This film is a must see for recent college grads or really anyone trying to figure out their place in this world. This film is truly a marvel...not only does it transcend neat classifications, "documentary," "drama," "musical" (of which it is all three) it elevates the subject matter-what are the social responsibilities and realities for those to whom much is given?- to a call for a generation to re-examine their blind ambition and think of the world their actions are creating. This film grapples, as many of us do, with the trade-offs between doing the things you love or that will benefits those around you, and ascending the ladder of success and fortune.

What is truly remarkable about this film is how effectively it uses satire to drive home its point. It resists condescension and engages the audience as intelligent, thinking beings. (finally!) A tour of affluence and influence in America, it sports a cast of very interesting and accomplished people. The "actors" - in a Q&A with the director we learned that the kids were not trained actors but actually recent Harvard and Princeton grads - delivered honest performances. Not to mention the fact that Lewis Lapham is a riot. I would be remiss if I failed to mention that there is stunning fusion of the message of the film with the film's musical numbers.

Well done, original and powerful.