At least one person- the casting director on her latest movie- seems to think so. (Bonus follow-up: without knowing their strategies, who would you feel more comfortable putting your money with- fake hedge fund manager SJP or fake horse-breeder-turned-hedge-fund-manager Arnold Schwarzenegger?)
movies
If you watched the HBO version of Andrew Ross Sorkin’s book last week, what kind of tears did you shed while watching? Continue reading »
If you’ve been keeping up with your HBO original programming schedule, you know that Too Big To Fail, the movie based on Andrew Ross Sorkin’s 2009 book, airs next Monday evening. Last night was the premiere at the Museum of Modern Art and while the trailers looked promising, in order to make sure none of you wasted any of your precious time or DVR space in the event it wasn’t worth it, I attended to see how things turned out and report back. Warren Buffett did the same, though was initially met with some opposition at the door, in an encounter that went like this:
Door girls: Do you have your ticket?
Buffett: Uh…no…
Door girls: You need your tickets.
Buffett: Oh, uh…we were invited..
[One of Buffett's dates]: This is Warren Buffett.
[The group is seated]
Other people in attendance who did have their tickets, included but were not limited to: George Soros (with a entourage of lady friends), Meredith Whitney in a white pinstriped suit, Becky Quick, Rodgin Cohen, Regis Philbin, Michael Douglas and all the actors from the flick (William Hurt, Paul Giamatti, Billy Crudup, James Woods, Bill Pullman, Evan Handler, Tony Shalhoub, Matthew Modine, Ed Asner), though not all the real life people they portray (Jamie Dimon was getting ready for today’s JPM shareholder meeting in Ohio, Fuld was probably busy plotting his comeback).
The movie condenses Sorkin’s 539 page book into about 90 minutes and traces the slightly tense moments that were 2008 just after Bear Stearns was bought to the day Paulson locked the top bank CEO’s in a room and and forced them to accept his capital injections. William Hurt does a pretty badass Hank– who gets the most screen time by far– having spent a few days fishing with him in preparation for the role (during which one would hope HP described what it was like threatening to send Ken Lewis home in a body bag if he backed out of the Merrill Lynch deal). I liked it, you probably will too.** Now let’s get down to the nitty gritty. Continue reading »
Would Arnold Schwarzenegger Make A Convincing Kentucky Derby-Winning Horse Breeder Turned Hedge Fund Trader?
By Bess LevinWe’ll soon find out because a movie involving all that and more (depression, Mexico, murder) is actually being produced. Continue reading »
Who’s Got One “I Heart Ayn Rand” Neck Tattoo And A Good Chance Of Being Dragged Out Of The Theater Pee Wee Herman Style Tonight?
By Bess LevinGive you two guesses but you’ll only need one. Continue reading »
The following post is by Dealbreaker reader and commenter Infinite Guest.
“Margin Call” is not “Wall Street,” “Boiler Room,” or “Glengarry Glen Ross.” It’s not trying to be any of those. There are no fistfights, car chases or explosions. There are no dick jokes. Strippers, hookers and blow are alluded to, but remain off-screen. Despite the short time line and urgency of the situation, nobody races against a literal ticking clock. And the kind of person who hates “Star Wars” because sound doesn’t travel in a vacuum or who gave up on “Full Metal Jacket” when Pyle somehow managed to get a loaded gun off the range will not be able to sit through “Margin Call:” it requires some suspension of disbelief.
On the other hand, if you want to spend two hours reliving the feelings of despair and helplessness from 2008, this might just be your movie. Continue reading »
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