Too Big To Fail: Season 1

METASCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 17 Critic Reviews

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USER SCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 16 Ratings

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6.9

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6.9	User Score Generally favorable reviews based on 16 Ratings

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Season Details & Credits

HBO | Season Premiere Date: May 23, 2011

Summary: The financial crisis of 2008 is dramatized in the HBO adaptation of Andrew Ross Sorkin's book with an all-star cast that includes John Hurt as US Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson; Cynthia Nixon as his assistant secretary; James Wood as the CEO of Lehman Brothers; Billy Crudup as the president of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York; andThe financial crisis of 2008 is dramatized in the HBO adaptation of Andrew Ross Sorkin's book with an all-star cast that includes John Hurt as US Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson; Cynthia Nixon as his assistant secretary; James Wood as the CEO of Lehman Brothers; Billy Crudup as the president of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York; and Paul Giamatti as Ben Bernanke, the chairman of the Federal Reserve.… Expand

Genre(s): Drama

Season 1 Episodes

No episode information is currently available for this season

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Metascore

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Critic Reviews

Mark A. Perigard

May 23, 2011

For a topic that sounds as dry as a fund prospectus, the acting and pacing is exceptional. Read full review

Ken Tucker

May 20, 2011

The sheer, cynical heartlessness of nearly everyone on-screen--from a wonderfully blunt Tony Shalhoub as Morgan Stanley's John Mack to Topher Grace as a calculating Paulson aide--is both dismaying and riveting. Read full review

Tim Goodman

May 20, 2011

HBO's Too Big to Fail is mesmerizing and, if you can call watching an economics lesson from hell entertaining, then yes, it's entertaining. Read full review

Brian Lowry

May 20, 2011

An entertaining if slightly dry account of the 2008 government bailout of the financial industry, as viewed over the shoulder of then-Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, whose agony is deftly conveyed by William Hurt. Read full review

Michael Kinsley

May 23, 2011

Too Big To Fail uses every cinematic trick in the book, but ultimately succeeds because we know that the danger was real. Read full review

Troy Patterson

May 24, 2011

Too Big To Fail adapted by director Curtis Hanson and screenwriter Peter Gould from a book by journalist Andrew Ross Sorkin, is a decent movie with a stellar title. Read full review

Jaime N. Christley

May 23, 2011

It's a strike against the film that a tiresome connect-the-dots summary of the major players and events is propped up with half-hearted attempts at suspense and ticking clocks and breathlessly watched congressional vote coverage, and rote scenes of actors barking into phones and delivering lines that writer Peter Gould probably wishes he got from the other Sorkin. Read full review

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User Score

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6.9

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User Reviews

coastalguy65

Jun 6, 2011

This is a supercharged look behind the wall of power as they try to grapple with the imminent collapse of the whole financial system. gripping tv and very interesting. the cast and actors are super. Fantastice tv programming!

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

MorriBey

Jun 21, 2011

Excellent . What more can i say. Truly riveting. Has to be seen. Whilst one may need some knowledge of financials the suspense can be enjoyed by all.

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

MarcDoyle

May 29, 2011

What I thought would be a little dry turned out to be an absolutely thrilling account of one of the more critical behind-the-scenes events in American history. Exactly what Hank Paulson, Tim Geithner, Ben Bernanke, et al were engineering to prevent the worldwide financial system fromWhat I thought would be a little dry turned out to be an absolutely thrilling account of one of the more critical behind-the-scenes events in American history. Exactly what Hank Paulson, Tim Geithner, Ben Bernanke, et al were engineering to prevent the worldwide financial system from melting down is fascinating. Billy Crudup and William Hurt are absolutely outstanding in this movie, as is Cynthia Nixon (surprisingly). Worth seeing in a big way. I might have to pick up Andrew Ross Sorkin's book on which this film is based.… Expand

1 of 2 users found this helpful11

HardCopy_iMDb

Sep 6, 2011

"Too big to fail" ultimately .... FAILED.
Let me count the ways:
One, no one made the only thing to say about the dictum "Too big to fail" which is that Too big to fail ... is too big. A company, whose fall can bring down the entire country and the world, is just too big. Two, the most"Too big to fail" ultimately .... FAILED.
Let me count the ways:
One, no one made the only thing to say about the dictum "Too big to fail" which is that Too big to fail ... is too big. A company, whose fall can bring down the entire country and the world, is just too big.

Two, the most common response to this movie by critics and reviewers and on the interwebs is either that it's too complicated (so it's boring?) or surprisingly entertaining while being complicated. If that is what this film does to people, instead of warning them about completely insane upperclass culture of gambling with the money of the middle class, yes then it failed in its goals.
Three, Paulson, and most players in this catastrophe are propped up as heroes or bystanders. except for Dick Fuld, who is blamed for killing the deal with Koreans. Then Paulson is blamed for not checking with the British. Just ONE of the investment bankers comes off as a greedy a-hole, but only to leftiwing viewers, since he's demanding the right to give out fat bonuses ... out of 125 billion dollars of taxpayer money.

The reall villain, the mentality of greed and "government is bááááááád", is only indicated mildly. No one is pointing out that the home owner who borrowed too much are actually ALL (upper) middle class! In other words, that 's US, folks! Not the poor innercity blacks, who are blamed throughout the righwing blogosphere.

The ultimate failure of this movie is that it does not give any hope that anybody has learned anything from all of this. Do we need to fall further down, to crash even harder, for the bankers to change course? No. these people will never learn NOT to be irresponsible. Whatever might happen, they will always gamble wiith our money

So its our job to think of ways to stop them… Expand

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

filmtrashreview

Jun 12, 2011

With overall story line and dialog written straight out of a wall street textbook, this film is confusing to the average american viewer. However, people that understand the collapse of 2008 will enjoy it but then again they already witnessed this incident first hand.

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

Rabidabbey

Jul 13, 2012

What a piece of crap this was. They made the villains look like victims. As if Geitner, Paulsom, Dimon, Bernanke and the rest of them are the good guys trying their best to do the right thing. What nonsense. Am I really supposed to believe that the collapse can all be blamed on irresponsibleWhat a piece of crap this was. They made the villains look like victims. As if Geitner, Paulsom, Dimon, Bernanke and the rest of them are the good guys trying their best to do the right thing. What nonsense. Am I really supposed to believe that the collapse can all be blamed on irresponsible home buyers and the british? Really? I call ****… Expand

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

Seasons & Episodes

67

Series Overview
Season 1

67
- Season 1 Overview
  Air Date: May 23, 2011
- No episode information is currently available for this season