# Margin Call

Margin Call is a 2011 American drama film written and directed by J. C. Chandor in his feature directorial debut. The principal story takes place over a 24-hour period at a large Wall Street investment bank during the initial stages of the 2008 financial crisis. It focuses on the actions taken by a group of employees during the subsequent financial collapse. The title comes from a finance term for when an investor must increase the securities or other assets used as collateral for a loan when their value falls below a certain threshold. The film stars an ensemble cast consisting of Kevin Spacey, Paul Bettany, Jeremy Irons, Zachary Quinto, Penn Badgley, Simon Baker, Mary McDonnell, Demi Moore, and Stanley Tucci.
The film was produced by Myriad Pictures, Benaroya Pictures and Before the Door Pictures (which was the first to sign on and is owned by Zachary Quinto). It was produced in association with Washington Square Films. Theatrically, it was distributed by Lionsgate and Roadside Attractions in North America, with Myriad handling international distribution through independent distributors. The director and screenwriter, J. C. Chandor, is the son of an investment banker; the screenplay was partially informed by Chandor's own foray into real estate investments in New York City shortly before the financial crash. Preceding its theatrical release, Margin Call received positive critical reviews. Following its wide release, the film garnered award nominations from the Detroit Film Critics Society, along with several separate nominations for its screenplay and direction from recognized award organizations, including a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay. The score was composed by Nathan Larson.
The film premiered at the Sundance Film Festival on January 25, 2011, and opened in theaters nationwide in the United States on October 21, 2011. Though it grossed just $5.4 million in domestic ticket sales from 199 theaters, the film had a ground-breaking day-and-date release that earned more than $10 million in video-on-demand sales. The DVD and Blu-ray editions were released in the U.S. on December 20, 2011.

## Plot

In 2008, an unnamed investment bank begins laying off a large number of employees. Among those affected is Eric Dale, head of risk management. Dale's attempts to speak about the implications of a model he is working on are ignored. On his way out, he gives a flash drive containing his work to Peter Sullivan, an analyst in his department, warning him to "be careful". Sullivan, intrigued, works after hours to complete Dale's model.
Sullivan discovers that the assumptions underpinning the firm's present risk profile are wrong; historical volatility levels in mortgage-backed securities are being exceeded, which means that the firm's position in those assets is over-leveraged and the debt incurred from those over-leveraged assets will bankrupt the company. Sullivan calls his colleague, junior analyst Seth Bregman, to return to work with the head of credit trading, Will Emerson. Emerson in turn summons Sam Rogers, his boss, after reviewing Sullivan's findings. Attempts by the four to contact Dale prove unsuccessful due to his company phone having been shut off. Sullivan and Bregman go out to find Dale, while Rogers and Emerson inform the company's senior management of the situation.
A subsequent meeting of division head Jared Cohen, chief risk management officer Sarah Robertson, and other senior executives concludes that Sullivan's findings are accurate, and firm CEO John Tuld is called. Upon Tuld's arrival, and after Sullivan explains the problem, Rogers, Cohen, and Tuld spar regarding a course of action: Cohen's plan, favored by Tuld, is a fire sale of the problematic assets. Rogers disagrees, pointing out that the sale will damage the firm's relationships and reputation within the industry and cause major instability in the markets. Tuld stresses that his desire to avoid the firm's bankruptcy is worth that risk and cost.
After the meeting with Tuld, Emerson learns from Dale's wife that he has returned home. Emerson travels to Dale's residence with Bregman and attempts to persuade him to return to the firm, but he refuses. During the drive back, Bregman asks if he will lose his job; Emerson responds that he likely will but, philosophizing on the nature of the financial markets, tells him not to lose faith and that his work is necessary.
Tuld tells Robertson that he will assign the blame to her in front of the traders and the board of directors; Robertson argues that she warned Tuld and Cohen about the situation over a year ago, and that both acknowledged the risks, but fails to persuade him. Meanwhile, Dale is bribed and forced into cooperating with Cohen's plan, with the firm threatening to cut his benefits and severance if he refuses. He spends the day commiserating with Robertson.
Despite his misgivings, Rogers rallies his traders and informs them of the fire sale. He acknowledges the damage likely to be done to their reputations and careers but informs them that they will be well compensated with seven-figure bonuses if most of the traders' assigned assets are sold by day's end. As trading progresses, the firm elicits suspicion and eventually anger from their counterparties and incurs heavy losses, but they manage to sell off most of the bad assets.
Another round of layoffs begins; Rogers, upon finding out that he was spared, confronts Tuld and submits his resignation. Tuld dismisses Rogers' view of the situation by recalling past economic crises, arguing that such events always happen and that Rogers should not feel guilty for acting in his and the firm's interests. Tuld asks Rogers to stay on for two more years, and Rogers reluctantly accepts, citing his personal financial need. Tuld also informs Rogers that Sullivan will be promoted.
The film ends with Rogers burying his euthanized dog in his ex-wife's front yard during the night.

## Cast

* Kevin Spacey as Sam Rogers
* Paul Bettany as Will Emerson
* Jeremy Irons as John Tuld
* Zachary Quinto as Peter Sullivan
* Penn Badgley as Seth Bregman
* Simon Baker as Jared Cohen
* Mary McDonnell as Mary Rogers
* Demi Moore as Sarah Robertson
* Stanley Tucci as Eric Dale
* Aasif Mandvi as Ramesh Shah
* Ashley Williams as Heather Burke
* Susan Blackwell as Lauren Bratberg
* Maria Dizzia as Tuld's executive assistant

## Production

Principal photography began on June 21, 2010, in New York City and was shot in just 17 days. More than 80% of the action was shot on the 42nd floor of One Penn Plaza, which had recently been vacated by a trading firm.
The film premiered at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah. It also played in Competition at the 61st Berlin International Film Festival and was nominated for the Golden Bear. The film was produced by Zachary Quinto's production company, Before the Door Pictures, with Quinto and his two producing partners and Carnegie Mellon University classmates, Neal Dodson and Corey Moosa.

### Inspirations

Although the film does not depict any real Wall Street firm, and the fictional firm is unnamed, the plot has similarities to some events during the 2008 financial crisis: Goldman Sachs similarly moved early to hedge and reduce its position in mortgage-backed securities, at the urging of two employees, which essentially mirrors Tuld's comment about the advantage of moving first. Lehman Brothers moved second and went bankrupt. John Tuld's name is said to be a combination of Merrill Lynch's ex-CEO John Thain and Lehman Brothers' ex-CEO Richard Fuld.

## Reception
### Box office

Margin Call grossed $5.4 million domestically (United States and Canada), and $14.2 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $19.5 million, against a budget of $3.5 million.

### Favorable response

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 87% of 170 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 7.2/10. The website's consensus reads: "Smart, tightly wound, and solidly acted, Margin Call turns the convoluted financial meltdown of '08 into gripping, thought-provoking drama." Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 76 out of 100, based on 38 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.
The New Yorker film critic David Denby said it was "easily the best Wall Street movie ever made". Philip French of The Guardian called it the "best fictional treatment" of the 2008 financial crisis. Justin Chang of Variety described it as "a methodical, coolly absorbing boardroom thriller". Jake Bernstein of ProPublica said that Chandor "used the financial crisis as a springboard to create the most insightful Wall Street movie ever filmed". Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times gave the film three and half stars out of four, noting that it "employs an excellent cast who can make financial talk into compelling dialogue." In 2022, Bloomberg News financial columnist Matt Levine described Margin Call as "the best finance movie". Film critic Bill Wine rated it 3/4, noting in a review for CBS: "Chandor takes a gamble with a screenplay that some might see as repetitive, but works nicely to make dense material clear and understandable." Chris Knight of the National Post described it as "clearly a cautionary tale" but "also a crackling good thriller." Dyan Matthews of Vox wrote in 2022: "To a large degree, my love for Margin Call boils down to it being the one film that, more than any other, seems to understand the modern workplace (or at least the office workplace), and the moral compromises involved in living and thriving in that world."
A. O. Scott of The New York Times wrote: "It is hard to believe that Margin Call is Mr. Chandor’s first feature. His formal command – his ability to imply far more than he shows or says and to orchestrate a large, complex drama out of whispers, glances, and snippets of jargon – is downright awe inspiring." He continued: "Margin Call is a thriller, moving through ambient shadows to the anxious tempo of Nathan Larson’s hushed, anxious score. It is also a horror movie, with disaster lurking like an unseen demon outside the skyscraper windows and behind the computer screens. It is also a workplace comedy of sorts. The crackling, syncopated dialogue and the plot, full of reversals and double crosses, owe an obvious debt to David Mamet’s profane fables of deal-making machismo. Hovering over all of it is the dark romance of capital: the elegance of numbers; the kinkiness of money; the deep, rotten, erotic allure of power."

### Critical response

Mike Russell of The Oregonian rated it C+, noting that Chandor downplayed "everything to the point of mild sleepiness" and wrote "far too many variations of that Hollywood device where a character asks for a spreadsheet or highly technical financial concept to be explained to them 'in plain English, please.'"
Stephen Farber of The Hollywood Reporter wrote: "Technical credits are top-notch. Frank DeMarco’s sleek cinematography of the Manhattan skyline effectively immerses us in the soulless but inviting universe where these financial dramas played out. Sadly, the script doesn’t burrow as rewardingly beneath the glittering surfaces."

### Accolades

| Awards group | Category | Recipient | Result |
| Academy Awards | Best Original Screenplay | J. C. Chandor | Nominated |
| Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts | Best Film – International | J. C. Chandor, Neal Dodson, Zachary Quinto | Nominated |
| Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts | Best Direction – International | J. C. Chandor | Nominated |
| Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts | Best Screenplay – International | J. C. Chandor | Won |
| Casting Society of America | Outstanding Achievement in Casting for a Studio or Independent Drama Feature | Bernard Telsey, Tiffany Little Canfield | Nominated |
| Detroit Film Critics Society | Best Ensemble | | Nominated |
| Independent Spirit Awards | Best First Feature | J. C. Chandor, Neal Dodson, Zachary Quinto | Won |
| Independent Spirit Awards | Best First Screenplay | J. C. Chandor | Nominated |
| Independent Spirit Awards | Robert Altman Award | J. C. Chandor, Tiffany Little Canfield, Bernie Telsey, Penn Badgley, Simon Baker, Paul Bettany, Jeremy Irons, Mary McDonnell, Demi Moore, Zachary Quinto, Kevin Spacey and Stanley Tucci | Won |
| National Board of Review Awards | Spotlight Award for Best Directorial Debut | J. C. Chandor | Won |
| National Board of Review Awards | Top Ten Independent Films | | Nominated |
| San Francisco Film Critics Circle Awards | Best Original Screenplay | J. C. Chandor | Won |
| New York Film Critics Circle Awards | Best First Film | J. C. Chandor | Won |