Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room (2005)

O An excellent must-see
O Good video rental
X Mediocre
O Rent something else

Review by Jason Pyles / August 4, 2007

During the introductory comments, one of this documentary’s three writers, Bethany McLean, tells us that “this isn’t a story about numbers and complicated transactions, it’s about people and is really a human tragedy.”

I beg to differ about one point: “Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room” is indeed a human tragedy (namely for all of the employees who lost their retirement and pension plans, not the crooks), but it is also about numbers and complicated transactions and is therefore, somewhat tedious to watch.

Basically, rent this video if you’d like a blow-by-blow, play-by-play recounting of what the corporate, criminal masterminds, Ken Lay, Jeff Skilling and Andrew Fastow (and many others) did to “cook the books,” pull “the corporate crime of the century” and bring about America’s largest corporate bankruptcy. (Oh, and it would also help if you have a good grasp on financial matters.)

There are interesting parts in this documentary, particularly ironic file footage and recordings of devious, despicable phone conversations. Some of the documentary will make you sad. Most of it will cause your blood to boil.

“Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room” is fairly well made. I particularly liked the soundtrack selections. It was not, however, as clear and accessible to “common folk” like me, and I’m no dummy, usually.

Since this documentary was initially released in April of 2005, it does not contain some of the updates, such as Kenneth Lay’s dying on July 5, 2006. Even so, this documentary is a decent recap for a history class.

Directed by Alex Gibney
Ken Lay / Jeffrey Skilling / Andrew Fastow
110 min. Documentary
(No original MPAA rating)
Edited version age recommendation: 10 and up

DVD release date: January 17, 2006
Copyright 2007.
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