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Hank: 5 Years From the Brink

Play trailer Poster for Hank: 5 Years From the Brink 2013 1h 25m Documentary Biography Play Trailer Watchlist
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50% Tomatometer 14 Reviews 53% Popcornmeter 100+ Ratings
In 2008, Hank Paulson was hired to convince banks, Congress and presidential candidates to sign off on a trillion dollars in bailouts.
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Hank: 5 Years From the Brink

Critics Reviews

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Peter Keough Boston Globe 03/06/2014
2/4
A denial of personal responsibility and inadequate regulations: Isn't that what led us to the brink in the first place? Go to Full Review
David Lewis San Francisco Chronicle 02/20/2014
2/4
This is not a film that will be remembered for its high drama, but it wouldn't be surprising to see it studied in future years by scholars trying to gain perspective on a calamity that almost brought the world to itsknees. Go to Full Review
Betsy Sharkey Los Angeles Times 02/13/2014
For all of Paulson's intelligent calm in front of the camera, he is telling an American horror story of massive proportions. Go to Full Review
Bernard Boo Way Too Indie 04/03/2019
6.8/10
Providing more than a glancing view of the crisis from the perspective of his opponents would have made for a richer, more encompassing, and possibly more engaging film. Go to Full Review
Sarah Boslaugh Playback:stl 04/08/2014
4/10
Hank is basically a big love letter from Paulson to himself, and it's a mystery to me why Berlinger would lend his talents to such an effort. Go to Full Review
Dan Schindel Movie Mezzanine 02/20/2014
C
Only essential if you missed every other doc on the recession or are incredibly invested in learning some unneeded details about Hank Paulson's life. Go to Full Review
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Audience Reviews

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01/01/2021 Hank Paulson's refusal to accept responsibility for not requiring banks bailed out by taxpayers to reserve a portion of that bailout for consumer lending, and his failure to limit absolutely the compensation and bonuses paid out with those funds, is reprehensible. Having come from the investment banking world, he should have known what these bankers would do. The producer's failure to really probe these issues leaves us with Hank's weak self-assessment. His and his oh-so-humble wife Wendy's inventory of his supposed humility, honesty, honor — blah, blah, blah — is annoying and makes this venture little more than a vanity project. See more 06/14/2019 Excellent portrayal of events as understood from my perspective as a financial advisor for 30 years. It made stunningly clear all the perplexing choices at hand with him as well as Federal Reserve Chairman Bernanke in saving the economy from a horrendous collapse on the scale of the Great Depression. See more 07/28/2014 I really liked this Joe Berlinger doc. The economic crisis told from Hank Paulson's perspective, but Berlinger doesn't let him get away without asking some of the hard questions. See more 07/06/2014 An airbrushed and self righteous documentary where Paulson Justifiies the actions taken prior to and during the Credit Crunch, despite the near death of the financial system and the overhang of high unemployment and falling living standards, hank seems to learn absolutely nothing about how Greed and believes in self sustsaining market played a role in the mess he was drafted to clean up. See more 04/30/2014 A damn fine documentary. This reminded me a lot of McNamara's "Fog of War" with how open and honest he was being about his failures. Anyone who really wants to get to the heart of the financial crisis, this is a good movie to begin with. You get to learn all the key dates and important players, straight from the horses's mouth. Good Concept, Good Execution See more 03/29/2014 An interesting documentary that sheds some light on one of the most controversial figures of last decade's financial meltdown. See more Read all reviews
Hank: 5 Years From the Brink

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Movie Info

Synopsis In 2008, Hank Paulson was hired to convince banks, Congress and presidential candidates to sign off on a trillion dollars in bailouts.
Director
Joe Berlinger
Producer
Joe Berlinger, Jeanine Brand, Ari Palitz, Robert Richman, Josh Tyrangiel
Screenwriter
Joe Berlinger
Production Co
RadicalMedia, Bloomberg Business Week
Genre
Documentary, Biography
Original Language
English
Release Date (Streaming)
Feb 26, 2015
Runtime
1h 25m
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