Four Horsemen (2012)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Four Horsemen is a documentary film which premiered in 2012. Here is some basic information about it:

 

** Director: Ross Ashcroft

** Writers: Ross Ashcroft and Dominic Frisby

** Narrator: Dominic Frisby

** Available on DVD and via Amazon Prime Video

** Run time: 97 minutes

 

More than twenty persons are interviewed in this film. I will not mention all names. Here are some of the names (listed in alphabetical order):

 

** Gillian Tett (born 1967) – a British author

** Ha-Joon Chang (born 1963) - an economist from South Korea

** Noam Chomsky (born 1928) – an American linguist and political activist

** Herman Daly (1938-2022) - an American economist

** Michael Hudson (born 1939) - an American economist

** Max Keiser (born 1960) – an American broadcaster

** John Perkins (born 1945) - an American author

** Joseph Stiglitz (born 1943) - an American economist

** Lawrence Wilkerson (born 1945) - a retired US Army Colonel

 

The topic of this film is the past, the present, and the future of the world; more specifically the economic system that we find in the US and many other countries around the world: economic conditions, economic development, and the distribution of economic wealth between the rich and the poor. The questions raised and discussed are:

 

** What is the current situation?

** How did we get to the point where we are now?

** If we do not like what we see, what can be done to change and improve the situation?

 

The film is divided into five chapters.

 

Here are the headlines:

 

# 1. Empires

# 2. Banking

# 3. Terrorism

# 4. Resources

# 5. Progress

 

The persons who are interviewed in this film do not agree on all details of the main topic. But there is a general trend – a general message - that emerges as the film rolls on from the beginning to the end.

 

Some viewers may like this film, because they agree with the general message, while other viewers may dislike it, because they do not agree with the general message.

 

Whether you agree with the general message or not, I think this film is worth watching, because it presents some important information and some interesting interpretations.

 

What do reviewers say about it?

 

Here are the results of two review aggregators:

 

** 71 per cent = Rotten Tomatoes (the critics)

** 78 per cent = Rotten Tomatoes (the audience)

** 77 per cent = IMDb

 

The ratings are good. When you look at Rotten Tomatoes, you can see that there is a small gap between the professional critics and the general audience. 

 

The critics do not like it as much as the audience, but both groups are positive.

 

On Amazon there are at the moment more than 500 ratings of this product, more than 450 with reviews.

 

The average rating is 4.3 stars which corresponds to a rating of 86 percent.

 

As you can see, the ratings are good, but if you ask me, they are not good enough. 

 

I want to go all the way to the top with this product. I think it deserves a rating of five stars (100 percent).

 

PS # 1. What about the title of the film: what does it mean? 

 

The four horsemen of the apocalypse are four biblical figures who appear in the Book of Revelation. 

 

Each of the four horsemen represents a different aspect of the apocalypse:

 

** Conquest

** War

** Famine

** Death

PS # 2. For more information about the general topic, see the following items:

 

** The Corporation (2004)

** I.O.U.S.A. (2008)

** Money as Debt I & II (2009)

** Plunder: The Crime of Our Time (2009)

** Inside Job (2010)

** Too Big to Fail (2011)

** Inequality for All (2013)

 

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