108 The Solari Report / 2018 Annual Wrap Up / Part Two Dave (1993) https://www.youtube.com/embed/ZARAldXlSyA When a U.S. president goes into a coma, his double, Dave, takes over the official duties, only to wreak havoc on the ruthless way the governmental business is normally run. Dave is a gentle everyman who brings humanity and common sense to the White House, much to the dismay of his presidential staff and the amusement of audiences. Contact (1997) https://www.youtube.com/embed/SRoj3jK37Vc Jodie Foster stars as an astronomer seeking contact with extraterrestrial intelligence via a SE- TI-like program. Her scientific approach is on a collision course with a famous pastor’s search for truth in religion. Their beliefs get upended when a message from deep space provides a blueprint for a machine that enables contact with the other civilization. A very intelligent story (based on Carl Sagan’s novel), in which—for once—aliens are not horrifying creatures but a higher intelli- gence that wants to communicate rather than to destroy. Scene on how the government spends our money: https://www.youtube.com/embed/Et4sMJP9FmM Wag the Dog (1997) https://www.youtube.com/embed/gNDmDZi05dY To cover a presidential sex scandal just before an election, a White House spin doctor (Robert de Niro) hires a Hollywood producer (Dustin Hoffman) to fabricate a war with Albania by creating a convincing footage. The movie was released in December, 1997—one month before Bill Clinton’s Lewinsky scandal broke. Scene on “how to go to war”: https://www.youtube.com/embed/hmM8rE_LdFA Rogue Trader (1999) https://www.youtube.com/embed/vgqSVVLFmds The film tells one of the most shocking stories in the history of finance, which is by now a classic example taught in any finance course. It’s the tale of a trader from Barings Bank’s branch in Singapore, who single-handedly brought down a venerated British bank through his unsupervised trades in options and futures, losing $50 million in one day. Eyes Wide Shut (1999) Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/embed/H2aWfiN956U A masked initiation scene: https://www.youtube.com/embed/s_b-zpSnoHs Stanley Kubrick’s last masterpiece with Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman as a couple who embark on sexual and moral discovery. The doctor’s one-night odyssey takes him into the world of secret societies, which he did not even suspect of existing in modern-day New York. The movie’s release was a 1999 scandal due to overt sexual scenes that were only available in the international version of the movie. Erin Brockovich (2000) The movie that earned Julia Roberts an Oscar also resonated with audiences in its portrayal of Ms. Brockovich, a real-life crusader against corporate greed and moral indifference. The film tells the story of an uneducated mother who takes on litigation against an ecological disaster caused by a big corporation.