Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room
| Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room | |
|---|---|
Theatrical release poster
|
|
| Directed by | Alex Gibney |
| Produced by | Alex Gibney |
| Written by |
|
| Starring | |
| Narrated by | Peter Coyote |
| Music by | Matthew Hauser |
| Cinematography | Maryse Alberti |
| Edited by | Alison Ellwood |
|
Production
companies |
|
| Distributed by | Magnolia Pictures |
|
Release date
|
|
|
Running time
|
109 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $700,000 |
| Box office | $4.9 million |
Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room is a 2005 American documentary film based on the best-selling 2003 book of the same name by Fortune reporters Bethany McLean and Peter Elkind, a study of one of the largest business scandals in American history. McLean and Elkind are credited as writers of the film alongside the director, Alex Gibney.
The film examines the 2001 collapse of the Enron Corporation, which resulted in criminal trials for several of the company's top executives during the ensuing Enron scandal; it also shows the involvement of the Enron traders in the California electricity crisis. The film features interviews with McLean and Elkind, as well as former Enron executives and employees, stock analysts, reporters and the former Governor of California Gray Davis.
The film won the Independent Spirit Award for Best Documentary Feature and was nominated for Best Documentary Feature at the 78th Academy Awards in 2006.
The film begins with a profile of Kenneth Lay, who founded Enron in 1985. Two years after its founding, the company becomes embroiled in scandal after two traders begin betting on the oil markets, resulting in suspiciously consistent profits. One of the traders, Louis Borget, is also discovered to be diverting company money to offshore accounts. After auditors uncover their schemes, Lay encourages them to "keep making us millions". However, the traders are fired after it is revealed that they gambled away Enron's reserves; the company is narrowly saved from bankruptcy by the timely intervention of executive Mike Muckleroy, who managed to bluff the market long enough to recover Borget's trading losses and prevent a margin call. After these facts are brought to light, Lay denies having any knowledge of wrongdoing.
...
Wikipedia