Barbarians at the Gate (1993)

The president of a major tobacco company decides to buy the company himself, but a bidding war ensues as other companies make their own offers.

Director:

Glenn Jordan

Writers:

Bryan Burrough (book), John Helyar (book)

Stars:

James Garner, Jonathan Pryce, Peter Riegert

Won 2 Golden Globes. Another 6 wins & 16 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
James Garner	...	F. Ross Johnson
Jonathan Pryce	...	Henry Kravis
Peter Riegert	...	Peter Cohen
Joanna Cassidy	...	Linda Robinson
Fred Dalton Thompson	...	Jim Robinson
Leilani Sarelle	...	Laurie Johnson
Matt Clark	...	Edward A. Horrigan Jr.
Jeffrey DeMunn	...	H. John Greeniaus
David Rasche	...	Ted Forstmann
Tom Aldredge	...	Charlie Hugel
Graham Beckel	...	Don Kelly
Peter Dvorsky	...	George Roberts
Peter Frechette	...	Robert Allegro
Judy Altman	...	Robinson's Aide
Bruce Beatty	...	Anthony the Pizza Man

Storyline

F. Ross Johnson, the CEO of RJR Nabisco decides that the time is ripe to take over his own company and enlists American Express. This kicks off a tide of other firms swarming in to tender offers. The outline of the film follows the actual takeover of the RJR Nabisco empire in a tongue in cheek way.

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Plot Keywords:

multi millionaire | market research | tobacco | wall street manhattan new york city | cigarette smoking | 

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Taglines:

In the 80's Wall Street had fun at your expense. Now it's time for you to have the last laugh.

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Genres:

Biography | Comedy | Drama

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

20 March 1993 (USA)

Also Known As:

Barbarians at the Gate

Company Credits

Production Co:

HBO Films, Columbia Pictures Television, Rastar Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

107 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

At the golf course, Ross mentions giving away free Gucci watches and Polaroids. James Garner, who plays Ross, starred in Polaroid's TV commercials in the 70s and 80s.

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Goofs

The film is set in 1988, but a post-1991 Chevrolet Caprice taxi is visible during a street scene.

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Quotes

F. Ross Johnson: And what the hell's wrong with the draw? You need an extra set of lungs just to take a drag.
1st Scientist: It is a little difficult.
F. Ross Johnson: A little difficult?
2nd Scientist: It's what we call the 'hernia effect'.
F. Ross Johnson: Is that's what we call it? Well there's another great billboard for you. What do we do, give away a truss with every pack? WARNING - this cigarette can tear your balls off!
Edward A. Horrigan Jr.: Their not so bad.
F. Ross Johnson: Stop jerking off Ed. Who the hell would sneak into a john to smoke one of these. Wherever you light one up you're in the shit ...

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Connections

Featured in M*A*S*H, Tootsie & God: A Tribute to Larry Gelbart (1998)

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Soundtracks

Mo Money
Written by Chuck Cymone, Cassandra Reed, Kimberly Wallace

User Reviews

Spot On!

I don't know if there's been a more perfect made-for-TV movie than this one! If you've ever been involved in a corporate takeover, and I have, you know how perfect this film is. This was the largest corporate takeover in history at the time and the personalities involved are no different today than they were back then. In fact, many of them, particularly Henry Kravis, are still involved in this sort of thing. (I wouldn't want to have to go up against Kravis in a takeover, as few have ever won when KKR was in the mix.) One other reviewer said this film was the "zenith of greed" and it was in the '80s but this sort of greed is exactly what has led to the downfall of Wall Street here in the late-'2000s too! James Garner is perfect in this film, as he is in most anything he acts in, and he truly steals this film from the other actors. Jonathan Pryce is exactly what Henry Kravis is, conniving, brilliant and evil. What really makes this worth watching is the writing skill of Larry Gelbart - a real genius at verbal machinations of all sorts. My favorite line from the film is about the "healthy" cigarette and James Garner delivers! "This cigarette tastes like a turd!" - still cracks me up! If you haven't seen this film, please do sit back and enjoy a priceless bit of entertainment. If you haven't read the book, please find it and read it. Both the film and the book are worth every minute you will spend!