Margin Call

Mr E

Due for limited release this week in the States (which is odd considering the stellar cast), but I really hope this makes it over here...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GTfUENx6uRs

JP Liz V1

I hope Spacey's role is good in this

mikemac

Superb

Great cast in it, Jeremy Irons, Stanley Tucci, Simon Baker, Kevin Spacey and others

Builds up excellently and shows the decisions they had to make
There's also a buildup to when the big boss arrives.

And of course, the departments trying to hang each other to save themselves

Seems to be a joke in the film that the higher up you go the less the bosses know. But that's true too I suppose, the top brass don't concern themselves with technical details and look to the overall picture.
What music is playing at the time as it's put

Jeremy Irons was star of the show for me
Paul Bettany works in a bit of a speech about how "ordinary people" would crucify the bankers for what they did and being reckless but they weren't complaining when mortgages and home-buying become open to them. Hmmm, would get you thinking

Like The Social Network it's the kind of film that you'd wonder how they'd write a great script for it but they managed it here

Loved it

craftypaddy

liked it but very slow

Gandalph

I really enjoyed this film, it was pretty tense and I agree with mikemac about each boss being more clueless than the last. Had to watch it online because I couldnt find anything about it in the cinema or going straight to DVD or that.

I couldnt take Spock (zachary quinto) seriously because of the previous role in star trek, he looked like he had a big uni brow.

starbelgrade

A decent film about the dealings of investment banks during a financial meltdown.. a good insight (of sorts) into how big business operates & ultimately screws everyone all for the sake of money.

It reminded me quite a lot of John Wells "The Company Men". It had less heart to it though & more of the hard edge of the likes of "Glengarry Glen Ross" with less likeable characters than Wells' film. Not necessarily a bad thing though, as "The Company Men" was a tad too Hollywood with it's "all ends well" ending, while "Margin Call" pulls no such tricks.

An excellent cast - Jeremy Irons is particularly good in it, while two actors previously known for their TV acting - Simon Baker (The Mentalist) & Zachary Quinto (Heros) - make a good transition to the big screen.

While there's not a lot to like about the subject matter of the film, or even the people it happens to, it's still manages to be a tense & engaging film throughout.

jc84

Good film, brilliant cast but found it a bit slow

Mike Litoris

Film of the year for me. Was totally engrosed from the start and didn't find it slow at all. Acting was superb by all. Reminds me of All the Presidents Men for some reason.

Both deserve repeat viewing over the weekend!:cool:

Retro Police

Went to see this today and loved it. I wasn't sure what to expect because the story sounds like a difficult one to try and portray on the big screen but it's done superbly. I expected something similar to The Company Men but it's miles ahead of it in my opinion. The pace and style is very pleasing.

The story provides a platform for some excellent performances. Irons undoubtedy stood head and shoulders above the rest but Bettany really surprised me, I thought he was great. Those who have the chance should definitely try and see it.

johnny_ultimate

Watched this there and really enjoyed it. I'm not always a fan of 'talky' scripts, but this is certainly compelling, and the performances are uniformly excellent. The characters weren't one-dimensional stereotypes (barring, perhaps, Irons: a good performance but the most basic in terms of characterisation) so it wasn't a simplistic 'big business is evil' deal, even though it has no qualms in proclaiming that yes, big business is occasionally evil :P I'd be lying if I said I fully understood the cataclysm faced by the characters, but the basic gist is easy to pick up, and everyone's reactions to the complex algebraic discovery speaks volumes.

If I had one problem it was that the RED cinematography occasionally made it look like a somewhat uncomfortable cross between film and television. It was a small concern, and there were definitely some slick moments throughout. An enjoyable and pacy thriller that doesn't condescend.

charlie_says

Good cast and a high quality script. Thankfully didn't have any extremely boisterous behavior from annoying 20 something traders. A very decent watch.

Sell it all!