Rogue Trader (1999, 2000)

Rogue Trader is a movie that is based on a true story. Here is some basic information about it:

** Directed and written by James Dearden

** Shown in theatres in 1999

** Released on DVD in 2000

** Run time: 97 minutes
 
This film is the story of Nick Leeson who caused the downfall of Barings Bank, the oldest family-owned investment bank in Britain, in 1995. It is based on his autobiography Rogue Trader, that was written while he was in prison in Singapore and published in 1996 (an updated version appeared in 2015).
 
[Please note: there may be some spoilers ahead, but all facts mentioned in this review are part of the public record, and therefore they can hardly be described as spoilers.]
 
The cast includes the following:
 
** Ewan McGregor as Nick Leeson
** Anna Friel as Lisa Leeson
** John Standing as Peter Baring
** Caroline Langrishe as Ash Lewis

Nick Gleeson (born 1967) began to work for Barings Bank while he was a young man. His first overseas job came when the bank sent him to Jakarta, Indonesia, to sort out an economic problem. While working on this case, he met Lisa who became his wife. In 1992, once the case in Jakarta was completed, the bank sent him to Singapore where he was put in charge of the trading floor.

During his first year Nick was lucky and made a lot of money for his bank, but after this things began to change. He failed and borrowed money from the bank to cover his loss. He hoped to make more money and repay the bank, but instead he lost again and the deficit became bigger and bigger. Amazingly, he was able to keep the bank and the authorities in the dark for a long time.

By 1995 the game was up. Nick and Lisa left Singapore and travelled to neighbouring Malaysia. While in Malaysia, they learned that Barings bank had collapsed. Nick’s transactions had caused a loss of more than 800 million pounds. They tried to get back to England, but they could not get a direct flight. They only got as far as Germany. They were caught by the police when they landed in Frankfurt. Nick was arrested and later extradited to Singapore where he was sentenced to six and a half years in prison.

While Nick was in prison, Lisa divorced him. To make matters worse, he was diagnosed with cancer. Because of this he was released from prison in 1999, having served four and a half years of his sentence. When he was released, he returned to England. He survived the cancer and he is still alive. Today he lives in Ireland, where he has three children with his second wife.

The collapse of Barings bank in 1995 was a warning of what can happen if a bank is allowed to operate without any serious oversight. The collapse of Enron in 2001 was a warning of what can happen if a large corporation is allowed to operate without any serious oversight. Unfortunately, these warnings were not understood. When the financial crisis came in 2008, most observers were caught by surprise.

Rogue Trader focuses on Nick’s life and career in Singapore, i.e. the time from 1992 to 1995. There is almost nothing about his life and career before 1992, and only one brief scene after his arrest in Germany in 1995 where we see him behind bars in Changi Prison in Singapore.

There are several minor flaws in the film:

# 1. When Nick and his friend are driving a Porsche, they are wearing seat belts, when we see them from the front, but when we see them from the side, they are not.

# 2. The signs used by Nick and the other traders on the trading floor, are homemade. They do not correspond to the signs used by real traders.

# 3. When Nick is in a bar, a song is playing in the background. The scene takes place in 1995, but the song is from 1997.

# 4. In one scene where Nick faxes a letter, we can see the fax machine that is used. The scene takes place in 1994, but the fax machine is from 1996.

# 5. In another scene where Nick faxes a letter, we can see the date of his message: 2 February 1995. A few minutes later, we see Nick watching CNN on television. The CNN report is about the earthquake in Kobe, Japan, which happened on 17 January 1995. This means the date on the fax message is wrong. It should have been a few days before 17 January 1995.

Rogue Trader received mixed reviews. On IMDb it has a rating of 63 per cent, but on Rotten Tomatoes it has a rating of only 30 per cent. I think a rating of 63 per cent is too high. I understand the critical reviews and I agree with them. This film is based on a true story, but unfortunately, it is not told very well.

The leading actors are not well-chosen: Ewan McGregor does not look like the real Nick Leeson at all. Many reviewers feel that Anna Friel gives a poor performance as Lisa, and I agree with them. In addition, there are several minor flaws, as I have explained above. Therefore this film cannot get more than two stars.

PS # 1. Nick Leeson has an official website where you can find additional information about his life and career.

PS # 2. The following articles about the case are available online:

** “Barings collapse at 20: How rogue trader Nick Leeson broke the bank,” the Guardian, 24 February 2015

** “Twenty years on, is Nick Leeson really sorry for breaking the bank?” the Telegraph, 21 February 2015

** “Barings: The collapse that erased 232 years of history,” the Telegraph, 23 February 2015

PS # 3. For information about the financial crisis of 2008, see the following package which includes five programs broadcast by Frontline: Economic Meltdown (2013).

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** Another DVD cover **

 

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