WOW! This is a case of a film that needs to be resurrected among publics right now because it's final message resonates truer than anything with the whole current financial world going to the drains. The script was saying some hard truths back in 1981, no one listened and in 2008, almost three decades later something happened almost exactly the same way Hume Cronyn's character described it was going to happen: riots, stagnation, panic. Well, not much like the one of 1929 but a little closer to that.
The context in which "Rollover" was presented was completely different however, Cold War was in it full course and Socialism was still surviving and fighting against the powers of Capitalism. The economical crisis that will happen in this film comes from an Arab oil organization (allied with some American bankers) who has a gigantic masterplan that is going to bring chaos in the world economy.
But until we get there, we follow the story of a former actress (Jane Fonda) who married the Chairman and primary stockholder of a chemical company, recently murdered, that not only investigates his strange murder but also tries to deal with his business by joining forces with a financier (Kris Kristofferson) who recently was appointed as new president of a large bank that seems to going under a lot of trouble. While their relationship goes from the economic level to more intimate levels, a huge operation is being made with their investments that could cause a financial collapse.
"Rollover" looks at too many directions but doesn't see enough, it doesn't have a complete view on anything as a film. It goes as a financial thriller, a political thriller with some cheesy romance and as a drama. Problem is that there's far too many things to make anyone uninterested of seeing this when it could be something remarkably brilliant if the writers or director Alan J. Pakula decided for just one route to follow through. While the affair between Fonda and Kristofferson has its good moments when it's not becoming distractive, the thrilling parts of this are so few and the economics jargon are so many that the ultimate thing for this is a film hard to follow.
But it gets worse before it gets better as some say. The greatest surprise is reserved for its final minutes with the inevitable crisis going ahead. I don't know if back in '81 something like this could happen but now, we know, it can happen and it did! It's realistic and shocking how this film managed (in a way, not completely though) to see how our world would become with all this lousy speculations. 30 years later and the impact of its crash is hitting us just now.
Well made, nicely presented and well acted, with some weak moments here and there but very good to watch. Extremely relevant! 7/10
The context in which "Rollover" was presented was completely different however, Cold War was in it full course and Socialism was still surviving and fighting against the powers of Capitalism. The economical crisis that will happen in this film comes from an Arab oil organization (allied with some American bankers) who has a gigantic masterplan that is going to bring chaos in the world economy.
But until we get there, we follow the story of a former actress (Jane Fonda) who married the Chairman and primary stockholder of a chemical company, recently murdered, that not only investigates his strange murder but also tries to deal with his business by joining forces with a financier (Kris Kristofferson) who recently was appointed as new president of a large bank that seems to going under a lot of trouble. While their relationship goes from the economic level to more intimate levels, a huge operation is being made with their investments that could cause a financial collapse.
"Rollover" looks at too many directions but doesn't see enough, it doesn't have a complete view on anything as a film. It goes as a financial thriller, a political thriller with some cheesy romance and as a drama. Problem is that there's far too many things to make anyone uninterested of seeing this when it could be something remarkably brilliant if the writers or director Alan J. Pakula decided for just one route to follow through. While the affair between Fonda and Kristofferson has its good moments when it's not becoming distractive, the thrilling parts of this are so few and the economics jargon are so many that the ultimate thing for this is a film hard to follow.
But it gets worse before it gets better as some say. The greatest surprise is reserved for its final minutes with the inevitable crisis going ahead. I don't know if back in '81 something like this could happen but now, we know, it can happen and it did! It's realistic and shocking how this film managed (in a way, not completely though) to see how our world would become with all this lousy speculations. 30 years later and the impact of its crash is hitting us just now.
Well made, nicely presented and well acted, with some weak moments here and there but very good to watch. Extremely relevant! 7/10