Margin Call

 Margin Call

Before the Door Pictures, 2011

Directed by J.C. Chandor

Starring: Kevin Spacey, Zachary Quinto, Paul Bettany 

Three and a half stars

Margin Call, a thriller that revolves around a group of key employees at an Investment Firm on the eve of a financial disaster, opens with Paul Dale (Stanley Tucci), a well respected, long-time risk management worker for the company, getting fired in the midst of a mass company layoff. Tucci, who's become one of my favorite actors in recent years, thanks almost exclusively to his wide range of fantastic supporting roles (from a scene-stealing sarcastic father in Easy A, to a supportive husband in Julie & Julia, all the way to his horrific transformation into a rapist and murderer in Peter Jackson's The Lovely Bones), and this portrayal can be added to that list easily. He exits the film for a large portion of the action, but when he reappears for some closure later on, in a tour-de-force scene with Paul Bettany (who plays a senior trader with a reckless side), it's one of the best moments of a great film. 

Tucci is only the tip of the iceberg for this terrific ensemble cast. Much of the action centers on Zachary Quinto (Star Trek) and Penn Badgley (Easy A, Gossip Girl), two lower-down employees who find themselves entangled in a complicated web of corporate decisions, moral ambiguity and financial breakdown after Peter (Quinto), discovers that the company has accumulated a massive number of worthless mortgage-backed securities on their books, which, if allowed to remain, will decimate the company; as Peter puts it, "the loss will exceed the current value of the company." So begins the night from hell for Peter and his buddy Seth (Penn Badgley), a less brilliant-minded but equally well-meaning employee. Quinto and Badgley are both highly likable young actors, and both have exhibited a fair bit of talent (Quinto was a pitch-perfect Spock in J.J. Abrams' excellent Star Trek reboot, while Badgley's been tapped to play enigmatic singer Jeff Buckley in the upcoming picture Greetings From Tim Buckley). Both exude inexperience and naivety throughout the film as they find themselves embroiled in increasingly questionable moral territory. Neither actor goes far beyond what they've done in previous films, but both are welcome additions to this stellar cast.

As the night goes on, all the higher-ups are brought in: Peter and Seth's boss Will (Bettany), his boss, Sam (a brilliant Kevin Spacey), and the company's CEO (Jeremy Irons, in a typically villainous portrayal), and they find themselves in a dilemma. There will be huge consequences of their actions no matter which way they turn, and their ultimate decision, as cold and calculated as it is, feels frighteningly logical. By the time the film reaches it's climax, a scene that plays out with little but audio to build tension, director J.C. Chandor (in an impressively evenhanded debut) has painted a horrific portrait of corporate darkness (personified mostly by Irons) that's only so disturbing because it hits so close to home. In the penultimate scenes, we find ourselves looking out over New York City and Wall Street from high above; it all looks so peaceful and idyllic, but we share the characters' surreal feeling of foresight: knowing that all hell is about to break loose and knowing, in a way, that they caused it all. Their solution won't solve a thing, and everyone knows it, but no one can walk away.

Perhaps the most interesting artistic decision that Chandor makes is with his ending: he doesn't focus on the consequences of the firm's actions, nor does he show us the world outside of the company headquarters, the everyday people whose lives will be impacted by the economic disaster the firm has handed them, but he doesn't need too. Although a year is never given, it's obvious that the financial disaster depicted here represents what happened in the fall of 2008, and why would Chandor need to show the impact of Wall Street's collapse when it can still be seen and felt in every city in America? Chandor's film is very zeitgeist-appealing, and it could easily rely on those points to carry it to it's finale, which is way it's left-turn at the film's conclusion is so refreshing. The final scene depicts Spacey digging a grave for his dog (who he had to put to sleep the night before, just before he was called in to deal with the firm's crisis) in his ex-wife's front yard. She comes out to see who's making all the noise the two end up sharing a deeply personal conversation. It's one of the film's best scenes, not because it builds tension, not because it's thrilling or pulse-pounding or shocking in anyway, but because it feels so completely human, even after this character just played a role in something that could be considered borderline inhumane. Spacey, who's played the sympathetic character all along, comes out broken and regretful, unhappy with the decisions he's made, both personally and professionally, and in the final scene, we feel for him, despite what he's done. It's good writing, but it wouldn't work if the actor weren't so committed to playing the character with complete realism, and Spacey gives one of his best performances ever right here. Whether it's considered a lead role or a supporting one, I fully believe Spacey should receive Oscar attention for this, even though he doesn't really need it (he does have two of them already).

Margin Call is a terrific thriller, and it builds tension to a pulse-pounding point without a punch ever being thrown, a shot ever being fired, or a bomb ever going off (though, sometimes it feels like any of those things could happen). It's driven by good direction (Chandor is one to follow in the coming years), a solid script and an even better cast, featuring both hardened Hollywood vets and promising newcomers, that sits alongside the likes of The Ides of March and The Help at the top of the list for best ensemble casts this year. It's one of my favorite films of the year so far: a dark, complex and thrilling look at what could have happened just before the recession began, a memorable zeitgeist-appealing picture, and a stirring and surprisingly personal character piece. It's destined to go on being overlooked, both commercially and during the upcoming awards season, but I personally think it deserves top marks and significant recognition. Here's hoping at least Spacey grabs a nomination.