Finding Economic Documentaries?
February 25, 2010 1:37 PM   Subscribe

I've been enjoying economic documentaries lately. Help me find some more!

Over the past few months, I've enjoyed watching documentaries on economics (or closely related to economics) such as Commanding Hieghts, Tory! Tory! Tory!, Free to Choose, and various frontline episodes like Inside the Meltdown and Breaking the Bank (this one sucked - it was a total a shill for the banks). I tend to like ones about problems and solutions, changes, etc.

I tend to follow more free market viewpoints, though I'm not against ones on the opposing side. Many of the ones I've seen, like "Capitalism, A love Story" or anything by Naomi Klein, proved tiresome and shaky on details and proofs so I'd like something better presented than "here's a closed factory, how terrible is that? free markets are bad" from the left.

Either way, are there other good ones out there?
posted by hylaride to Society & Culture (14 answers total) 13 users marked this as a favorite
 
The Smartest Guys in the Room which explores and explains the Enron collapse is pretty great.
posted by kimdog at 1:39 PM on February 25, 2010


The Corporation.

Also seconding the Smartest Guys in the Room.
posted by Lutoslawski at 1:50 PM on February 25, 2010 [1 favorite]


So.... you like to read about collapses? Because the book about the Long-Term Capital Management failure is supposed to be pretty good. (A friend in the industry says that it is dramatically interesting but not that good on the finance.)

When Genius Failed.
posted by grobstein at 1:58 PM on February 25, 2010


Huh, not sure why I assumed you were interested in books. Oh well.
posted by grobstein at 1:58 PM on February 25, 2010


This American Life's The Giant Pool of Money was quite good.
posted by electroboy at 1:59 PM on February 25, 2010


Nthing the This Americans Life episode (they also have a part two to that) and the ongoing Planet money podcasts put out by NPR Or PRI, cant remember which. Really good stuff, well researched, fairly presented without smugness, I told you so, or glee and also without a breathless we are all gonna be eating each other end of the world crap either. I find that a lot of the recent economic discussion can take one or both of the above tracks-and it gets really old and increasingly shrill.
posted by bartonlong at 2:04 PM on February 25, 2010


Smartest Guys In The Room! Great flick.

also

Why We Fight

Along with electroboy's recommendation, you may enjoy the ongoing Planet Money podcast.
posted by mkultra at 2:05 PM on February 25, 2010


Came here to recommend the PBS version of Niall Ferguson's book The Ascent of Money: A Financial History of the World.
posted by Dukat at 2:06 PM on February 25, 2010 [2 favorites]


Oh man - the Planet Money podcast, especially the shows the did with This American Life, are fucking FANTASTIC. Seriously. Best journalism on the economic crisis out there.

And Why We Fight is a great, must-see movie as well.
posted by Lutoslawski at 2:10 PM on February 25, 2010


Response by poster: Yes, I follow planet money and this american life, I've listened to them both. This american life's two episodes on the american healthcare problems were fantastic. :-)

I've seen the corporation and The Smartest Guys in the Room (the former was mediocre and the latter was quite good).

I'll check out 'Why We Fight' and 'The Ascent of Money'.


Anything else? Thanks guys!
posted by hylaride at 2:27 PM on February 25, 2010


If you're a fan of faux documentaries, check out Dadetown which captures economic development issues in a small town fairly well.
posted by carmicha at 2:59 PM on February 25, 2010


IOUSA, from the director who brought you the crossword puzzle documentary Wordplay.
posted by persona at 3:39 PM on February 25, 2010


In Debt We Trust was downright prophetic.
posted by gracedissolved at 6:22 PM on February 25, 2010


Marilyn Waring's Who's Counting?: Sex, Lies and Global Economics raises the question of how women's (uncounted and undervalued) unpaid labour supports the global economy. It's very watchable and engaging.
posted by hurdy gurdy girl at 8:21 PM on February 25, 2010


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