It should be noted that I know next to nothing about the financial world other than to give the blanket statement, "The economy is bad." Why exactly? I'm not entirely sure but based on the public outrage and media coverage it has something to do with Wall Street execs living in their mansions using our money as toilet paper. Sound about right? Back in 2008 when it all came apart, I used to watch CNBC pretty frequently to watch the talking heads go in circles about who to blame, how to fix things and how they all saw it coming, which was kind of amusing to me because these same people were nowhere to be found before it all unraveled. I used to wonder what went on during those fateful days at Lehman Brothers and like firms when it all came crashing down. One moment everything is fine, the next everyone is in a panic when they see the writing on the wall. Margin Call is a film inspired by the current economic downturn that gives a behind the scenes look at an unnamed investment bank during the 24 hour period before the shit hits the fan.
The film begins with the mass firing of a bunch of employees at an unnamed firm including Eric Dale, who works in risk management. Before he goes he gives a USB drive of his work to his trusted employee Peter Sullivan with the warning, "Be careful." Burning the midnight oil, Peter finishes his former boss's work and realizes the firm is in deep trouble. The firm is neck deep in such high risk assets that even a modest dip would cause it to lose more money than the firm is even worth. From what I understand, this is the gist of what happened in 2008 as bank after bank suffered huge losses causing the economy to crash. A late night meeting of the upper brass takes place to try to figure out how to get out of this mess they created. Their solution is a quick fire sale of all these essentially worthless assets before the market catches on.
What is remarkable about Margin Call is that I didn't understand half of the stuff they were talking about yet I was completely absorbed in the story. The film is intelligent yet tries to be simple enough for the layman to understand. It is well written, well acted and entirely believable. I know a couple of people who work or have worked in the financial industry so I'll have to ask them about what they thought of the movie. For all I know they might think it's totally unrealistic or dumb but for a simpleton like me, I found it quite fascinating. (A good buddy of mine is a lawyer and now he can't watch any lawyer movie because they're all so flawed to him. It's sort of the same way with me and anything that involves poker. They're always horrible.)
The conflict of the film is in the ethical dilemma presented to the characters involved. How do you sell something that you know is worthless? And how do you cope with the fact that in doing so you will cause the market to crash? And the fact that they have soul sucking jobs centered around greed? My favorite scene is when Eric Dale, played by Stanley Tucci, reflects back on his career as an engineer. He once built a bridge that saved commuters x amount of miles each way. Multiply that by y number of cars that cross the bridge a day at z miles per hour over the past 22 years the bridge has been in service and he has saved over 1500 years of human life that would have otherwise been wasted sitting in car.
What helps the film greatly is its stellar cast. Each character brings something unique to the table, whether it is Kevin Spacey having issues with what the right thing to do is, Jeremy Irons as the sly CEO of the company who seems like a villain but is really just a business man making sure the company survives, Simon Baker as the cold ruthless boss, or Paul Bettany who makes no apologies for what people like him do. As much as people working on Wall Street are vilified, they are necessary if people want to continue living their comfortable lives in houses they can't afford and cars they shouldn't be driving.
I really enjoyed Margin Call. It is an interesting if not informative look at what might have gone on behind the scenes at one of the big name firms back in 2008. But again, take that with a grain of salt, because I don't know much about anything about the subject matter other than I was entertained.
Grade: B+
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