Arthur Hailey's the Moneychangers Online

I give it three and a half stars. The Moneychangers is a great adaptation of the Hailey novel, but the greatest claim to fame in this action packed story, is its cast, the fact that Christopher Plummer won an Emmy Award as best actor for it, and the return of actrress Jean Peters to the screen. You'll see pros Like Kirk Douglas and Christopher Plummer in a quite credible battle over the presidency of a bank. The rest of the cast is incredibly good, with a lot of big names in supporting roles. Joan Collins plays the vamp who steals Plummer from Jean Peters (looking radiant in her comeback after years of absence from the screen). Marisa Pavan is Douglas's wife. She plays a mental case and her psychiatrist is none other than Helen Hayes. Anne Baxter is head of personnel at the bank and becomes concerned when one of her tellers (Timothy Bottoms) is suspected of credit card fraud. Others in the cast include James Shighetta, Mikko Takka, Percy Rodriguez, Susan Flannery, Hayden Rourque, Virginia Field, Lorne Greene, Patrick O'Neal, and another dozen very recognizable faces. All these fine actors deal with a number of serious topics - infidelity, ambition, battle for success, madness, police investigations, jail, homosexuality, riches and poverty. Good show!

I saw this made for TV movie in its entirety in 1976, it was 6 hours long! But when it was ready for syndication, it was pared down to 4 hours. Did they loose the flavor of the original 6 hours? Not a bit. A book about the banking industry (one in particular, FMA, First Mercantile American...a fictional bank from the book) was one of the most satisfying mini-series ever. The adaptation was virtually "page by page" from the Arthur Hailey best selling novel, which made the production an enjoyable one. The cast is all class all the way, you know who they are by looking at the cast line-up, so I won't repeat them here.

Aired in 1976 and produced by Paramount Television, it was beautifully directed and executed. My only wish is to have it air again...being my favorite mini-series of all time!

"The Moneychangers" is the story of a bank and its corporate members. When a senior executive dies and another is set to retire (Ralph Bellamy,) the power and responsibility is then shifted to one of two parties vying for the top position, Kirk Douglas and Christopher Plummer. Yeah, but which one, you ask. That is the question and the primal concern throughout the television movie. Christopher Plummer had approved an astronomical loan to a company, a decision which may come back to haunt him. And, I think the dramatic impact of his last scene really helped his Emmy win, along with the fact he was very good. A subplot concerns bank teller Timothy Bottoms who has stolen money from the bank and was trying to implicate another teller by taking it out of her cash drawer, but she came forward about the missing money. Timothy Bottoms doesn't usually emote much and doesn't seem to endear himself in films, at least not to me, but here I practically find myself caring about his character and what happens to him. There are too many character actors here to name, as you can find them on the cast list, but Joan Collins makes a memorable appearance. And, the black actor who played the head of security almost stole the film with his in-your-face and forceful energy. I was into this very credible and fast-paced TV movie. By the end, I was wiped out and thinking that was really good! The film's realistic yet broad (or flashy/soapy) treatment of the material will sweep you up in the dramatics of money, position, and betrayal. Who will be the CEO? Who really wants it? Sometimes it comes at a cost. Are you willing to pay to see "The Moneychangers?"

Notice: May contain Spoilers

If "The American President" (Michael Douglas) is politically correct, this mini with Kirk Douglas has to be the most socially correct I can imagine. It's a time capsule of social agendas for the 70's. According to this film, banks are run by bad guys until they start listening to their liberal activist lawyer girlfriends. Then they start to qualify as human beings.

A classic line: as Kirk Douglas and Susan Flannery walk through the bank-financed low-income housing project, she declares, "What we need are more of these... and bigger." Unbelievable.

Great acting all around. Patrick O'Neal is superb. His scene with Christopher Plummer where he cries, "It's gone!!" is riveting. And Lorne Greene as the billionaire Quartermain is diabolical.

Kirk Douglas plays Alex Vandervoort, the smart, thinks-on-his-feet bank Vice President...the guy we'd all like to be... a little wiser than his peers. And Christopher Plummer plays his role perfectly...denying the realization that his world is coming apart, until he cracks. His final walk down the hall followed by that silent jump from the roof was totally engaging. Don't think I've ever seen a scene like that one.

A little soapy at times, but all in all, a well-balanced and entertaining movie with several subplots.