Barbarians at the Gate
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Movie Reviews of Barbarians at the Gate
Movie Review: 1980's Greed at its Best
Summary: 5 Stars
Barbarian's at the Gate was one of HBO's first attempt at quality television movie making. HBO has become a ground for stars to do "quality but uncommercial" films. This film does not have any major stars but was produced by Ray Stark (Funny Girl and numerous Neil Simon movies) and written by Larry Gelbart (M*A*S*H).
This is based on the true story of the sale of RJR Nabisco. This is a good example of truth being stranger than fiction (and definitely funnier than reality.) CEO F Ross Johnson wants to take Nabisco private and own the company himself.
What ensues is what became typical of the 1980's, bidding war, junk bonds and massive ego.
James Garner, most famous for playing Jim Rockford, plays F Ross Johnson. He oozes southern charm and unmitigated ego. You really want him to win in the end.
Jonathan Pryce, mostly know for bit and supporting roles - this is pre Miss Saigon, plays Henry Kravis a Wall Street mover and shaker. This role became his stereotype for many years to come and to a certain extent still plays.
Peter Reigert, again mostly know for support roles and independent films, plays Peter Cohen, another Wall Street big wig who will align himself with who he thinks will win.
Joanna Cassidy, most famous for Who Framed Roger Rabbit and now Six Feet Under, is one of those great actresses who never got her big shot. She plays the Cohen's wife and shrewd investment banker.
This film is great if for no other reason than it is a true story and perfectly catches the greed of the 1980's.
DVD EXTRAS: Cast Bio's
Movie Review: Surprisingly good
Summary: 5 Stars
I'm a big fan of Garner from way back, ever since he did "Support Your Local Sheriff," a low key but very funny spoof on western films from the early 70s, if I remember right. He seems like a down to earth guy whose big screen stardom never went to his head--much like Sean Connery--who certainly could have let such fame, money and stardom go to his head, too.
This movie chronicles the shenanigans surrounding a leveraged buyout of RJR Nabisco. You wouldn't think a corporate buyout would be that interesting a subject for a movie, but the movie succeeds on Garner's witty, cynical, repeatedly exasperated, and humorous portrayal of the company's CEO, although the rest of the cast is good too. The movie is also a reminder of the unbridled greed that swept the country in the 80s as hostile takeovers became the rage on Wall St., and it didn't matter how many people lost their jobs or their retirements as long as the takeover sharks got their cut.
As a result of these changes, as my fellow Top 100 reviewer, Jeff Leach, said previously in his much more detailed review, it's a lot harder for the average American to get and hold a job, and make a decent wage. And real wages (which is wages adjusted for inflation) have been declining in the U.S. since the late 60s--another dire trend which is unfortunately likely to continue as a result of competition from India and China, and our increasingly extravagant deficit spending.
Movie Review: Oscar Award Winning Worthy!
Summary: 5 Stars
Barbarians at The Gate is remarkable! The difference between Wall Street and Barbarians at The Gate? Barbarians at The Gate is a true story! That makes for truly amazing entertainment! The television movie based on the book and made by HBO was about the LBO (leveraged buyout) of R.J.R. Nabisco! Directed by Glenn Jordan just after the huge (real-life) Wall Street crash this movie was a huge success!
F. Ross Johnson (played by James Garner), the CEO of R.J.R. Nabisco makes plans to buy out all of the Nabisco shareholders. After hearing horrible reviews of the failure of his company's (soon to be launched) new smokeless cigarette called Premier, F. Ross Johnson plans to to take his company private. After discussing doing the LBO with Henry Kravis and his cousin George R. Roberts he then decides to take it to another firm, making Henry Kravis feel betrayed. Thats when the battle begins!
Its an all our war on Wall Street as ballers go head to head! This 5 star film is a must see and a must own!
I recommend this!
~Darien S. McDaniel II
Movie Review: Great entertainment if you like Wall Street, etc.
Summary: 5 Stars
People who complained that this movie doesn't compare to the book should relax a little. Any movie that's based on books cannot do the book justice in less than 2 hours. If you have 3 hours a la Lord of the Rings or 4 hours like the A&E production of Pride & Prejudice, then maybe and I would have adjusted my rating accordingly.But this movie is under 2 hours and managed to take a very complicated topic in Leveraged Buy-Outs (LBO's) in one of the biggest LBO's of our time in RJR-Nabisco and manages to make the story very entertaining. It flows quickly and I had no trouble following what's going on.
The acting is superb; Jonathan Pryce played Henry Kravis as a cold, calculated and ruthless corporate raider (whether Kravis is like that in real life I don't know) and James Garner did a nice job as F. Ross Johnson. Overall, if you like wall street type movies like Wall Street with Michael Douglas and Charlie Sheen, I would highly recommend this movie. In fact, I like this better than Wall Street.
Movie Review: Brilliant lok at the financial excesses of the '80's
Summary: 5 Stars
Barbarians At The Gate focuses more on the personalities and egos that drove the stunning LBO of RJRNabisco. James Garner plays a role you rarely see him in, along with a terrific complement of seasoned actors illustrating the ego clashes and senseless competitiveness that typified the LBO scene of the times. Well paced, with a mix of a dramatic percussion-driven soundtrack with an almost light-hearted unique whistling soundtrack at telling moments, this movie holds your attention from the very beginning. The movie manages to lay out the whole event and cleverly illustrates the insanity without laying on thick judgementalism. You're hard-pressed to find whose greed and whose ego is bigger. A telling scene is where the Chairman of RJR agrees to pay KKR $45 million simply to wait another hour for the board to decide. The book goes into a great deal more history and detail, but the movie captures the mood and atmosphere of the time much better.