Inside Job (2010)

Takes a closer look at what brought about the financial meltdown.

Director:

Charles Ferguson

Writers:

Charles Ferguson, Chad Beck,

Stars:

Matt Damon, William Ackman, Daniel Alpert

Won 1 Oscar. Another 7 wins & 16 nominations.

Cast

Credited cast:
Matt Damon	...	Narrator (voice)
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
William Ackman	...	Himself
Daniel Alpert	...	Himself
Jonathan Alpert	...	Himself
Sigridur Benediktsdottir	...	Herself
Ben Bernanke	...	Himself (archive footage)
Willem Buiter	...	Himself
George W. Bush	...	Himself (archive footage)
John Campbell	...	Himself
Patrick Daniel	...	Himself
Satyajit Das	...	Himself
Kristin Davis	...	Herself
Martin Feldstein	...	Himself
Jerome Fons	...	Himself
Barney Frank	...	Himself

Storyline

'Inside Job' provides a comprehensive analysis of the global financial crisis of 2008, which at a cost over $20 trillion, caused millions of people to lose their jobs and homes in the worst recession since the Great Depression, and nearly resulted in a global financial collapse. Through exhaustive research and extensive interviews with key financial insiders, politicians, journalists, and academics, the film traces the rise of a rogue industry which has corrupted politics, regulation, and academia. It was made on location in the United States, Iceland, England, France, Singapore, and China.

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Plot Keywords:

iceland | recession | interview | reagan era | morgan stanley | 

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Taglines:

The global economic crisis of 2008 cost tens of millions of people their savings, their jobs, and their homes. This is how it happened.

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Genres:

Documentary | Crime

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for some drug and sex-related material

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

2 February 2010 (Belgium)

Also Known As:

Bennfentesek

Filming Locations:

China

Box Office

Opening Weekend:

£70,375 (UK) (18 February 2011)

Gross:

$4,311,834 (USA) (29 April 2011)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Representational Pictures, Sony Pictures Classics

Technical Specs

Runtime:

105 min

Sound Mix:

SDDS DTS Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

In an unusual pairing of supporter and subject matter, Jeffrey Lurie - owner of the NFL's Philadelphia Eagles franchise - was one of this Oscar-winning documentary's executive producers.

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Goofs

The first time Paul Volcker's last name is shown it is written "Vocker".

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Quotes

David McCormick: [not knowing how to answer the interviewer] Could we... could we turn this off for a second?

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Connections

Featured in Stop Accepting Nonsense: Ally Bank Commercial Remix (2011)

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Soundtracks

"Congratulations"
Written by Ben Goldwasser & Andrew VanWyngarden
Performed by MGMT
Courtesy of Columbia Records
By Arrangement with Sony Music Licensing

User Reviews

Jerks and Suckers

It was the last thing I wanted to see as the holiday Season sets off: A documentary explaining the World wide economic depression. But it was probably something I should have put before, say, "Burlesque." This is a serious film that has no particular political axe to grind in terms of "Republican" vs. "Democrat" since each successive administration beginning with Ronald Reagan is thrashed for bowing down to Wall Street rather than protecting American citizens from the most immoral graft and greed, that I can remember in my 60 years as a U.S. Citizen. While it's true that "deregulation" is the hue and cry of one particular political party, what occurs with investment and banking firms is so entwined with our national representatives, that it does no good whatsoever to point fingers at one party.

The film opens with the simplest explanation of the impact of investment banking firms in the tiny country of Iceland. When investors move in and create a financial "bubble" for the sole purpose of letting it burst while taking off with enormous profits for themselves, the opening credits then start and introduce us to the players who would come to power with Reagan (Volker and Greenspan) and remove restrictions that had been put in place—we should all remember for good reason; regulations were set up because people had abused an open market—we see the rise and fall of the U.S. economy which became based on nothing but investment since all our "production" had been poorly managed and sent abroad, i.e. steel, automobiles, etc. What was left was goods and services and a tiny, though prosperous, "information technology." When Reagan gutted regulation and regulatory agencies, a system of credit developed where finance agencies sold risky loans to entities, and at the same time "bet" on those loans to fail, setting up a situation that the more risky the loan, the bigger the profit for lender. Various "talking heads" and bar graphs come across the screen, and they're all helpful in explaining what happened. But it's the deeply amoral points of view that get stated by people who were or are still in control of the financial banks and markets of this country that really appall.

And we're left with a sense of outrage and not more than a little sense of futility because there's nowhere to go for either compensation or redress. At the end of the film "Fair Game" about another kind of government takeover, we're given a civic's speech about how the country belongs to the people and it's up to us to make it work. Here, in "Inside Job" there's nothing anyone can do. We elected a president who was sent to prevent the problem from happening again, but instead he appoints many of the same people who set up the situation and profited from the first round.

I didn't find the small section of the film describing the "type A" personality of the players involved who use prostitutes and drugs to be either relevant or convincing. We see a former call girl allude to many in the financial world, but so what? There's a small dig at Elliot Spitzer, but he offers it himself. As well, we're given a psychiatrist who "can't reveal names" but can say for certain many in the financial industry are addicted to drugs and prostitutes, but so are many outside that world. It came across as a cheap shot in a film that brings forward many significant players (and names many who refused to appear in the film) and exposes them for what they are. They need no further tarnishing.

I did see one area that could be addressed as a beginning of reform. Various economic professors who are brought from institutions of higher learning to "advise" the government and then return to their teaching jobs aren't—for baffling reasons—prohibited from making profit off the policies they recommend. That needs to be stopped. In most disciplines, university professors can't use their research and publications for personal gain. Those in the field of economics need the same kinds of restrictions. And students should demand it.

We should all demand a lot more than we're getting from our government, but I guess we hope we're going to be one of the few to reap those enormous profits (which is a real sucker's bet). It's baffling and infuriating to watch this film and walk out into the light of day where the practices on display are still going on.