I took a little break from the super-serious job of analyzing the troubled efforts to bring relief to troubled assets. I went to a movie. The International, starring Clive Owen and Naomi Watts, opens today. It's a thriller about an evil bank that controls the world.

It's crap.

It's well shot and paced and the acting's good. But the story truly makes no sense at all. I had a piece on Morning Edition this morning about it.

I got upset—absurdly, ridiculously—because a big Hollywood blockbuster has a faulty business model for banking.

Then I got REALLY upset.

 

I learned about the true story that the movie is based on. BCCI was a truly evil bank and a fascinating story about real world banking. Why'd they have to turn it into a cliche-ridden generic thriller?

I interviewed the actual guy who investigated the BCCI case—he's the inspiration for the Naomi Watts character, though he says he's not as pretty. John Moscow's story is truly movie-worthy. Amazing. I only had time to hint at that in the Morning Edition piece, but we'll have an extended talk with him on the podcast.