Pharma Bro

2021

1 hr. 27 min.

Documentary

List

60%

10 Reviews

Tomatometer

29%

Fewer than 50 Ratings

Audience Score

Martin Shkreli, the 38-year-old financial entrepreneur and pharmaceutical tycoon from Brooklyn, New York, was dubbed "the most hated man in America" by the media after he rose to infamy in 2015 for price gouging the prescription drug Daraprim by 5500% overnight depriving patients of the life-saving medication. That same year, Shkreli purchased the Wu-Tang Clan's single copy of "Once Upon a Time in Shaolin" for 2 million dollars, and was arrested for securities fraud, eventually resulting in the subsequent forfeiture of the album and recent reselling of it by the U.S. government to an anonymous buyer to pay off Shkreli's debt. He has gained notoriety for his unchecked online presence, which was ultimately his downfall and sent him to prison, where he continues to provoke the public with bombastic declarations about finding a cure for the virus which has upended the world, Covid-19.

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Audience Member

Excellent portrait and original production.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/14/23

Full Review

Audience Member

The movie tries to say he was just "irresponsible not evil" which would be fine if shkreli was a child and not an adult cutting off people from life saving medicines. Pretty shameful movie.

Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars

02/04/23

Full Review

Audience Member

This movie was ridiculously biased and lacking substance. The intent is to show the "other side" of Shkreli, one that is supposedly more positive. That intention is made clear from the start of the film. My impression of him was not favorable prior to watching this. I didn't follow his story very closely when it occurred, and I was intrigued by the idea that he may have been unfairly maligned. Although most of the people interviewed for the movie defend him, they never actually said anything very positive about him. Mostly they focused on how he wasn't the only person doing the bad crap he did. The movie spends 90 minutes defending him while not actually communicating anything defensible. It did make me a bit more sympathetic to him because it included a significant amount of footage of him, and I hadn't any of it before or known about his live streaming activities. He appears to possibly be on the autism spectrum or have a psychological disorder. He also seems like someone who is/was quite lonely.

Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars

02/27/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Don't know if it's me but it really feels as if documentary's are becoming more like a cringe worthy movie like advertisement

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

01/28/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Honestly this was cringe. You would learn a lot more about Martin from youtube documentary. This documenter was so cringe and wanted to like inject himself into the story in a super weird way.

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

01/25/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Wow. Like watching Nazi's talk about Hitler. Fat girl says "He pissed people off" and you can see she is instantly ashamed but still wants to be in a movie. Not 1 person talk about death. This is identical to medical capitalist drank the Koolaid Nazi propaganda. Not even a documentary. Imagine showing Hitler play guitar for 20 seconds and then 5 people say how Hitler is not about death..... but about being misunderstood. Don't imagne. That's what these nobodies do. Say Hitler the killer is misunderstood. He is from the hood ! Wow! Then 5 people say "the hood makes every single thing he ever does acceptable" 30 people with zero morals try and talk you into accepting MS being amoral in every way shape and form. 1% only because it is a movie and exists. He's just a selfish hate the world megalomaniac in a tiny form. Worthless dreck.

Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars

02/15/23

Full Review

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Brent Hodge

Director

Martin Shkreli

Self

Ghostface Killah

Self

Billy the Fridge

Self

Christie Smythe

Self

Ben Brafman

Self

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John Doyle

Globe and Mail

There isn't enough in the film about the issue of drug pricing - but it says enough to underline the difference between us here in Canada, and our neighbours to the south.

Nov 29, 2021

Full Review

Ben Kenigsberg

New York Times

Hodge is not always on Shkreli's side, but he appears convinced he's made a well-rounded portrait, as opposed to a dubious, bottom-feeding, bro-to-bro testimonial.

Oct 5, 2021

Full Review

Nick Schager

The Daily Beast

The new documentary Pharmo Bro tries to find sympathy for the smirking pharmaceutical price-gouger/convict, but fails entirely.

Oct 1, 2021

Full Review

Stephen Silver

Splice Today

A bafflingly bad examination of recent scandal, which makes half-assed arguments that Martin Shkreli is worthy of re-examination or, for that matter, interesting at all (he's neither)

Rated: 1/5

Jan 29, 2022

Full Review

John Serba

Decider

Pharma Bro tries to fulfill an impossible task, and ultimately doesn't add up to much. But a spinoff short doc about Billy the Fridge seems to be in order.

Jan 13, 2022

Full Review

Jennie Kermode

Eye for Film

[The] film serves two purposes. Firstly, it documents neglected aspects of the Shkreli story for the record. Secondly, it explores something of the psychology of his remaining adherents.

Rated: 3/5

Oct 7, 2021

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Synopsis

Martin Shkreli, the 38-year-old financial entrepreneur and pharmaceutical tycoon from Brooklyn, New York, was dubbed "the most hated man in America" by the media after he rose to infamy in 2015 for price gouging the prescription drug Daraprim by 5500% overnight depriving patients of the life-saving medication. That same year, Shkreli purchased the Wu-Tang Clan's single copy of "Once Upon a Time in Shaolin" for 2 million dollars, and was arrested for securities fraud, eventually resulting in the subsequent forfeiture of the album and recent reselling of it by the U.S. government to an anonymous buyer to pay off Shkreli's debt. He has gained notoriety for his unchecked online presence, which was ultimately his downfall and sent him to prison, where he continues to provoke the public with bombastic declarations about finding a cure for the virus which has upended the world, Covid-19.

Director: Brent Hodge
Executive Producer: Ryan McKillen, Steve Russell, Conrad Whelan, Brent Hodge, Jeremy Gold, Marci Wiseman, Mary Lisio, Jason Blum
Genre: Documentary
Original Language: English
Release Date (Streaming): Oct 5, 2021