on the job movie essay

Vague Visages

Movies, tv & music • independent film criticism • soundtrack guides • forming the future • est. 2014, a most violent trade: erik matti’s ‘on the job’.

Roaming about a street festival in Metro Manila’s Quezon City, Mario “Tatang” Maghari (Joel Torre) dons a straw hat and converses with a man who appears to be his son. Both characters are visibly strapped (with day bags) and visibly cautious; however, these men don’t live on the streets — the dressings are only part of an act. Tatang and Daniel (Gerald Anderson) live their daily lives in a more sequestered setting — jail — and receive an occasional one-day pass to carry out a most violent trade: murder for hire.

Based on real events, On the Job  opens with graphic, eye-covering violence reminiscent of the brutal realism depicted in Gaspar Noé’s 2002 film Irreversible . Director Matti immediately establishes the urgency of his film and delivers a credits newsreel sequence that connects the city’s political corruption with drug-related crime.

Piolo Pascual plays Francis Coronel Jr., the son-in-law of a congressman (Michael de Mesa) and also a suave, 32-year-old NBI agent designated to investigate the street festival homicide. Coronel’s military background and family connections bring him face to face with General Pacheco (Leo Martinez), who reminds the young agent about the mysterious death of his father . As Coronel attempts to move forward with the investigation, an old-school sergeant (Joey Marquez) takes offense to his removal from the case and blames it on his political views. As Coronel works one side of the law and the young hit man Daniel works the other, the tension builds when a failed assassination attempt leads all to one central location — the hospital — where nobody is safe.

Read More at VV — ‘Stealing Rodin’ and Systems of Vulnerability

While the narrative foundation of On the Job is rather simple (old school vs new school; hard work vs corruption), the cinematography of Ricardo Buhay III and Matti’s unique eye for striking visuals raise the stakes in building suspense. Thirty minutes in, Matti follows Daniel throughout the prison as the daily routines of inmates are brought to life. The extended single-shot reminds of Martin Scorsese’s Goodfellas ( bar introductions) , and 30 minutes later, Matti swaps out the pounding hip-hop score for throbbing drums as the characters frantically attempt to search and destroy. It’s pure chaos, but the seasoned direction and slick editing moves the action along with precision.

Torre gives an unforgettable performance as the existential hitman Tatang, and Shaina Magdayao brings a strong (and beautiful) female presence as the loyal wife of Coronel. Although I wasn’t initially sure what to think of Pascual as the lead investigator, he brings a sense of innocence to the role, which is essential for the character’s sensibilities.

Read More at VV — Know the Cast: ‘Collision’

On the Job explores violence both inside and outside the prison, and does so with intellect. The elderly hitman Tatang carries out his assignments in order to survive but also for a little extra family time . Meanwhile, his protege Daniel learns the troubling rules of the game just like the man on his trail. Matti shows no fear by destroying genre cliches in On the Job , and his wandering camera opens up the world of Metro Manila while expressing how utterly disposable humans can be under corrupt leadership.

Q.V. Hough ( @QVHough ) is Vague Visages’ founding editor. 

Categories: 2010s , 2014 Film Essays , 2014 Film Reviews , Action , Crime , Drama , Film Essays , Film Reviews

Tagged as: Action , Crime , Drama , Erik Matti , On the Job , Q.V. Hough

You must be logged in to post a comment.

The Asian Cinema Blog

In-depth asian movie reviews. bridging the gap between asian film and western audience.

Director : Erik Matti

Writing : Erik Matti, Michiko Yamamoto

Country : The Philippines

Year : 2013

Erik Matti paces “On the Job” with a temper of Guy Ritchie and engrosses into grit and blood with a pleasure of Quentin Tarantino. The result it masterfully crafted crime thriller about a tangle of corruption that leaves no hope.

The story opens with two main characters – Tatang (Joel Torre) and Daniel (Gerald Andersan) walking down a busy street of Quezon City, Metro Manila. A festival (that looks like Songkran festival as everybody is pouring water over each other) has filled the streets with cheer and chaos. From the first moments we recognize our characters as polar opposites – Daniel is young, energetic, careless, even a bit goofy, while Tatang is older, calm, focused and grim. With no-bullshit attitude, he teaches the youngster to be more attentive to the surroundings. With overwhelming intensity we are waiting to see what our characters are doing there, as it is clear they are not there to enjoy the festival. Tatang focuses on the target, steps forward, the sounds of festival are silenced to hear a clear sounds of a gunshot. A second shot to make sure the man is dead. They run away along with scared crowds of people.

The director Erik Matti does not give many details to explain situation as the few plot storied unfold as pieces of puzzle for the viewer to solve. As an all-knowing storymaster he is out there giving the viewer a piece to make one develop a theory and then another piece to make all assumptions void. This game is among other great aspects something that can keep you glued to the film if you can accept its rules.

Just after the shooting, the credits roll with some news stories about drug lords. So is Tatang and Daniel self proclaimed vigilantes fighting the crime? No, they are prisoners at a local jail. So do they belong to a vigilante circle that uses good-willing prisoners? Again, no.

“This is just work. It’s easy to kill if you’re angry with a person. What if you’re ordered to kill an old man who can barely walk? Could you still do it?”

Meanwhile few other stories unfold. Francis (Piolo Pascual) is a son-in-law of a powerful politician. He is given the case of the shootings, though his efforts to solve it are hindered by the small “favors” his father-in-law is asking. And the last side plot is of the sergeant Acosta (Joey Marquez), one of the few uncorrupt good cops, honestly trying to get to the truth in the shooting case. Francis and Acosta clash at first, but soon Francis realizes he is being played and they join efforts.  Eventually he has to make a decision to stay loyal to family or to his moral principles.

On one hand, “OTJ” is about The Law against The Crime. However, the line between Good and Evil is blurred and in the end the only looming evil is The Man, the Big Brother, the corrupt controlling government. We can emphasize with all of the characters. Tatang is a cold-blooded hitman, but also loving father and husband trying to take the family out of poverty. Cocky Daniel is also helping his family and just trying to build something for himself in a desperate situation. We never even get to know why they are in the jail in first place. Sergant Acosta, constantly losing the battle for the good, even in his own family, where his son becomes a criminal. And Francis, having to choose between comforting but morally ambiguous life or risking it all, including his beloved wife, to do the right thing. Story unfolds with some funny scenes, even some hopeful scenes but only to end in absolute desperation. Every hope is crushed by the Forces That Be, who are playing and toying with everyone through their web of corruptness. The most desperate character for me was Tatang, who upon realizing he has nothing to live for outside prison, destroys everything and goes back behind bars. The closing scene shows him through a car window, view blurred by falling rain, a man with nothing to lose with an empty look on his face.

Apart from great story, what makes this film so enjoyable is masterful camerawork by Ricardo Buhay III, editing by Jay Halili and soundtrack by Erwin Romulo. The perfect pacing of camerawork and the music is mesmerizing. One of the best examples is the scene in the hospital where Tatang has to finish the hit job. One of the best scenes of such type that can be put in the same ranks as Guy Richie’s “Snatch” and “Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels”. The following chase scene in dark streets of Metro Manila is superb as well. Shaking camera and blurry dark scenes add to the intensity. Talking about Manila, in “On the Job” it is portrayed as the type of noir sin city, like Los Angeles in “Chinatown”, Bangkok in “Ong Bak” and Mumbay in “Talaash”. And as the noir genre requires, most characters are lost in the darkness of its crime-filled alleys.

Movies that portray dissatisfaction with the government are not new to Filipino cinema. Films made under Marcos dictatorship and martial law in the Philippines (1972-1986) had more subtle allusions to what was going on in the country. Few examples: Mike de Leon’s “Batch 81” (1982) and Ishmael Bernal’s “Manila By Night, a.k.a. City After Dark”. “OTJ” is much more direct blow on the corrupt government system and its moral consequences in society. Though overall film is more focused on crafting chase scenes and shootings, it manages to bring the moral statement as well as masterfully packed crime-thriller action.

• Recent Posts

• 24 Asian Movies and TV Shows to Watch on Netflix (Updated) - April 6, 2021
• Permission to Exist – a documentary on South Korea’s education system and mental health awareness among Korean teens - December 15, 2020
• Luang Prabang Film Festival Goes Online - November 2, 2020

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

The Main Points of the Documentary Inside Job

How it works

The Documentary, Inside Job, is narrated by movie star actor, Matt Damon. The documentary, released in 2010, tell us about the Great Recession and how it all happened: what events beforehand lead to one of the worst financial crises since the Great Depression. The documentary is broken into five parts:

• Part 1- How We Got Here,
• Part 2- The Bubble (2001-2007),
• Part 3- The Crisis,
• Part 4- Accountability,
• Part 5- Where We Are Now.

The Documentary, Inside Job, provides an insightful examination of mistakes made by Americans that lead to the Great Recession in 2008 and provides many lessons on how the American housing industry frauded the ordinary American investors in some risky investments that was very catastrophic and has had unwanted consequences still.

Part 1 begins in explaining how in 1941, the American Financial industry was heavily regulated for about four decades. After 1981, a period of deregulation followed right after of Financial Institutions which include Banks, Insurance Companies, Credit Rating Agencies and more. After this, Financial Institutions started to take more gambles and risks on investments to earn more profits for their respective organizations and themselves. By the 1990s, a few gigantic firms were consolidated through this and were ruling over the financial industry. These companies became involved with derivatives and collateralized debt obligations (CDOs) that were sold to investors. Many Rating agencies gave these CDOs great ratings without really realizing the risks since the agencies were colluding with the firms.

In Part 2, it discusses the bubble and how these financial firms were allowing people, who normally couldn’t afford a second home, take out multiple mortgages to buy another home with the risk that they may not may it back. Thus, housing prices increased tremendously. At this time, the SEC didn’t monitor the situation going on and took a back seat to what was happening. Another big issue was the firms who were selling CDOs were also betting against that some of these would fail because they knew the borrowers could not pay it back. Part 3 discusses the Crisis and how the market for CDOs collapsed. Many of the borrowers started to default on their mortgages from lenders: investment banks were left with hundreds of billions of dollars in loans, CDOs, and real estate properties that essentially became a big burden. From here, in Mid 2008, the Great Recession started when the Lehman Brothers announced bankruptcy which caused a ripple effect to the entire world economy. Many firms were bailed out as well and President Bush had to push a huge bailout plan to help these firms. However, the market continued to crash. Nothing was working and the situation became worse. Part 4 discusses how people needed to be held accountable for what happened. The top executives of these bankrupt countries walked away without taking a hit on their personal fortunes. Instead of being punished, they were still kept around in some kind of capacity and were still paid millions for their involvement still. Thus, they pushed heavily against regulations and any kind of form of it. Part 5 discusses the aftermath and where the United States was at the time. The United State lost thousands of job and unemployment remained high.

Inflation started to increase. President Obama historic 2008 election promised to bring in reforms and prevent such crisis from every recurring again. Obama passed the Dodd Frank Act but these reforms and regulations were weak. Some of the people responsible for the crisis became part of Obamas Administration and held some important offices that would affect the United States. After watching the documentary, many of the things we learned in class showed up. To name a few, Fannie and Freddie Mac, how a market bubble was created in Iceland, and it mentions money market funds set up by banks. Many of these terms we learned in lecture slides. The documentary also mentioned Audits, the American Credit agencies (the 3 Agencies of Moodys, Standard & Poors, Fitch) and how it gave high ratings of AAA when the investment was actually risky, another term we learnt as well. It also mentioned Credit Default Swaps (CDs), primary markets and secondary markets (stocks, derivates, etc), the SEC (Security and Exchange Committee), Collateralized Debt Obligations or CDOs (investment bankers were leaning heavily on these selling these to investors), named dropped securitization, mortgages, different types of funds, etc. It also talked about Subprime Loans, AIG, how Derivates work, foreclosures of houses, and The Federal Reserve (dealing with the recession and the companies, bail outs, etc.).

The movie also mentioned the government taking over Fannie & Freddie Mac (in the slides referred them as mortgage lenders), how the secondary market and investment banker’s investment decisions really affected the housing market (these terms were talked about during the slides) in a really horrendous way. Leverage limits, estate tax, and a few other terms were also mentioned by the movie. The documentary had many references from the lecture slides. The documentary had a clear message on what it wanted to convey: how the Great Recession was a disaster waiting to happen because of foolish decisions made over couple of decades. It showed how regulations were need to protect Americans and other industries, yet, there a lack of such reforms and regulations. The government is still colluding with wall street and with President Trump: things will continue to get worse as cares more about the one percent than the average American Citizen.

Cite this page

The Main Points of the Documentary Inside Job. (2022, Jun 24). Retrieved from https://papersowl.com/examples/the-main-points-of-the-documentary-inside-job/

"The Main Points of the Documentary Inside Job." PapersOwl.com , 24 Jun 2022, https://papersowl.com/examples/the-main-points-of-the-documentary-inside-job/

PapersOwl.com. (2022). The Main Points of the Documentary Inside Job . [Online]. Available at: https://papersowl.com/examples/the-main-points-of-the-documentary-inside-job/ [Accessed: 4 May. 2024]

"The Main Points of the Documentary Inside Job." PapersOwl.com, Jun 24, 2022. Accessed May 4, 2024. https://papersowl.com/examples/the-main-points-of-the-documentary-inside-job/

"The Main Points of the Documentary Inside Job," PapersOwl.com , 24-Jun-2022. [Online]. Available: https://papersowl.com/examples/the-main-points-of-the-documentary-inside-job/. [Accessed: 4-May-2024]

PapersOwl.com. (2022). The Main Points of the Documentary Inside Job . [Online]. Available at: https://papersowl.com/examples/the-main-points-of-the-documentary-inside-job/ [Accessed: 4-May-2024]

Don't let plagiarism ruin your grade

Hire a writer to get a unique paper crafted to your needs.

Our writers will help you fix any mistakes and get an A+!

Please check your inbox.

You can order an original essay written according to your instructions.

Trusted by over 1 million students worldwide

1. Tell Us Your Requirements

2. Pick your perfect writer

3. Get Your Paper and Pay

Hi! I'm Amy, your personal assistant!

Don't know where to start? Give me your paper requirements and I connect you to an academic expert.

short deadlines

100% Plagiarism-Free

Certified writers

• Cast & crew
• User reviews

Inspired by a real-life scandal in which prison inmates are temporarily released from prison to work as contract killers on behalf of politicians and high ranking military officials. Inspired by a real-life scandal in which prison inmates are temporarily released from prison to work as contract killers on behalf of politicians and high ranking military officials. Inspired by a real-life scandal in which prison inmates are temporarily released from prison to work as contract killers on behalf of politicians and high ranking military officials.

• Michiko Yamamoto
• Piolo Pascual
• Gerald Anderson
• 25 User reviews
• 57 Critic reviews
• 70 Metascore
• 20 wins & 32 nominations

• Francis Coronel Jr.

• SPO1 Joaquin Acosta

• Congressman Manrique

• General Pacheco

• Chief of Police

• Warden Esteban
• (as Baldo Maro)
• All cast & crew
• Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

More like this

Did you know

• Connections Edited into On the Job (2021)
• Soundtracks Maskara Composed by Pepe Smith / Juan de la Cruz Band Performed by Dong Abay Produced by Armi Millare and Erwin Romulo

User reviews 25

• Leofwine_draca
• Oct 27, 2015
• How long is On the Job? Powered by Alexa
• August 28, 2013 (Philippines)
• Philippines
• Official Facebook
• Manila, Philippines
• Star Cinema
• Reality Entertainment
• See more company credits at IMDbPro
• Sep 29, 2013

Technical specs

• Runtime 1 hour 58 minutes

Related news

Contribute to this page.

• See more gaps
• Learn more about contributing

More to explore

Recently viewed

Moral Behaviours in the Movie “Inside Job”

Moral reasons behind salary differences, moral limits: what people acquire and how they earn money, reference list.

The essay centers on the movie “Inside Job” directed by Charles Ferguson whose key message is the portrayal of moral behaviours, as presented by the director, in relation to the real-life job scenario. The movie exposes the economic flaws that the US government had perpetrated (Ferguson, 2010). One of the quotes in the movie that relates to ethics is a quote from Andrew Sheng, “Why should a financial engineer be paid four times to 100 times more than real engineer? A Real engineer build(s) bridges. A financial engineer build(s) dreams. And, you know, when those dreams turn out to be nightmares, other people pay for it” (Ferguson, 2010). The answer to the question requires the consultation of the available ethical theories.

While justice and economic distribution theory concerns individuals and the social order by presenting ways through which people earn their living, economic justice, on the other hand, is attained when there is harmony between the output, input, and feedback. According to Shaw, Barry, and Sansbury (2010), distributive justice concerns “how the work that creates wealth is distributed and how the wealth that is created is distributed and considers on what basis such decisions may be made” (p. 234). The two theories carry various moral reasons why the statement on study might be ethically acceptable or objectionable for a “financial engineer” to be paid 100 times more than “real engineer” nurse, or teacher (Ferguson, 2010).

This may be held morally acceptable in the circumstances whereby the finance engineer is earning money based on his experiences and educational qualifications. The fact that both employees are workers and have academic qualifications in a related field does not mean that they should be treated equally. According to Kerwin (2011), “A person who acquires a holding in accord with the principle of justice in acquisition [that is, without violating anyone else’s Lockean rights] is entitled to that holding” (p. 25). Therefore, it will be unfair to treat the two engineers equally in terms of salary that they receive since they have different experiences and academic qualifications.

The second reason why this view is supported is that the professions that the two people studied are not similar. Finance engineer deals with issues to do with financial management while a real engineer is trained on real construction engineering such as construction of bridges and roads (Ferguson, 2010). These two distinguished field require different skills and knowledge. The ethics of the economic system theory comes in handy here. It requires the adoption of ethics in order to increase the level of trust/honesty for transactional costs to be reduced. The fact that the engineer does construction work does not warrant anyone to underrate the other field of engineering such as finance.

The differences for money that two earns may be due to many reasons such as status or leadership roles among many others. The disparity for salaries they receive is something that was happening even before the economic crisis happened in 2008 and is right in the capitalist society, “…people have a fundamental moral right to property and that our capitalist system is simply the outcome of this natural right” (Shaw, Barry & Sansbury, 2010, p. 132). Therefore, this has been the trend, and as time goes by, the salary of the engineer will be increased systematically. The engineer should be contended with these differences in their salaries.

However, it is unethical for the government to treat its workers with similar academic qualifications unfairly. The justice and economic distribution theory of economics is violated as evidence in the movie (Ferguson, 2010). It is not ethical for such deviations to happen. To ensure that there is justice and fair distribution of resource, the amount of income provided for the two employees need to support the spirit of fairness and equality. According to Shaw, Barry and Sansbury, (2010), “justice is often used to mean fairness” (p. 235). They argue, “One way unfairness creates injustice occurs when like cases are not treated in the same fashion” (Shaw, Barry, & Sansbury, 2010, p. 235). The two engineers are not treated fairly hence, there is injustice. Such inequality is morally undesirable as Shaw, Barry and Sansbury, (2010) put it, “inequalities in income and ownership is morally undesirable” (p. 136). Furthermore, this does not comply with the social contract theory that requires the formation of agreements between parties based on moral and political ethics.

Organisations are not putting in place the social implications of their actions. People who designed the salaries of the two professionals did not factor into their decisions momentous things such as equality and fairness. People have equal needs. It is also difficult for people to step aside when their interests are conflicting with ours. Rachels and Rachels (2010) say, “There is equality of need as each of us needs the same basic things in order to survive” (p. 81). Furthermore, “there is limited altruism… even if people are not wholly selfish, they care most about themselves, and we cannot assume that they will step aside when their interests conflict with ours” (Rachels & Rachels, 2010, p. 81). It is the duty of business entities to participate in corporate social responsibility to remain competitiveness and innovative since “social responsibility arises from social power” (Shaw, Barry, and Sansbury, 2010, p. 30). In this context, it seems that everybody is trying to outwit or be ahead of another.

It is also unethical for the finance engineer to receive high amounts of salary than other employees even if the objectives, scope, and goals are not attained. The money paid to the officer comes from the local people who are taxed heavily. This contravenes the ethics theory of justice and economic distribution. Distributive justice is concerned with, “how work that creates wealth, and how the wealth that is created is distributed and considers on what basis such decisions may be made” (Shaw, Barry & Sansbury, 2010, p. 234).The movie portrays economists and learned professors being ashamed of their evil deeds (Ferguson, 2010). There is a high rate of exploitation in the economy. Economy seems to protect and favour the rich, as opposed to the poor. Even if the rich are not adding value to the lives of the people in terms of triggering economic growth, they continue to get massive allowances and salaries. These practices in the economy are unethical since they violate the rights of others by being discriminative and unfair

It is therefore apparent that indeed there is a breach or violation of ethics in the operations of many businesses, as the movie portrays. The economic downfall that happened in late 2000s shows that, some parties, especially the rich people used the chance to steal money in a bid to amass wealth (Ferguson, 2010). There is no transparency in the system of the activities and programs of organisations, which continue to deter the smooth operation of businesses. The ethics of the economic system theory requires businesses to ensure that they remain sincere in their dealings to reduce on the costs of operation. “Justice is an important aspect of morality. Economic or distributive justice concerns the principles appropriate fro assessing society’s distribution of social benefits and burdens, particularly wealth, income, status and power” (Shaw, Barry & Sansbury, 2010, p. 259). This is not the case of this company since there is no rationale or efforts put in place to ensure that trust and openness is achieved. In fact, what the movie evidences is a lot of unethical acts such as bribery of scholars and other prominent people who take ‘speaking fees’ besides making fake appointments in a bid to misdirect future people on the subject of deregulation (Ferguson, 2010). In other scenarios, the input of an employee is not rewarded. For instance, some employees work hard still receiving low salaries while those who do not work continue to earn more. The system is unfair, a reason that contributed to the unfair wealth distribution and economic downtown.

There are moral limits that individuals may acquire. Morals are values that the society appreciates besides deeming them to be right. For instance, moral may include behaviours such as respect, faithfulness, and honesty among many others. The level of moral limits that people may acquire therefore depends on the level of understanding and appreciation of various moral values that have inculcated in somebody. It also depends on an individual him/herself. Therefore, people who have been raised in an environment that appreciates and cherishes moral values have a high sense of moral justice. They will always aspire to do good to their brothers and sisters, as opposed to those that have been brought up without any emphasis on such values. This moral limit may determine what an individual acquires and or gives.

A person with a negative moral perception is at the risk of falling victim of mob justice if found guilty of stealing people’s property in estates or any other place. On the other hand, an individual with positive moral values will be trustworthy and will always keep to the promise. The goal here is to fulfill the obligations bestowed upon such an individual. People earn money and survive through various means. The moral philosophy of people contributes substantially the amount of wealth an individual has. For instance, in this case study, different workers earn different amounts of money, as evidenced by the movie ‘Inside Job’ (Ferguson, 2010). These differences are based on moral backing and reasoning. A good scenario to illustrate this is when employees with similar qualifications but different responsibilities earn different amounts of salaries. Such differences are significant in people’s day-to-day association and interaction. Every person must work hard to realise or achieve a given objective.

In conclusion, from the quotation that has formed the basis of this discussion, it shows how people still have a long way to go to learn to appreciate other people’s efforts. Ethics dictates that people should appreciate what they have and work forward to achieving that which they do not have in a constructive manner. There is no need for businesses or individuals to engage in unscrupulous businesses while seeking greener pastures. Therefore, it is imperative that individuals learn and practice business ethics to allow a smooth transaction of businesses in a bid to boost the economy of the country.

Ferguson, C. (Director). (2010). Inside Job Movie (Motion Picture). United States, Vic.: Video Education.

Kerwin, A. (2011). Distributive Justice Robert Nozick’s Entitlement Theory. Ethics Reading Pack. McGraw Hill: Boston.

Rachels, J., & Rachels, S. (2010). The elements of moral philosophy (6 th ed). McGraw Hill: Boston.

Shaw, W., Barry, V., & Sansbury, G. (2010). Moral Issues in Business. (1 st Asia Pacificed). Melbourne: Cengage.

Cite this paper

• Chicago (N-B)
• Chicago (A-D)

StudyCorgi. (2020, October 5). Moral Behaviours in the Movie “Inside Job”. https://studycorgi.com/moral-behaviours-in-the-movie-inside-job/

"Moral Behaviours in the Movie “Inside Job”." StudyCorgi , 5 Oct. 2020, studycorgi.com/moral-behaviours-in-the-movie-inside-job/.

StudyCorgi . (2020) 'Moral Behaviours in the Movie “Inside Job”'. 5 October.

1. StudyCorgi . "Moral Behaviours in the Movie “Inside Job”." October 5, 2020. https://studycorgi.com/moral-behaviours-in-the-movie-inside-job/.

Bibliography

StudyCorgi . "Moral Behaviours in the Movie “Inside Job”." October 5, 2020. https://studycorgi.com/moral-behaviours-in-the-movie-inside-job/.

StudyCorgi . 2020. "Moral Behaviours in the Movie “Inside Job”." October 5, 2020. https://studycorgi.com/moral-behaviours-in-the-movie-inside-job/.

This paper, “Moral Behaviours in the Movie “Inside Job””, was written and voluntary submitted to our free essay database by a straight-A student. Please ensure you properly reference the paper if you're using it to write your assignment.

Before publication, the StudyCorgi editorial team proofread and checked the paper to make sure it meets the highest standards in terms of grammar, punctuation, style, fact accuracy, copyright issues, and inclusive language. Last updated: December 2, 2020 .

If you are the author of this paper and no longer wish to have it published on StudyCorgi, request the removal . Please use the “ Donate your paper ” form to submit an essay.

Movie Reviews

Tv/streaming, collections, great movies, chaz's journal, contributors.

Now streaming on:

The second the credits started rolling at the end of “ Steve Jobs ,” I reached into my purse and did what so many other people in the theater did: I turned on my iPhone. Currently, I’m writing this review on my MacBook Pro. Later this afternoon, once I’ve brought my six-year-old son home from school, I’ll try to deflect his demands to play “Angry Birds Star Wars” on the iPad.  So yes, Steve Jobs has changed my life just as he’s changed many millions of others’ on the planet. The devices he devised do what he hoped they would do: They make our lives easier. They are aesthetically appealing. They are our friends.

Danny Boyle ’s thrilling film, which takes place behind the scenes at three key product launches during the late Jobs’ career, begins with the Apple co-founder freaking out minutes before introducing the Macintosh in 1984 because his team couldn’t get it to say “hello.” It was nitpicky and obsessive—qualities he was famous for—but he was also onto something, as we now know: this idea of technology serving as a constant and comforting companion.

All of which makes the fact that he was so coldly dismissive to the real-life people closest to him—the people who actually loved him—such a fascinating contradiction, one of many that Boyle, writer Aaron Sorkin and star Michael Fassbender explore with great ambition and élan.

He insisted on micromanaging the tiniest details of his presentations—making sure the console was a perfect black cube, down to the millimeter, at the 1988 launch of his failed company, NeXT, or cajoling underlings to ignore fire code by shutting off the exit signs in the theater in hopes of achieving a dramatic darkness for his unveilings. But he couldn’t control who was going to come at him in the moments before he took the stage, or what they would say, or what they would want, or how they would dare to invade his formidable brain to wreak havoc when all he wanted to do was maintain his carefully crafted façade of Zen cool.

They include Apple co-founder and old friend Steve Wozniak (played with great intelligence and pathos by Seth Rogen ); Apple CEO John Sculley ( Jeff Daniels ), the one-time father figure who would gain infamy for eventually firing Jobs; and Chrisann Brennan ( Katherine Waterston ), Jobs’ ex-girlfriend and the mother of his daughter, Lisa, whom he long refused to acknowledge as his or support financially. (All three actresses playing Lisa at various ages give smart, distinctive performances, by the way— Makenzie Moss at 5, Ripley Sobo at 9 and Perla Haney-Jardine at 19.)

And of course, there is Fassbender himself, who doesn’t really resemble Jobs in any physical way but rather embodies his drive, his restlessness. Fassbender has never shied away from playing damaged or difficult characters—“Shame,” “ 12 Years a Slave ,” even the “ X-Men ” prequels as a young Magneto—but here, he has the added challenge of playing a revered, real-life figure over the span of 14 years, from long hair and bow tie to glasses and dad jeans. He never flinches from the arrogant and repulsive elements of this man’s behavior, but there’s an intensity to his presence and a directness in his eyes that make him not just compelling but commanding. He doesn’t care whether you like him, and that’s exciting.

Through it all is Kate Winslet as Joanna Hoffman, Jobs’ calm yet forceful right-hand woman and a much-needed voice of reason. Winslet gets a couple of great speeches, which she delivers with convincing power, totally unsurprisingly. Her exchanges with Fassbender are the film’s high points and almost a high-wire act; it’s a tricky thing making such dense dialogue sound effortless, but both actors pull it off.

This a super-Sorkiny Aaron Sorkin script—full of the kind of well-timed zingers and clever turns of phrase that never occur to us in real life. Rogen gets the best line of all toward the end, one he levels at Jobs in a crowded auditorium before the 1998 iMac launch: “ You can be decent and gifted at the same time. It’s not binary. ” With self-conscious beauty and piercing insight, it’s a notion that defines the entire film.

The energy is relentless and the actors all more than meet the challenge of not only keeping up with Sorkin’s trademark, rat-a-tat patter but also making it sing. But because the movie takes place almost entirely within interiors, the non-stop walking-and-talking—back and forth through hallways, up and down stairways and in and out of doorways—almost plays like a parody of Sorkin’s style, the kind of thing we saw when “The West Wing” was at its peak.

Thanks to Boyle’s typically kinetic direction, “Steve Jobs” is certainly never boring. It rarely takes a breath and is crammed with high-tech jargon, but it never feels bogged down. Corridors come to life with imagery. Moments from the past crosscut seamlessly and inform the present, often with overlapping dialogue. And the glare of the lights and thunder of the crowds can be so all encompassing, they make you feel like you were there, too: on the precipice of the future.

And that’s sort of a fascinating contradiction in itself: that a movie about a guy who was obsessed with sleekness and simplicity should be bursting with verbiage and verve.

Having said that, if you don’t know a whole lot about Steve Jobs going into “Steve Jobs,” “Steve Jobs” isn’t about to go out of its way to help you. If you don’t know about the garage in Los Altos, CA where it all began, or his lengthy and tangled friendship with Wozniak, the potential for exploring the complexities of Jobs’ personality might be lost on you. An excellent companion piece would be Alex Gibney ’s recent documentary, “ Steve Jobs: The Man in the Machine ,” which covers much of the same ground, but more thoroughly. (You’re welcome to ignore the 2013 biopic “ Jobs ” starring Ashton Kutcher , if you haven’t already. But it is rather telling that Jobs’ life has inspired three separate features in just a couple of years.)

Sorkin’s script is bold in choosing these pivotal moments in Jobs’ career and structuring them as a three-act play. Certainly it’s far preferable to the standard, superficial, cradle-to-the-grave biopic that tries to encompass too much. It’s easy to imagine “Steve Jobs” as a stage production, actually, for its theatrical talkiness and the minimalism of its set design.

It’s also easy to compare Sorkin’s portrayal of Jobs in “Steve Jobs” to his portrayal of Mark Zuckerberg in “ The Social Network ,” which earned him the adapted-screenplay Oscar in 2011. Both men are visionary geniuses who revolutionized the way people connect with each other, even though they are more than a little socially challenged when it comes to the people in their own lives. The irony may be too rich, but it’s delicious—even though the men in question can be so vicious that their actions leave a bad taste in your mouth.

The fact that he doesn’t try to redeem these flawed, fascinating figures—or even try to make you like them in the slightest way—feels like an innovation in itself.

Christy Lemire

Christy Lemire is a longtime film critic who has written for RogerEbert.com since 2013. Before that, she was the film critic for The Associated Press for nearly 15 years and co-hosted the public television series "Ebert Presents At the Movies" opposite Ignatiy Vishnevetsky, with Roger Ebert serving as managing editor. Read her answers to our Movie Love Questionnaire here .

Now playing

Peter Sobczynski

Brian Tallerico

Veselka: The Rainbow on the Corner at the Center of the World

The Long Game

The Idea of You

Matt Zoller Seitz

Film credits.

Steve Jobs (2015)

Rated R for language.

122 minutes

Michael Fassbender as Steve Jobs

Kate Winslet as Joanna Hoffman

Seth Rogen as Steve Wozniak

Katherine Waterston as Chrisann Brennan

Jeff Daniels as John Sculley

Michael Stuhlbarg as Andy Hertzfeld

Sarah Snook as Andrea Cunningham

Adam Shapiro as Avie Tevanian

Makenzie Moss as Lisa Jobs (5 Years Old)

Ripley Sobo as Lisa Jobs (9 Years Old)

Perla Haney-Jardine as Lisa Jobs (19 Years Old)

John Ortiz as Joel Pforzheimer

• Danny Boyle
• Aaron Sorkin
• Walter Isaacson

Original Music Composer

• Daniel Pemberton

Cinematography

• Alwin H. Kuchler
• Bernard Bellew

Latest blog posts

The 10 Best Start-of-Summer-Movie-Season Films of the 21st Century

The Weight of Smoke (and Blue in the Face): The Magic of Paul Auster

Retrospective: Oscar Micheaux and the Birth of Black Independent Cinema

Phil Lord and Chris Miller Made the Multiplex Safe for ‘The Fall Guy’

• International edition
• Australia edition
• Europe edition

No Jerry Seinfeld, the ‘extreme left’ hasn’t killed comedy

The comedian’s claim that wokeness is the reason why comedy is no longer as funny is lazy – and inaccurate

J erry Seinfeld is currently at saturation point, promoting his new Pop Tarts movie Unfrosted . Still a canny operator, however, Seinfeld understands that the last thing anyone in the world wants to hear about is his new Pop Tarts movie. After all, there is realistically only so much available media interest in a streaming period comedy film about a breakfast product. And so Unfrosted has taken something of a backseat to a much more newsworthy proposition: Jerry Seinfeld mouthing off for clicks.

Until now, Seinfeld’s targets have included the film industry (the people he worked with “don’t have any idea that the movie business is over”) and his disdain for dabblers (“There’s nothing I revile quite as much as a dilettante”), despite being a man who has just directed his first film at the age of 70. True, he has also tried talking about things he actually enjoys, like his love of watching surfing videos on YouTube, but that isn’t really what gets the clicks these days. And so, with some inevitability, Jerry Seinfeld has pulled out the big guns and declared that the left is destroying comedy.

Speaking on the New Yorker’s Radio Hour , Seinfeld said: “Nothing really affects comedy. People always need it. They need it so badly and they don’t get it. It used to be that you’d go home at the end of the day, most people would go ‘Oh, Cheers is on. Oh, M*A*S*H is on. Oh, Mary Tyler Moore is on. All in the Family is on.’ You just expected [there will] be some funny stuff we can watch on TV tonight. Well guess what? Where is it? Where is it?”

Which isn’t entirely true – Curb Your Enthusiasm just wrapped up its 25-year-run with a universally beloved episode that Jerry Seinfeld was actually in – but it’s broadly valid. Despite the glut of streaming services that now run in addition to the major networks, a smaller and smaller percentage of their output is comedic in nature. One answer might be that people are turning online for faster, funnier, cheaper comedy that appeals directly to their tastes. But Jerry Seinfeld has other ideas.

“This is the result of the extreme left and PC crap and people worrying so much about offending other people,” he explained, going on to state: “When you write a script, and it goes into four or five different hands, committees, groups – ‘Here’s our thought about this joke’ – well, that’s the end of your comedy.”

The problem seems to be that too many people delight in performative outrage these days, and a well-intentioned joke might end up being taken out of context and being escalated to a cancelation-level event. Luckily, the extreme left wasn’t a thing back in Seinfeld’s day, which is why something as famously edgy as – let’s see – Cheers was able to stay on air for as long as it did.

On the surface, this is an incredibly dreary thing to say, not least because it doesn’t fit Seinfeld as a performer at all. It’s hard to complain that you’re not allowed to offend anybody any more when your stock in trade is deliberately inoffensive comedy. Jerry Seinfeld is a man who has just made a film about some pastry. Unless all the clips and trailers have done a particularly good job of hiding a scene in which one character looks straight to camera and declares that all trans people are an affront to God, Unfrosted probably isn’t going to appall the delicate sensibilities of very many people at all.

This is a man, remember, who is proud of his family friendly image. The 2011 HBO special Talking Funny has aged incredibly badly – it’s a roundtable discussion of comedy that features both Louis CK and Ricky Gervais – but Seinfeld’s contributions hold up. During his discussion, he defends his decision never to swear onstage, insinuating that it’s an easy way to get laughs. It’s a subject he followed up on a few years later, telling the Guardian: “A person who can defend themselves with a gun is just not very interesting. But a person who defends themselves through aikido or tai chi? Very interesting.”

And let’s not forget that, when Seinfeld’s co-star Michael Richards ended his career with a racist rant onstage, Jerry Seinfeld not only brought him on Letterman to explain himself, but treated the incident with such grave intent that at one point he sincerely ordered the studio audience to stop laughing, telling them: “It’s not funny.”

So there have always been gatekeepers to what is and isn’t funny. Indeed, in his own work Jerry Seinfeld has been one of the staunchest gatekeepers of all. Perhaps the problem here isn’t that the extreme left has a stranglehold on comedy. Perhaps it’s just that Jerry Seinfeld is getting old.

• Jerry Seinfeld
• Comedy (Culture)
• Comedy (Stage)

Most viewed

Home — Essay Samples — Entertainment — Film Analysis — The Film “Inside Job”: Summary

The Film "Inside Job": Summary

• Categories: Film Analysis Job

About this sample

Words: 986 |

Published: Sep 4, 2018

Words: 986 | Pages: 2 | 5 min read

Works Cited

• Ferguson, C. (Director). (2010). Inside Job [Documentary]. Sony Pictures Classics.
• Johnson, S. (2010). The Quiet Coup. The Atlantic, 305(2), 39-50.
• MacLean, N. (2017). Democracy in Chains: The Deep History of the Radical Right's Stealth Plan for America. Viking.
• Stiglitz, J. E. (2010). Freefall: America, Free Markets, and the Sinking of the World Economy. W. W. Norton & Company.
• Sorkin, A. R. (2010). Too Big to Fail: The Inside Story of How Wall Street and Washington Fought to Save the Financial System—and Themselves. Penguin Books.
• Krugman, P. (2012). End This Depression Now! W. W. Norton & Company.
• Taibbi, M. (2010). Griftopia: Bubble Machines, Vampire Squids, and the Long Con That Is Breaking America. Spiegel & Grau.
• Roubini, N., & Mihm, S. (2011). Crisis Economics: A Crash Course in the Future of Finance. Penguin Books.
• Barofsky, N. (2012). Bailout: An Inside Account of How Washington Abandoned Main Street While Rescuing Wall Street. Free Press.
• Shiller, R. J. (2008). The Subprime Solution: How Today's Global Financial Crisis Happened, and What to Do about It. Princeton University Press.

Cite this Essay

Let us write you an essay from scratch

• 450+ experts on 30 subjects ready to help
• Custom essay delivered in as few as 3 hours

Get high-quality help

Dr Jacklynne

Verified writer

• Expert in: Entertainment Life

+ 120 experts online

By clicking “Check Writers’ Offers”, you agree to our terms of service and privacy policy . We’ll occasionally send you promo and account related email

No need to pay just yet!

Related Essays

2 pages / 1165 words

4 pages / 1842 words

3 pages / 1286 words

7.5 pages / 3441 words

Remember! This is just a sample.

You can get your custom paper by one of our expert writers.

121 writers online

Still can’t find what you need?

Browse our vast selection of original essay samples, each expertly formatted and styled

Related Essays on Film Analysis

Dead Poets Society, a masterpiece directed by Peter Weir, is a must-watch movie for teenagers. This film features three main characters: Robin Williams as John Keating, Robert Sean Leonard as Neil Perry, and Ethan [...]

Spotlight is directed by Tom McCarthy and stars Michael Keaton, Mark Ruffalo, Rachel McAdams, and Liev Schreiber. It’s the true story of the Boston news reporters who work for the Boston Globe who uncovered a very disturbing [...]

The Matrix was a revolutionary movie that commented on technological reliance and used lighting, special effects and camera angles to add intrigue to the storyline. It tells of the dangers of technology and shows a worst-case [...]

“All power to ALL the people.” This motto is repeated throughout the latest “Spike Lee Joint.” BlacKkKlansman is the newest film by the director of acclaimed films like Do the Right Thing, Malcolm X, and Inside Man. The film [...]

This article is about very interesting movie named girl interrupted. I am happy to write this article, because this movie inspired me a lot when I first watched it. Being psychologists this movie is a must watch as it holds many [...]

According to an article published in Talk film society, the writer spoke about how effective dialogues were and how the DOP gave his heart and soul to the movie of the millennial. Devdas is rich with dialogue scenes, during [...]

Related Topics

By clicking “Send”, you agree to our Terms of service and Privacy statement . We will occasionally send you account related emails.

Where do you want us to send this sample?

By clicking “Continue”, you agree to our terms of service and privacy policy.

Be careful. This essay is not unique

This essay was donated by a student and is likely to have been used and submitted before

Download this Sample

Free samples may contain mistakes and not unique parts

Sorry, we could not paraphrase this essay. Our professional writers can rewrite it and get you a unique paper.

Please check your inbox.

We can write you a custom essay that will follow your exact instructions and meet the deadlines. Let's fix your grades together!

Get Your Personalized Essay in 3 Hours or Less!

We use cookies to personalyze your web-site experience. By continuing we’ll assume you board with our cookie policy .

• Instructions Followed To The Letter
• Deadlines Met At Every Stage
• Unique And Plagiarism Free

“The Italian Job” Film by Felix Gary Gray Essay (Movie Review)

Leaders and their styles, character traits and their influence, situational elements and maturity of followers.

The movie “Italian Job” explores a heist plan by a group of people to steal gold from an Italian gang (Holden, 2003). The group comprises individuals with different skills and backgrounds. For instance, the group has an explosive expert and a computer wizard. The plan is to blow up the room where the safe is stored and land it in a boat waiting in the water canal beneath the apartment. With the help of ‘‘Napster’’, “Left Ear,” and Steve, two explosives are planted on the floor and ceiling of the room where the safe is stored (Holden, 2003).

The plan is executed so flawlessly that the individuals guarding the room with the safe do not suspect that the safe is gone at least for a few minutes. The explosives blow out the floor and land the safe on a boat waiting in a water canal below the apartment. The escape plan involves Rob acting as a decoy in order to allow other members to offload the gold bars from the safe into their motorboat. They escape successfully and drive to the Alps to celebrate. The members outline their individual plans for the loot except for Steve, who does not have a plan yet.

After leaving the mountains, they drive towards the Austrian border. Unfortunately, they are intercepted by armed individuals who take the gold. It emerges that the group was contracted by Steve, who had betrayed his friends. Steve shoots John when he tries to stop him from taking the gold (Holden, 2003). Steve and his contracted men drive away. After a year, Charlie and his group locate Steve and decide to steal the gold from him.

To accomplish this, they hire Stella, John’s daughter, who is a master at cracking safes, and who is determined to avenge her father’s death (Holden, 2003). Stella drives up to Steve’s residence, disguised as a technician. Their first attempt fails after discovering that Steve’s neighbor is holding a party. Stella goes on a date with Steve and reveals her identity through a slip of the tongue. Despite the small mishap, they finally steal the gold while on transit to Mexico.

The leaders identified in the film are Charlie and Steve. Charlie is the overall leader of the group who tells the members of his group what to do and when to do it. The character of Charlie is defined by tenacity, intelligence, and focus (Holden, 2003). He seeks revenge for the death of his friend and mentor, John. He is also experienced because he started stealing as a child. Charlie’s leadership style is democratic. Each of the members in the group has a specialty, and Charlie allows them to do their work without questioning their competence.

He listens to them attentively and coordinates their activities. Democratic leadership is a leadership style that involves the active participation of every member in a group with regard to making decisions (Lussier & Achua, 2012 ) . Charlie listens to each member attentively and allows them to execute their duties accordingly. Steve leads a small group of gangsters that steals the gold from Charlie and his friends. His style of leadership is authoritarian because he gives commands to his group and controls all their actions.

Charlie’s leadership traits support his leadership style because of the difficult role he plays. For instance, he has to contend with one of the members betraying them. He does not give up and creates a plan to steal the gold from Steve. He exhibits charisma, courage, good communication skills, and open-mindedness. On the other hand, Steve is flexible and organized. These qualities enable him to steal the gold from his friends by contracting a group of individuals. The followers include Stella, Rob, John, Lyle, and Gilligan (Holden, 2003). They are followers because under the guidance of Charlie, who tells them what to do, introduces them to each other, and decides the actions to take at any given time.

For instance, before driving to Steve’s house posing as a technician, Charlie offers tips to Stella and encourages him not to let fear stop him from avenging his father’s death (Holden, 2003). The character traits of the followers that influenced the outcome include obedience, initiative, courage, and competency. The plan to steal the gold was successful because the followers had special skills that were unique to each one of them (Holden, 2003). In addition, they listen to their leader and follow the rules to the letter. They do not argue among themselves. In addition, they work together as a team, with their leader coordinating their activities.

According to Hersey and Blanchard’s situational leadership theory, there are four levels of maturity, namely M1, M2, M3, and M4. The followers exhibit M4 level of maturity because they have the necessary experience to execute their roles and take responsibility for their actions (Daft, 2014). In addition, they take full responsibility for their tasks and do them well according to Charlie’s plan. Their maturity is expressed by the effective execution of tasks.

Situational elements that influence the leadership process include task structure, the relationship between the leader and the followers, and positioning power (Daft, 2014). The plan is flawless because it is well structured. The leader is able to make changes in different situations because of his flexibility. In the group, the relationship between the followers and their leader is good. However, Steve is not loyal because he betrays his partners and steals their gold. His actions force Charlie to alter the group’s plan in order to deal with the unexpected obstacle.

Daft, R. (2014). The Leadership Experience . New York: Cengage Learning.

Holden, S. (2003). The Italian Job Film Review: Once Again, It Takes a Thief to Catch a Thief. Web.

Lussier, R., & Achua, C. (2012 ). Leadership: Theory, Application, and Skill Development . New York: Cengage Learning.

• Chicago (A-D)
• Chicago (N-B)

IvyPanda. (2020, June 19). "The Italian Job" Film by Felix Gary Gray. https://ivypanda.com/essays/the-italian-job-film-by-felix-gary-gray/

""The Italian Job" Film by Felix Gary Gray." IvyPanda , 19 June 2020, ivypanda.com/essays/the-italian-job-film-by-felix-gary-gray/.

IvyPanda . (2020) '"The Italian Job" Film by Felix Gary Gray'. 19 June.

IvyPanda . 2020. ""The Italian Job" Film by Felix Gary Gray." June 19, 2020. https://ivypanda.com/essays/the-italian-job-film-by-felix-gary-gray/.

1. IvyPanda . ""The Italian Job" Film by Felix Gary Gray." June 19, 2020. https://ivypanda.com/essays/the-italian-job-film-by-felix-gary-gray/.

Bibliography

IvyPanda . ""The Italian Job" Film by Felix Gary Gray." June 19, 2020. https://ivypanda.com/essays/the-italian-job-film-by-felix-gary-gray/.

• Blanchard and Fiedler Leadership Models
• Weapons and the War in Iraq: Is XM-8 the Answer
• "Americanizing the White Man" by Felix Cohen
• Felix Cook Junior Elementary Problems
• "Overture to A Midsummer Night's Dream" by Felix Mendelssohn
• Felix Cook Junior Elementary Campus Goals
• Finances of Pearl Retail Website in Switzerland
• American Animation: The Golden Age Period
• Criminalistics: Arson and High and Low Explosives
• The Relationship Between Memory and Oblivion
• Creativity and Censorship in Egyptian Filmmaking
• Film Studies: "Cracks on the Mask"
• "Colors of the Wind" Scene in the "Pocahontas" Film
• "Rear Window" Film vs. "It Had to Be Murder" Story
• “Fifteen Years and a Day” a Drama by Gracia Querejeta

Advertisement

Supported by

‘Guilt’ Review: When the Lights Go Out in Edinburgh

The final season of Scotland’s most notable TV drama, on PBS’s “Masterpiece,” is a suitably twisty and sardonic send-off for the battling McCall brothers.

• Share full article

By Mike Hale

Contains spoilers for Seasons 1 and 2 of “Guilt.”

“Guilt,” a pioneering series in Scottish television — it was the first drama commissioned by the newly formed BBC Scotland channel in 2019 — has built an audience well beyond its borders. A melancholy tale of family dysfunction presented as a complicated crime thriller, it combines British regionalism with peak TV-style poker-faced comedy in a way that has made it a critical darling around the world.

Created and written by Neil Forsyth, “Guilt” has arrived in dense, lively four-episode bursts; the third and final season has its American premiere on PBS’s “Masterpiece” beginning Sunday. Each installment has been organized around a psycho-philosophical theme: first guilt, then revenge in Season 2, and now, as Forsyth described it in a BBC interview, redemption.

But the pleasure of the show does not come from diagraming its moral lessons (unless that’s your thing), or from unwinding Forsyth’s sometimes maddeningly convoluted plots, which entangle sons and daughters of Edinburgh’s rough-and-tumble Leith district with the city’s gangsters, cops and politicians.

What makes “Guilt” worthwhile is Forsyth’s knack for creating characters who work their way into our affections, less by their actions than by their unconscious, soul-deep responses to life in the grim confines of Leith and the promise of something better in Edinburgh’s more comfortable precincts.

At the center of the web are Max and Jake McCall (Mark Bonnar and the marvelous Jamie Sives), brothers with very little use for each other who become bound in a seemingly endless cycle of lies, danger and recrimination. It begins in the opening minutes of Season 1 when Jake, with Max in the car’s passenger seat, accidentally runs into an old man, killing him. Jake, a gentle soul with an encyclopedic knowledge of pop music (he could have wandered in from a Nick Hornby novel), wants to call the police; Max, a rapacious lawyer with a near-sociopathic lack of empathy, says no.

This is the original sin for which the brothers are still paying. Covering up their hit-and-run homicide embroils them with the Lynches, a married pair of quietly vicious gangsters whom Max and Jake are both on the run from, and scheming to take down, across the show’s three seasons. While the brothers work together for survival, they are also at each other’s throats, taking turns ruefully betraying each other, leading to imprisonment, exile and worse.

Sives brings a natural soulfulness to Jake while also making his cold double crosses of his brother believable; Bonnar is just as capable given the inverse challenge, conveying Max’s venality, vanity and desperation for success (pegged to being abandoned as a child) while also making credible his rare flashes of sympathy.

But even more crucial to the show’s effect are the amusingly vivid characters who surround the brothers: Kenny (Emun Elliott), the formerly alcoholic, surprisingly capable investigator who serves as the show’s wobbly moral center; Stevie (Henry Pettigrew), the hilariously jumpy corrupt cop; Teddy (Greg McHugh), who fully communicates his ability to dispense extreme violence while rarely actually dispensing it; Sheila (Ellie Haddington), the deadpan black widow; and Maggie Lynch, the show’s motherly, ruthless big bad, with Phyllis Logan of “Downton Abbey” playing wonderfully against type.

(Even incidental characters have distinctive moments. In the new season, Anita Vettesse, as the girlfriend of a man who gets thrown from a great height, gets to deliver this memorable couplet: “There’s nobody better at keeping their head down than me. It’s probably my biggest talent, if I’m honest with you.”)

The first season of “Guilt” was a self-contained triumph. It offered a cleverly satirical structure — as Jake and Max’s cover-up rippled out, one character after another found his lot improved, or his aspirations stoked, in confounding ways — and a satisfying ending that sent Jake out of the country and Max, accepting that he had been sold out by his brother, off to prison.

The second season, in which Max was released and pursued his improbable campaign of revenge against the Lynches, was over-plotted and overwritten, full of action-halting speeches about life and Leith. And it suffered from the absence of Jake for more than half the season — Max’s fervor was not nearly as moving or entertaining without his brother there to react to it.

The brothers are together from the start of Season 3, which puts them at the lowest, most perilous point they have reached so far. And it is largely a return to form, a suitable send-off for the battling McCalls. Kenny, Teddy, Stevie and Sheila all return, and join Max, Jake, an honest cop (Isaura Barbé-Brown) and Kenny’s no-nonsense niece (Amelia Isaac Jones), in a coalition of the somewhat willing, to take on Maggie Lynch one last time. Forsyth has fully assimilated the lessons of the Coen brothers and the history of the caper film, and with an ending that lets in more sentiment than the show has previously allowed, he gives Jake and Max slivers of their Scottish dreams.

Mike Hale is a television critic for The Times. He also writes about online video, film and media. More about Mike Hale

Explore More in TV and Movies

Not sure what to watch next we can help..

The Netflix stalker series “ Baby Reindeer ” combines the appeal of a twisty thriller with a deep sense of empathy. The ending illustrates why it’s become such a hit .

We have entered the golden age of Mid TV, where we have a profusion of well-cast, sleekly produced competence, our critic writes .

The writer-director Alex Garland has made it clear that “Civil War” should be a warning. Instead, the ugliness of war comes across as comforting thrills .

Studios obsessively focused on PG-13 franchises and animation in recent years, but movies like “Challengers” and “Saltburn” show that Hollywood is embracing sex again .

If you are overwhelmed by the endless options, don’t despair — we put together the best offerings   on Netflix , Max , Disney+ , Amazon Prime  and Hulu  to make choosing your next binge a little easier.

Sign up for our Watching newsletter  to get recommendations on the best films and TV shows to stream and watch, delivered to your inbox.

Dan Schneider Sues ‘Quiet on Set’ Producers for Defamation, Calls Nickelodeon Abuse Docuseries a ‘Hit Job’

By Ethan Shanfeld

Ethan Shanfeld

• Anitta Reflects on Dreaming Big in Brazil and Breaking the ‘Rules’ of Being a Woman: ‘I Wanted to Shake My Ass. I Wanted to Be Free’ 2 days ago
• Dan Schneider Sues ‘Quiet on Set’ Producers for Defamation, Calls Nickelodeon Abuse Docuseries a ‘Hit Job’ 3 days ago
• Death Threats, Divorce and Plastic Surgery: Gypsy Rose Blanchard Says ‘I Am in a Different Form of Prison’ in Lifetime Series Trailer 3 days ago

Dan Schneider has filed a defamation lawsuit against the producers of the Investigation Discovery docuseries “ Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV ,” which uncovered alleged abuse and misconduct at Nickelodeon and became Max’s biggest streaming title ever .

Popular on Variety

Schneider himself said in a video posted after the launch of “Quiet on Set,” “Watching over the past two nights was very difficult. Facing my past behaviors, some of which are embarrassing and that I regret. I definitely owe some people a pretty strong apology.”

In a separate statement sent to Variety alongside the legal complaint, Schneider wrote: “Recently the docuseries ‘Quiet on Set’ highlighted mistakes I made and poor judgment I exhibited during my time at Nickelodeon, most of which happened decades ago during my early career as a producer, working on shows for Tollin/Robbins Productions. There is no doubt that I was sometimes a bad leader. I am sincerely apologetic and regretful for that behavior, and I will continue to take accountability for it. However, after seeing ‘Quiet on Set’ and its trailer, and the reactions to them, I sadly have no choice but to take legal action against the people behind it. In their successful attempt to mislead viewers and increase ratings, they went beyond reporting the truth and falsely implied that I was involved in or facilitated horrific crimes for which actual child predators have been prosecuted and convicted.”

Schneider continued: “I have no objection to anyone highlighting my failures as a boss, but it is wrong to mislead millions of people to the false conclusion that I was in any way involved in heinous acts like those committed by child predators. I owe it to myself, my family, and the many wonderful people involved in making these shows to set the record straight.”

Variety has reached out to ID for comment.

In addition to Dan Schneider, “Quiet on Set” also investigates other people working at Nickelodeon at the time, including dialogue and acting coach Brian Peck. Interviewed in “Quiet on Set” is “Drake & Josh” star Drake Bell, who alleges he was a victim of Peck’s sexual abuse. In 2003, Peck, 43 at the time, was arrested on 11 charges  — including sodomy, lewd act upon a child 14 or 15 by a person 10 years older, and oral copulation by anesthesia or controlled substance — but the victim was not previously named.

“Quiet on Set” also mentions Jason Michael Handy, a production assistant who was arrested and charged with a lewd act with a child under 14. The mother of a former child actor who appeared on “The Amanda Show” claimed on “Quiet on Set” that Handy sent her daughter a photograph of him naked, masturbating. Another Nickelodeon staffer, animator Ezel Channel, was sentenced to more than seven years in prison for committing lewd acts on a 14-year-old boy and showing him pornography.

More From Our Brands

Kentucky derby livestream: how to watch the 150th running online this weekend, savannah vs. charleston: which southern city has the best luxury hotels, fanatics exec appeals injunction in draftkings noncompete case, be tough on dirt but gentle on your body with the best soaps for sensitive skin, the boys season 4 trailer: wrathful supes, gen v cameos… and homelander on ice oh my — watch, verify it's you, please log in.

• Ethics & Leadership
• Fact-Checking
• Media Literacy
• The Craig Newmark Center
• Reporting & Editing
• Ethics & Trust
• Tech & Tools
• Business & Work
• Educators & Students
• Training Catalog
• Custom Teaching
• For ACES Members
• All Categories
• Broadcast & Visual Journalism
• Fact-Checking & Media Literacy
• In-newsroom
• Memphis, Tenn.
• Minneapolis, Minn.
• St. Petersburg, Fla.
• Washington, D.C.
• Poynter ACES Introductory Certificate in Editing
• Poynter ACES Intermediate Certificate in Editing
• Ethics & Trust Articles
• Get Ethics Advice
• Fact-Checking Articles
• International Fact-Checking Day
• Teen Fact-Checking Network
• International
• Media Literacy Training
• MediaWise Resources
• Ambassadors
• MediaWise in the News

Support responsible news and fact-based information today!

Gannett hits pause button on its promise to restaff its smallest papers

Outlets with few or no staff members likely to stay that way for a while.

For most of 2023 year and all of 2024 so far, Gannett has promised that it is working to add hundreds of new editorial positions , backfilling the many openings that were lost after a December 2022 hiring freeze, then growing further.

The pledge includes restaffing many of the chain’s smallest dailies, ones that have been languishing with one or no locally based journalists as more profitable metros get attention and resources.

Chief Content Officer Kristin Roberts said of the new approach in Gannett’s quarterly earnings call with analysts:

“Last year, we launched an initiative with the conviction that putting reporters into our smallest newsrooms was critical, but not enough on its own to be sustainable.

We needed to experiment with new ways of engaging hometown readers at a small-site scale. Our reporters combined first-person voice with a newsletter approach that invited readers to join them in experiencing their community firsthand, the results were remarkable and gave us the confidence to boldly expand this strategy.”

There was a notable omission, though.

Roberts didn’t say that the company hit the brakes on hiring for that key small newsroom position three months earlier.

The people already on board in the beta version of what Gannett calls the I-30 Initiative could stay. Authorizations to proceed with other hires stopped.  Some candidates who were expecting to start soon have had the offer rescinded. According to internal communications, the “pause” has now been rolled over through the second quarter.

Roberts declined my request for an interview. The next quarterly earnings report is Thursday, and she may or may not offer an update.

The I-30 jobs (so called because they were approved for 30 markets) are unusual ones, defined after a protracted planning process through last summer. Journalists, well paid at roughly $50,000, are being hired on one-year contracts rather than as full-time employees. They must physically work in the target communities.

Their job is to establish a local news presence in cities that have been getting only a thin trickle of hometown content. A particular emphasis, as Roberts said, is creating newsletters, now a primary way in the industry to get samples of coverage to the target audience and capture email addresses of potential paid digital subscribers.

A community division editor who alerted me to the pause said it has created chaos for people like her. (She asked for anonymity in hopes of keeping her job).

Editors, spread thin and scrambling to oversee several papers at once, are not getting the relief they’d anticipated, she said. Identifying I-30 candidates in October and November proved difficult, given the lack of assurance they would be hired permanently.

Plus, from the management perspective of regional editors who hire one level down, they cannot be sure that a position that comes open as an editor moves on or is fired can be filled.

With approvals on hold, “the solution for all these ghost newsrooms is put off indefinitely,” my source said.

Though the number of hires involved is modest, and Gannett continues to spend on growing news staff at its metros , I think there is a context that makes it a bigger deal.

For the better part of a decade, Gannett has been open about bigger newspapers, particularly in an era pivoting from print to digital, being the  best prospects for revenue and profit growth.

The metro division used to hold its annual planning retreat at Poynter and  allowed me to sit in to better understand the company’s editorial strategy. I was told on background by one of the participants that even papers with no news staff contributed welcome revenue and a little profit

Continuing to publish papers with next to no local content has seemed like a sham to analysts like me and market-by-market data expert Penny Abernathy. I first wrote specifically about a Gannett ghost newspaper four years ago — this one in Ithaca, New York, a town with two major universities, that was down to a single local reporter. I got the explanation that metros proportionately generate more revenue and profits.

So, it seemed welcome evidence of journalistic commitment when Roberts’  extensive package of initiatives for her first year at Gannett included a good faith effort to put a better news report in front of its small and midsized town readers.

I’m hoping, even betting, that the I-30 program and other reinvestments resume. But for right now, the community papers have again taken their position in the back of the line for Gannett.

Shut Out: Strategies for good journalism when sources dismiss the press

Complete report from Poynter's ethics symposium on growing trend of sources refusing to engage with journalists

Opinion | Pulitzer Prize Board praises students just ahead of journalism’s biggest awards

Plus, more losses at Gannett and Lee despite growth in digital, and details from Brittney Griner about her imprisonment in Russia.

Did South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem break the law by shooting her dog? What legal experts say

Republican South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem’s story about killing her dog Cricket ignited a heated debate. Did she break the law?

Data glitch leads to error and a reminder for journalists

Orlando Sentinel alters restaurant inspection publishing practice after mix-up

Shut Out: How the pandemic and polarization have had chilling effects on good journalism — and our conclusion

Part Four of a report from Poynter's ethics seminar examines effects of pandemic and polarization on journalists

You must be logged in to post a comment.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed .

Start your day informed and inspired.

Get the Poynter newsletter that's right for you.