Here at Movies to Watch Tonight we try hard not to be swayed by other websites or reviewers and Margin Call is one such case. While lots of other sites have given Margin Call 4 stars, honestly we at Movies To Watch Tonight think it deserves 3 at most. This low-budget movie, made for just 3.5 million dollars stars great actors with Kevin Spacey, Demi Moore, Jeremy Irons, Zachary Quinto, Paul Bettany and Stanley Tucci and they all do a solid job, but the whole plot is lost for most of the film.
The problem with many movies that we review here at Movies To Watch Tonight is that the writers don’t know how to convey the plot and get the audience involved. This is the problem with Margin Call. We tried at Movies to Watch Tonight to figure out the plot at the outset but the movie is almost over before the audience finally can clue into what is happening.
In one scene Zachary Quinto is driving and comments how the people he is viewing have no idea what is about to happen. Well, what is about to happen? Is it a bomb, a terrorist attack, zombie apocalypse or just what?
The problem here is we know that people are being let go from work, we know it is a brokerage firm of some kind and we know that something bad is going to possibly happen. While other reviews of Margin Call talk about how the movie is just terrific, with great acting, tight script, blah, blah, blah, they are not admitting that no one really knows what is going on including the actors. In one scene Quinto is reviewing some computer images and then calls his boss and tells him you should get back here. When asked why, he just says you should get back here. Probably because he can’t explain exactly what is going to happen.
In another scene Paul Bettany calls Kevin Spacey and tells him, he’d better get back to the office. When Spacey arrives he tells Bettany that he doesn’t understand all the charts, just tell him what’s wrong. This was the moment the writer/director J. C. Chandor should have seized to explain the “dire” situation to the audience. Instead they don’t and all the audience understands is “can this be right” and “are these numbers right”.
Movies To Watch Tonight review of Margin Call. In the movie Kevin Spacey studies a computer monitor as he tries to figure out the "problem" his firm faces. The audience doesn't understand the problem either.
Movies To Watch Tonight Notable Moments
Jeremy Irons is excellent and shows again why he is in demand as an actor and is a Movies To Watch Tonight favorite. Even in Margin Call he does his best to carry the role as the head of a firm that is going to have something dire “happen” to it. His best lines are “Speak to me as you would a small child, or a golden retriever,” when he talks to Quinto. Something by the way the writer should have done to the audience, 10 minutes into the movie.
Another great scene is Quinto and Penn Badgley in a strip club. As they drink Badgley asks Quinto “how much do you think she makes a night” and is stunned when he finds out $1500 to $2000.
Movies To Watch Tonight Review of Margin Call. Jeremy Irons is a stand out once more in the movie Margin Call.
Is Margin Call Worth A Movies To Watch Tonight Approval Rating
Not really. The audience is never engaged in this film. Despite other reviews to the contrary you never feel anything for any of the characters except perhaps for the firing of Stanley Tucci which is well acted. Viewers don’t have the same feel for the grind of Wall Street as we do with Wall Street with Michael Douglas, probably one of the best financial films to date and definitely a film everyone can understand. Wall Street earned 4 stars from Movies To Watch Tonight.
Margin Call is written and directed by J. C. Chandor. The film is nicely shot with lots of dark shadows and almost Coppola like layouts. It gives the movie a nice feeling of dreariness, dread and maybe paranoia.
The movie by Feb 2012 had made only about 5 and a half million dollars and we here at Movies To Watch Tonight can understand why. There is no connection between the audience and the actors and even by the end of the film most movie goers will still wonder what was the terrible thing that was about to happen.
Margin Call Summation
How Much Of Your Life Is Gone Watching This Film 107 minutes
To sum up the thread of the movie you could say, great acting cannot replace a strong plot. The audience is left in the dark throughout most of the film and one has to wonder if perhaps the writer, J. C. Chandor did not quite understand the 2008 – 2009 credit crisis which this movie is parodying.
For those who like Fictional Movies studying the perils of Wall Street, they might enjoy this film. For the rest of us, Movies To Watch Tonight advises that Margin Call deserves 3 stars at best and if you only have a few films to choose from, choose something else.
If anything Margin Call is notable because once seen it can easily be forgotten.
Movies To Watch Tonight Rating
If you want to watch a movie about Wall Street, then watch Wall Street with Michael Douglas.
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