Thursday, January 7, 2010

Enron: The Smartest Guys In The Room - 2005 - 4 Stars

Director: Alex Jibney

Financial manipulation of the sort that Enron specialized in calls to mind two thoughts - A: How could these people be so greedy, self-centered, hubristic, etc. to think they would get away with it? and B: Wow, these ideas are kind of brilliant and it's really a shame this actually happened to people. Enron: The Smartest Guys In The Room kicks off in shaggy-dog, pandering fashion, only to morph into a tight exploration of Enron's rise and fall. The combination of arrogance, hucksterism, and callousness demonstrated by Enron executives and traders turn out to be a ripping yarn - that again, actually happened to people.

The most prophetic words come at the end of the film, when it is warned that this will happen again. Perhaps not A+ propheting, I suppose, but still resonating.

2 comments:

  1. I've been wanting to watch more documentaries for a while. This seems like a good place to start.

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  2. I saw this film about 2 months ago. What really fascinated me was Skillings. To watch him lie over and over and bend the truth was amazing. He lived in a kind of hazy-gray business world where everything would always be fine no matter what. I appreciated the study of him and his closest associates. The other character that really captured my attention was Lou Pai. What a mysterious, shady guy. I wonder if he left the company because he foresaw a downfall? Its likely.

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