The Corporation (2004)
92%RT Audience Score: 90%
Awards & Nominations: 12 wins & 1 nomination
The Corporation is a satisfyingly dense, thought-provoking rebuttal to some of capitalism’s central arguments.
The Corporation is a documentary that will make you want to grab your pitchfork and storm the nearest corporate office. With well-chosen interviews and a clever comparison to a psychopath, this film presents a strong case for why corporations are running amok. It’s a history lesson, a warning shot, and a damning personality profile all rolled into one. And let’s be real, who doesn’t love a good villain origin story? So grab some popcorn and get ready to root for the underdogs (aka the rest of us).
Production Company(ies)
Focus Features, Tohokushinsha Film Corporation, American Zoetrope
Distributor
Zeitgeist Films
Release Type
Streaming, Theatrical
Filming Location(s)
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
MPAA / Certificate
Not Rated
Year of Release
2004
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Color:Color
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Sound mix:Dolby SR
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Aspect ratio:1.85 : 1
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Runtime:2h 48m
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Language(s):English, Spanish
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Country of origin:United States
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Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Sep 10, 2003 Original
Release Date (Streaming): Apr 5, 2005
Genre(s)
Documentary
Keyword(s)
documentary, capitalism, corporations, constitutional law, individuals, Mark Achbar, Jennifer Abbott, Joel Bakan, Noam Chomsky, Michael Moore, Ray Anderson, IBM, Nazi ties, human rights, critic reviews, box office performance, budget, producer, MPAA rating, English, Zeitgeist Films, Dolby SR, Milton Friedman, Samuel Epstein, Peter Drucker, Chris Barrett, Maude Barlow, Joshua Rothkopf, David Ansen, Roger Moore, Marta Barber, Marjorie Baumgarten, Eric Harrison, David Walsh, Richard Propes, Brian Costello, Cole Smithey, Mark Halverson, Robert Davis, Edgar C, Mark C, Bill C, Sarah P
Worldwide gross: $4,605,682
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $7,265,401
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 2,062
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 792,301
US/Canada gross: $3,493,516
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $5,510,974
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,775
US/Canada opening weekend: $28,671
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $45,228
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 2,241
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): NA
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): NA
Production budget ranking: NA
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
ROI to date (est.): NA
ROI ranking: NA
Samuel Epstein – Self
Peter Drucker – Self
Noam Chomsky – Self
Chris Barrett – Self
Maude Barlow – Self
Mark Achbar – Director, Producer
Jennifer Abbott – Director
Joel Bakan – Writer
Director(s)
Mark Achbar, Jennifer Abbott
Writer(s)
Joel Bakan
Producer(s)
Mark Achbar
Film Festivals
Awards & Nominations
12 wins & 1 nomination
Academy Awards
All Critics (112) | Top Critics (39) | Fresh (100) | Rotten (12)
Building its indictment carefully, with well-chosen interviews…The Corporation may leave you in a rage.
March 16, 2020
Joshua Rothkopf
In These Times
TOP CRITIC
This smart, informative and lively polemic makes a strong case for viewing the corporation–which enjoys the legal status of an individual–as a psychopath run amok.
March 13, 2018
David Ansen
Newsweek
TOP CRITIC
A history lesson, a warning shot and damning personality profile, all backed up with expert interviews.
October 29, 2004 | Rating: 4/5
Roger Moore
Orlando Sentinel
TOP CRITIC
Carries a powerful, albeit not new, message. It is frightening.
October 22, 2004 | Rating: 3/4
Marta Barber
Miami Herald
TOP CRITIC
There’s at least one great hour of filmmaking in The Corporation.
October 19, 2004 | Rating: 3/5
Marjorie Baumgarten
Austin Chronicle
TOP CRITIC
The rare movie that sets out to alter the audience’s consciousness — and succeeds.
September 17, 2004 | Rating: 4/4
Eric Harrison
Houston Chronicle
TOP CRITIC
Despite its denunciations of corporate malfeasance, Achbar, Abbott and Bakan’s work is curiously devoid of urgency. There is no crisis of the system.
February 15, 2021
David Walsh
World Socialist Web Site
This film should make you angry and a little more willing to resist corporate urges.
September 5, 2020 | Rating: 3.5/4.0
Richard Propes
TheIndependentCritic.com
Eye-opening docu on corporate power is timely, provocative.
September 21, 2015 | Rating: 4/5
Brian Costello
Common Sense Media
The 150-year old legal construct of the corporation, as a “person,” is dissected for all to see how its lack of accountability has enabled the faulty model to become a ruling institution, acting beyond the reach of any government.
June 10, 2009 | Rating: A-
Cole Smithey
ColeSmithey.com
August 7, 2008 | Rating: 4/5
Mark Halverson
Sacramento News & Review
As a clever joke, the filmmakers run down a list of the traits of a psychopath and find a corporate action to match each one. Diagnosis: psychopath. It’s cute, but it’s a logical fallacy.
June 3, 2008 | Rating: 3.5/5
Robert Davis
Paste Magazine…
Plot
The Corporation is a documentary that explores the idea of corporations as individuals and exposes their exploitation of human rights, including IBM’s Nazi ties.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
No specific tidbit about the cast is mentioned on Fresh Kernels for The Corporation.
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