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

A TV movie for the HBO network.

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Goofs

When the private jet takes off from Charlie Brown Airport, Atlanta (now Fulton County Airport) with only the dog on board (at around 33min into the film), the runway is clearly marked "12L". There is no such runway at that airport (the three runways are 8/26, 14/32 and 9/27). In addition, the use of "L" indicates there is more than one runway with the same bearing, suggesting a larger airport.

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Quotes

1st Scientist: If you light a Premier with a match instead of with a lighter the sulphur reacts badly with the carbon in the tip.
F. Ross Johnson: Do we have to have the carbon?
1st Scientist: That's what makes it smokeless.
F. Ross Johnson: Well how we get it shitless?

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Connections

Featured in At the Movies: Point of No Return/CB4/Fire in the Sky/Barbarians at the Gate/Il Lardo Di Bambini (1993)

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Soundtracks

Make That Move
Performed by Shalamar
Written by William Shelby, Kevin Spencer, Ricky Smith

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!