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Title: The Laundromat (2019)
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| Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
| Gary Oldman | ... | Jürgen Mossack | |
| Antonio Banderas | ... | Ramón Fonseca | |
| AJ Meijer | ... | Hominid #1 | |
| Arsenio Castellanos | ... | Hominid #2 | |
| Lucy Morningstar | ... | Hominid #3 | |
| Meryl Streep | ... | Ellen Martin | |
| James Cromwell | ... | Joe Martin | |
| Jeff Michalski | ... | Norm Sidley | |
| Jane Morris | ... | Barb Sidley | |
| Robert Patrick | ... | Captain Paris | |
| Chris McLaughlin | ... | First Mate | |
| Jay Paulson | ... | Pastor Conners | |
| Melissa Rauch | ... | Melanie | |
| Juliet Donenfeld | ... | Thalia | |
| Brock Brenner | ... | Kaylen | |
When her idyllic vacation takes an unthinkable turn, Ellen Martin (Meryl Streep) begins investigating a fake insurance policy, only to find herself down a rabbit hole of questionable dealings that can be linked to a Panama City law firm and its vested interest in helping the world's wealthiest citizens amass larger fortunes. Founding partners Jürgen Mossack (Gary Oldman) and Ramón Fonseca (Antonio Banderas) are experts in the seductive ways shell companies and offshore accounts help the rich and powerful prosper. They are about to show us that Ellen's predicament only hints at the tax evasion, bribery and other illicit absurdities that the super wealthy indulge in to support the world's corrupt financial system. Zipping through a kaleidoscope of detours in China, Mexico, Africa (via Los Angeles) and the Caribbean en route to 2016's Panama Papers publication - where journalists leaked the secret, encrypted documents of Mossack Fonseca's high-profile patrons - THE LAUNDROMAT's ensemble ... Written by Netflix
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I would say that The Laundromat is a no-holds-barred look into the very REAL Panama Papers scandal, but that would be a lie, as it actually does hold back A LOT and does not delve deeply enough into detailing much of the corruption which ensued then, and which still exists today.
For those unfamiliar with the "Panama Papers" scandal, in 2016, a whistle-blower released over 11 MILLION documents from the law firm Mossack & Fonseca (just ONE of the law firms involved in this kind of business), which detailed almost every aspect regarding the structure and practices of the shell companies which are used by some of the world's richest people in order to avoid paying taxes. This film, while presenting much of the story, fails to present all of it. One of the things the film did NOT cover, was what happened to journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia, who first broke the story.
I believe that one of the reasons Soderbergh chose to not cover that part, and other equally disturbing aspects of the scandal, was that he wanted to present a film which would speak in almost lighthearted (if such a thing can even be done on this topic) and simplistic terms that most anyone could understand. As such, the film is presented as mostly comedy, which to me, is both unfortunate and genius. I mean, how best to swallow a bitter, but necessary pill, than to camouflage it with chocolate? While the chocolate in no way makes the pill less effective, it does help it go down easier. In the same manner, what was presented, although not complete, is in no way false. The only falsehoods, come from those who choose to lie to themselves, and to others, by thinking and propagating the thought that presenting these truths is somehow meant to demean them or their political party. These individuals should ask themselves: if your political party needs to be defended from simple truth, facts, data and documentation, how believable, honorable or strong is it to begin with?
Lastly, I am not a "shill", I do not work for the film or anyone associated with it; I gain nothing from this or any other review; nor do I really care if anyone believes me. What I do care about is that due to emotional cry-baby attitudes and just plain ignorance, the truth is being silenced more and more, not just on IMDB, but across several platforms. I care that it is truly a tragedy, travesty and sin when ill-informed people CHOOSE to STAY ill-informed. I care about the absurdity of ill-informed people doubling-down and trying to manipulate ratings (such as is the case here) in order to try and sway other such people to also remain ill-informed. WHO in their right minds would choose misinformation for themselves when a vast plethora of information is readily available to us (now more than at any other time in the history of the world). When you think about it, choosing to remain uninformed seems almost unnatural in today's world. The term: "educate yourselves" should not be seen as an insult. This film does that, whether the viewer wants it or not.