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'Rat Race' Film Festival
the Corporate Wars, Wall Street, the G.O.P. Economic Meltdown . . .
{ • Page Two • }
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quotes & brief essay
selected films
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Selected Films
{ in chronological order }
films thru 2000 • 2001-2010 {here on Page 2} • 2011 to present
jump to NEW movies, coming soon
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"Startup.Com" docufilm [indep May 2001]
 | Filmmakerss Chris Hegedus (The War Room) and Jehane Noujaim couldn't have imagined the drama that awaited when they began documenting the creation of the pioneering e-commerce site govWorks.com. For over a year they followed the company, the brainchild of childhood-friends-turned-business-partners software geek and doting single dad Tom Herman, and ambitious young business-school-grad-turned-company-CEO Kaleil Isaza Tuzman. During the rise of the Internet investment frenzy and the subsequent crash of the dot-economy, the cameras remain keyed into the human dynamic: the lifestyle compromises, the personal sacrifices, and the clash of philo-sophies and personalities that ultimately tear boyhood buddies Tom and Kaleil apart . . . almost. Docufilm's portrait of the cutthroat nature of American business culture and the choices one makes (or doesn't) to succeed poses the one question most documentaries ignore: Is it worth it? Co-produced & co-directed by Chris Hegedus & Jehane Noujaim; featuring Tom Herman & Kaleil Isaza Tuzman
Live/Artisan color DVD [9/2001] for $9.00 full credits at IMDb • movie entry at Wikipedia |
The July 2001 movie called "Rat Race" { IMDb credits } is a cross-country road movie comedy directed by Jerry Zucker.
"The Office" [2001-2013?]
Originally a 14-episode BBC-2 sitcom, followed by multi-year U.S. hit TV series, with China-based series in the works.
'The Office' overview on Wikipedia
"The Office" BBC-2 TV series [2001]
series credits at IMDb •
official website •
series entry at Wikipedia
"The Office" U.S. TV series [NBC-TV 2005-2012]
Starring Steve Carell, Rainn Wilson, John Krasinski, Jenna Fischer, B.J. Novak, Leslie David Baker,
Brian Baumgartner, Angela Kinsey, Phyllis Smith & Kate Flannery
series credits at IMDb •
official website •
series entry at Wikipedia
"dot" [The Asylum Dec 2002]
 | Spinal Tap-style mockumentary feature film about three pals who put together an internet startup company for the express purpose of making a fortune, even though they have no product and no business plan. "A comic look at a period in our culture so far ahead of itself that its present is already passé." • Co-produced, co-written & co-directed by Simeon Schnapper & Brett Singer; starring Michael Mazzara, Stephen Eugene Walker, Simeon Schnapper, Jamie McMillan, Katherine Martinez Ripley & Matthew O'Neill
Vanguard Cinema color DVD [12/2002] out of prodn/used full credits at IMDb |
"Two Weeks Notice" [Castle Rock Dec 2002] Sandra Bullock & Hugh Grant /tt0313737/
"The Crooked E: The Unshredded Truth About Enron"
[C.B.S.-TV documentary Jan 2003]
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An ambitious 29-year-old gets a job at rising energy company Enron, and assimilates into the get-rich-quick corporate culture. When the company collapses in bankruptcy in December 2001, he finds that he and millions of others lose everything – while the execs pocket billions of dollars • Co-produced by Robert Greenwald; directed by Penelope Spheeris; teleplay by Stephen Mazur, based on the book "Anatomy of Greed" by Brian Cruver; starring Christian Kane, Brian Dennehey, Mike Farrell, Shannon Elizabeth & Jon Ted Wynne
Echo Bridge Home Ent. widescreen color DVD [12/2007] for $6.70 full credits from IMDb • movie entry at Wikipedia more on Spirit of America Bookstore's Enron Corp. [1985-2006] Page |
"Rick" [2003] /tt0363029/
Bill Pullman(Actor), Aaron Stanford(Actor), Curtiss Clayton(Director)
http://www.amazon.com/Rick-Bill-Pullman/dp/B00062J026/
"The Corporation" documentary feature [Jan 2004]
 | Co-directed by Jennifer Abbott & Mark Achbar; co-written by Harold Crooks from Joel Bakan's book; interviewees include Noam Chomsky, Peter Drucker, Milton Freidman, Ray Anderson & Michael Moore Zeitgeist color DVD [4/2005] 2 disks for $20.99 full credits from IMDb • official movie website |
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"The Corporation: The Pathological Pursuit of Profit & Power" [2004] by Joel Bakan Free Press 8½x5½ pb [3/2005] for $11.20 Free Press 9¼x6¼ hardcover [3/2004] for $17.00 |
"Thank You For Smoking" [2005] /tt0427944/
"Enron: The Smartest Guys In The Room"
documentary feature [April 2005]
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Co-written & directed by Alex Gibney; based on the book
Magnolia widescreen color Blu-ray [9/2006] for $14.49 Magnolia widescreen color DVD [1/2006] for $13.76 full credits from IMDb more on the The Enron Scandal at Working Minds / Corporations vs. America Page |
 | "The Smartest Guys In The Room: The Amazing Rise & Scandalous Fall of Enron" [2003] by Bethany McLean & Peter Elkind Portfolio 8½x5½ pb [9/2004] for $10.88 Portfolio 9½x6½ hardcover [9/2003] for $17.79 |
"Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Price"
[Brave New Films Nov 2005]
 | Co-produced & directed by Robert Greenwald
Disinformation color DVD [11/2005] for $12.95 full credits from IMDb • official movie site based on the 2005 book by Greg Spotts, Introduction by Robert Greenwald Disinformation 8x5 pb [11/2005] for $9.95 more on Spirit of America Bookstore's Wal-Mart, Inc. Page |
"In Debt We Trust" documentary feature [Globalvision 2006]
 | Co-produced, written & directed by Danny Schechter
Disinformation color DVD [4/2007] for $14.99 full credits from IMDb • official movie site |
"The Boss of It All" [2006] /tt0469754/
"Outsourced" [2006] /tt0425326/
The manager of a customer call center in Seattle loses his job by outsourcing the entire office to India; he is sent there
to train the replacements and soon discovers that being outsourced may be the best thing that ever happened to him.
"The Devil Wears Prada" [June 2006]
http://www.amazon.com/Devil-Wears-Prada-Blu-ray/dp/B000JSI7BM/
"Maxed Out: Hard Times, Easy Credit & The Era of Predatory Lenders"
documentary feature [Trueworks March 2007]
 | Co-produced, written & directed by James D. Scurlock Magnolia widescreen color DVD [6/2007] for $17.99 full credits from IMDb • official movie site {Flash only} Scribner 8¼x5½ pb [12/2007] for $11.20 Scribner 9¼x6¼ hardcover [3/2007] for $18.00 |
"Sicko" documentary [Dog Eat Dog/Weinstein June 2007]
 | Moore compares the failed American health care system with that of Canada & Cuba. Official tagline: "A comedy about 45 million people with no health care in the richest country on earth." Co-produced, written & directed by and starring Michael Moore; won ACE & PGA Awards, nominated for WGA Award & for Best Documentary Feature Oscar Weinstein Company color DVD [11/2007] for $19.99 full credits from IMDb • official movie site |
"Mad Men" hit TV series [A.M.C. 2007-2012]
 | "Mad Men: The Complete Collection" [LionsGate 2015] injcludes all 92 episodes from 2007 to 2015; extras on each set include 2 low-ball tumblers & 4 cork coasters, commentaries, all extras as above, plus bonus 4 hours of exclusive video LionsGate widescreen color Blu-ray/digital combo [10/2015] 23 disks for $132.24 LionsGate widescreen color DVD/digital combo [10/2015] 32 disks for $109.00 |
"Michael Clayton" [Castle Rock Oct 2007]
 | The 'fixer' at a New York law firm tries to save an overworked partner from a crisis of conscience, but billions of dollars are at stake in a class action lawsuit against the ruthless agri-giant client, and the partner's sudden suicide looks a lot like murder.
Written & directed by Tony Gilroy; co-produced by Steve Samuels, Steven Soderbergh, George Clooney & Sydney Pollack; starring George Clooney, Tom Wilkinson, Sydney Pollack, Michael O'Keefe, Tilda Swinton, Robert Prescott, Terry Serpico, Merritt Wever & Sean Cullen; won Oscar for Best Supporting Actress (TS), Oscar noms for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Script, Best Actor (Clooney), Best Sipporting Actor (TW) & Best Original Music Score; won BAFTA Best Supporting Actress; nominated for DGA, PGA & WGA Award, 3 SAG Award noms
Warner Home Video widescreen color Blu-ray [2/2008] for $9.29 Warner Home Video widescreen color DVD [2/2008] for $7.64 Warner Home Video color DVD [2/2008] for $7.65 full credits from IMDb • movie entry at Wikipedia |
"American Ca$ino" documentary feature [indep Aug 2009]
 | This film finally explains how and why the global financial system crumbled from the subprime loan market 'bubble' and over $12 trillion of our money vanished into the pockets of Wall Street titans.
Co-written & directed by Leslie Cockburn; co-written by Andrew Cockburn; featuring Fed Chair-man Ben Bernanke, Mayor of Baltimore Sheila Dixon, former Senator Phil Gramm, Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson & Congressman Henry Waxman • DVD/Blu-ray not available at Amazon (2016)
full credits at IMDb • official movie site • movie entry at Wikipedia Working Minds Philosophy Essay #18 "The Stock Market Casino" [Dec 2001] |
"The Informant !" [Warner/Participant Media Sept 2009]
 | An executive at agri-giant Archer Daniels Midland starts an F.B.I. investigation of international price-fixing, but his lies and crazy behavior get him convicted of embezzlement of over 2 million dollars – or was it 7 million? Or 11½ million?Directed by Steven Soderbergh; screenplay by Scott Z. Burns based on the Kurt Eichenwald book; starring Matt Damon, Eddie Jemison, Melanie Lynskey, Scott Bakula, Joel McHale, Ann Dowd, Allan Havey, Rusty Schwimmer, Rick Overton & Thomas F. Wilson
Warner Home Video widescreen color Blu-ray/digital combo [2/2010] for $7.99 Warner Home Video widescreen color DVD [2/2010] for $5.00 full credits at IMDb • movie entry at Wikipedia |
 | "The Informant: A True Story - Based On A Tattle Tale" [2000] by Kurt Eichenwald Broadway Books movie tie-in 7¾x5¼ pb [8/2009] for $11.56 Broadway Books 8x5¼ pb [7/2001] for $11.53 Broadway Books 9¼x6¼ hardcover [9/2000] out of print/used |
"Capitalism: A Love Story"
[Dog Eat Dog/Weinstein Oct 2009]
 | Back in 2008, Michael Moore described his next film as being about 'the wonders of capitalism'. However, fate provided him with the 'G.O.P. Meltdown', the still-rolling collapse of the U.S. and worldwide economy. The American Dream is looking like a nightmare for more and more ordinary people whose lives have been turned upside down, as families pay the price each day with their jobs, their homes and their savings – the disastrous impact of unregulated corporate dominance and scared politicians seeking re-election over mystified & angry citizens across America.
Co-produced, written & directed by & starring Michael Moore; interviewees include Cong. Elijah Cummings of Maryland, Cong. Marcy Kaptur of Ohio, Wallace Shawn & Elizabeth Warren, with archive footage of Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton, Martin Luther King, Barack Obama, Sarah Palin, Ronald Reagan & Franklin Delano Roosevelt; won 2 awards at the Venice Film Festival
Starz / Anchor Bay widescreen color Blu-ray [3/2010] for $24.99 Starz / Anchor Bay widescreen color DVD [3/2010] for $17.99 full credits from IMDb • official movie site |
"Up In The Air" [Paramount Dec 2009]
 | The cherished 'on the road' lifestyle of a corporate downsizing expert is threatened by internet conferencing just as he is on the brink of reaching ten million frequent flyer miles and just after he finds that he has fallen for the frequent-traveler woman of his dreams. Co-produced, co-written & directed by Jason Reitman; co-adapted by Sheldon Turner, from Walter Kirn's 2001 novel; cinematography by Eric Steelberg; starring George Clooney, Vera Farmiga, Anna Kendrick, Jason Bateman, Amy Morton, Melanie Lynskey, Danny McBride & Sam Elliott; nominated for D.G.A. Award, 3 S.A.G. Awards, W.G.A. Award, and 6 BAFTA Awards, including Best Picture
Paramount widescreen color Blu-ray [3/2010] for $17.48 Paramount widescreen color DVD [3/2010] for $12.98 Warner Bros. color DVD [3/2010] for $7.89 full credits from IMDb • official movie site |
 | "Up In The Air" [2001 novel] by Walter Kirn Anchor movie tie-in mass pb [10/2009] for $7.99 Anchor movie tie-in 7¾x5 pb [10/2009] for $10.17 Doubleday 8½x5¾ hardcover [7/2001] out of print/used |
"The Social Network"
[Relativity Media / Columbia Oct 2010]
 | "You don't get to 500 million friends without making a few enemies": The story of the college student who created the Facebook phenomenon and six years later became the youngest billionaire in history. Directed by David Fincher; based on the book by Ben Mezrich; starring Jesse Eisenberg, Andrew Garfield, Justin Timberlake, Brenda Song, Rashida Jones, Max Minghella, Rooney Mara & Joseph Mazzello
DVD/Blu-ray not yet available • full credits at IMDb • official movie site |
 | "The Accidental Billionaires: The Founding of Facebook - A Tale of Sex, Money, Genius, and Betrayal" [2009 bestseller] by Ben Mezrich Without access to central figure Mark Zuckerberg, the author fictionalized many important parts of the story, as well as sensationalizing college life; the result is a questionable but nonetheless exciting tale. Anchor 8¼x6 pb [5/2010] for $10.85 Doubleday 9¼x6 hardcover [7/2009] for $16.50 |
"The Company Men" [The Weinstein Company Dec 2010]
 | Filmed around Boston; a high-salary exec is downsized, and then offered a job with his brother-in-law installing drywall • Written & directed by John Wells; starring Tommy Lee Jones, Ben Affleck, Kevin Costner, Maria Bello, Chris Cooper, Craig T. Nelson & Rosemarie DeWitt
The Weinstein Company widescreen color Blu-ray [6/2011] for $10.44 The Weinstein Company widescreen color DVD [6/2011] for $5.00 full credits at IMDb • official movie site • movie entry at Wikipedia |
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