Maxed Out
Investigating both the personal and the national debt owed by Americans, this thought-provoking documentary explores the staggering financial burden we live with every day and exposes how the contemporary financial industry is set up in ways that can harm unwitting customers. With both sobering facts and black humor, Maxed Out unveils the consequences of our debt addiction, including its contribution to the vanishing of the American middle class.
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This film is a must see for any american! This film shows a bit of both sides and has loads of data to back it up. Our government seems to have failed us and in general people are out for personal gain. We need to put a stop to this quickly or else every one is screwed- Waxbutterfly
This is just not a good movie. It is far too biased, offering no defensive viewpoint from the side that it attacks whatsoever. This is an hour and a half of interview after interview with stupid people who let their credit debt get ridiculously out of hand. After each account one is left not to hold the credit lenders to blame, but instead wonder how the debtors could be so stupid, even though some of their accounts are genuinely saddening. I gave this movie two stars.
- DanJimerson
Maxed Out, James Scurlocks documentary about the American way of debt suffers from the usual problem with political documentaries these days: a surfeit of targets. In all the many tales of woe that it seeks to milk for their undeniable pathos, never once does Maxed Out breathe a word of censure against those who have got themselves into serious debt trouble. Its model is the therapeutic one that also now applies to alcohol, drugs, sex, gambling and an ever lengthening list of other human frailties. Debt is a form of addiction. Fair enough, we may say. It would probably have been foolish to have expected the film to take any other view of the matter. But if you say A you must also say B. If there is no moral dimension to becoming a debtor, why should we suddenly suppose that there is one to becoming a creditor, even a predatory one? Its a two-way transaction, after all. Just like prostitution. If, in other words, its morally unproblematic to supply the susceptible with such other instruments of self-harm, or even self-destruction, as alcohol, drugs, sex and games of chance, why not credit too?~~The explosion of consumer credit would have been a subject well worth looking at on its own, but Mr Scurlock piles on political corruption, corporate greed, bad accounting practices, the bankruptcy laws, credit reporting bureau, the religious right, campaign finance, deficit spending, and income inequality. Even the Iraq war comes in for a mention or two. In other words, if you look at it in strictly political terms, the film also has too few targets. In fact, only one. Like Michael Moore and many others on the bumper-sticker left it too often succumbs to the temptation of assuming that, if only George W. Bush was not president, a world of problems would simply disappear.
- Dean2006@Hollywood
I was hoping to learn something educational about the proper use of credit to share with my family and friends. What I found was a completely one-sided biased movie, full of sob-stories and sound bytes from random Bank Executives. Some of the stories truly pull at your heart, but not to have One single tidbit about proper credit use was its downfall. When my father passed away, the first thing my mother did was IMMEDIATELY sell her house. She knew instantly she would not be able to maintain her current standard of living. But not one factoid like the above was ever mentioned in this movie. NOT ONE! Maxed Out only covered individuals who stubbornly refused to accept their situation, or those who were completely oblivious to the fine print. I feel bad for those who were taken advantage of, but people need to have some personal responsibility. I always assume everyone is out to get me (especially when its too good to be true). It may make me narcissistic, but hey, Im doing great on my credit report so far.
- upq 677128
While I recognize that the United States has a major debt issue, Maxed Out takes a one sided look at the issue. If you believe what the documentary presents, the problem is entirely that of the credit issuers and federal, state and local governments. The parts of the equation that are left out are personal responsibility and education. Someone had to sign up for the debt and someone had to say I want more, more, more. Coupled with this is the complete lack of education in the schools about reasonable use of debt. It is too bad that a piece on personal responsibility is in the Special Features and not integrated into the main documentary. Maxed Out is a good documentary, but it presents only one side of the story. Don't let the producers sway you into thinking that debt problems were caused only by credit issuers. The credit issuers took you to the water, but you had to drink.
- MH 430984
An eye-opening look at a number of lives ruined by debt. Also an interesting look at the credit card industry and how bankruptcy has shifted over the years. A lot of new information here worth hearing.
- devinreams
Here is a truly eye-opening expose of predatory lending practices where credit card companies intentionally target high-risk persons, then penalize them irremediably, all while stuffing the politicians' pockets and writing their own carte-blanche legislation (the anti-bankruptcy bill, authored by the largest Bush campaign contributor). The human side of this story is replete with numerous suicide and foreclosure victims who were financially responsible until the credit card companies, like the tobacco industry, deliberately and unethically manipulated them with harmful products that the companies know will have inevitable and irreversible detrimental effects on their health and livelihood. What makes it worse is how the "haves" chuckle and simper over the misfortune of the "have-nots" whose life's possessions they are taking away even as they claim they have been blameless for doing the right thing. Don't miss the attorney who decries the 90% error rate of credit bureau records -- unless you're flagged as a VIP (a politician or an actor), when the bureaus will ensure that your record is 100% accurate. A two-tiered society, yes, we have become so -- because of Reaganomics on down to the man who is a divider, not a uniter. 5 stars.
- robowriter
Important film about credit companies and how they work and prey on those most vulnerable in American society. Sad, but true state of affairs in the US capitalist society where profit is king and poor people are pawns to be used and abused. Shows the true "soul" of capitalism and how heartless and immoral a system it really is. I have always heard the theory that Capitalism could not survive without its poor. This film fills in some of the details that prove this theory to be true.
- VJ Purplequeen
As the U.S. (and the world) experiences a credit crisis of mammoth proportions, discover how we got in this mess in the first place. At least part of the problem lies in irresponsible use of credit and the predatory lending practices of big banks. This was a truly eye-opening documentary, but I found it somewhat dry in it's approach. Very factually and statistically driven, Maxed Out (2006) tries it's best to put real faces and real situations into it's presentation, but I was hard pressed to find any parallels that I could personally identify with. The big message here is that the most powerful force consumers have at their disposal is their their own income. It doesn't make sense to borrow today simply to have to pay more for something tomorrow. 3 stars and a wallet full of plastic.
- Freakin Meow
A documentary that goes into examples of credit card companies and their shenanigans. Youll want to pay off your credit card debt immediately after seeing this. Insightful, but a little extreme at times. If you have debt this may be good for you to see.
- Cleve1212
This is a hard hitting documentary. It is one that I think everyone should see. Working in Financial Services I see first hand the problem that debt can be. This Documentary is fascinating. It bring up lots of question but offer no helpful suggestions. It does jump around a lot between personal debt problems and national debt. In the sense the "point" seems to get a bit lost. The stories of the people who would commit suicide over their debt is very wrenching. The audacity of ruthless young collectors who make a game out of manipulating people emotions, the guilt trip they lay the illegal information they gather, it is infuriating. The reality will hit, how important it is to manage your debt, you credit report and your personal data. Also how unfair the system since VIPs personal information is handled differently. So I have mixed feelings about the documentary as a whole but I do believe everyone should give it a watch. Hope this is helpful!
- Phatz
ireviewnetflix.com rating: *** This was an interesting (and at times depressing) film and an interesting look at credit debt in America. Not the greatest documentary I've ever seen, but an interesting look at a disturbing problem in our country. The whole country is screwed up when it comes to credit. Getting a credit card was the most exciting (because I knew I needed it to establish credit to do anything) and scariest moment of my life (because I was desperate to not get caught in the credit trap). As for the movie, while informative, it's also a bit too personal for my taste. I know there are sob stories, but it's all personal choice. No one has to spend money that they don't have. The problem isn't so much the credit companies (even though they are predators) as it is people not being educated about living outside their means (and allow themselves to be prey). Nothing really new here, but interesting.
- ireviewnetflix.com