Enron was an inevitable choice for a theatrical documentary, but director Alex Gibney has taken the next step by going beyond
the crimes of Enron and looking at the people that led to such crimes. "Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room" is this year''s "Bowling for Columbine."
Much like Michael Moore''s masterpiece that won an Academy Award a few years ago, "Enron" blends fact, humor and most often insight into the minds of the criminals in a way that feels seamless and nearly perfect. "Enron" isn''t nearly as funny as "Columbine," but that''s okay. It''s still entertaining, intelligent and most of all informative.
As a business student I knew the surface facts about the Enron scandal, where in 2001 the energy giant posted a massive $618 million loss in the third quarter. As analysts looked more and more into the accounting practices of the company, it became clear that Enron had been reporting non-existent profits, had been responsible for the California electricity shortages and that many of the executives, the "smartest guys in the room," were covering it up. Combined with the aftershock of September 11, the stock market plummeted, over 4,000 employees lost their jobs and their 401(k)''s and so on and so forth. Okay, but how did it come to this? Why did it come to this? Who is still out there that raises questions? These are the questions that the movie answers.