In Theatres: MONEY FOR NOTHING

Coming to theatres tomorrow, Friday, September 13: MONEY FOR NOTHING: INSIDE THE FEDERAL RESERVE

Jim Bruce’s illuminating look at the impact of America’s monetary policy debuted at IDFA last Fall. Since then, it has screened at Biografilm, It’s All True, Vancouver, and Nantucket, among others.

Aiming to understand the factors that led to the ongoing financial crisis, Bruce explores an institution that remains little understood by the average American – the US Federal Reserve, the central banking system created a century ago, largely as a response to the bank panic of 1907. Through narration and a series of interviews with past and present Fed employees, the film details the functions of the system, the mechanisms its chairmen have used to try to encourage longterm growth and employment, and its expanding reach over time that has led to the cycles of booms and busts that have cost the average citizen a great deal – and threaten to do so again in the future due to what appears to be hubris and resultant mismanagement. While very conventional in approach, Bruce’s film provides a thorough overview that helps contextualize the Fed’s role for the viewer, making it worthwhile viewing that could help mobilize support for some of the practical changes, both on an institutional and personal level, that are suggested to prevent further crises.