Release calendarTop 250 moviesMost popular moviesBrowse movies by genreTop box officeShowtimes & ticketsMovie newsIndia movie spotlight
    What's on TV & streamingTop 250 TV showsMost popular TV showsBrowse TV shows by genreTV news
    What to watchLatest trailersIMDb OriginalsIMDb PicksIMDb SpotlightFamily entertainment guideIMDb Podcasts
    OscarsEmmysSan Diego Comic-ConSummer Watch GuideBest Of 2025 So FarDisability Pride MonthSTARmeter AwardsAwards CentralFestival CentralAll events
    Born todayMost popular celebsCelebrity news
    Help centerContributor zonePolls
For industry professionals
  • Language
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
8 suggestions available
Watchlist
Sign in
Sign in
New customer? Create account
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
Use app
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
  • Trivia
IMDbPro

Barbarians at the Gate

  • TV Movie
  • 1993
  • R
  • 1h 47m
IMDb RATING
7.2/10
3.6K
YOUR RATING
Barbarians at the Gate (1993)
SatireBiographyComedyDramaFinancial Drama

President F. Ross Johnson of a major tobacco company decides to purchase the company himself, but a bidding war ensues as representatives from other companies make their own offers.President F. Ross Johnson of a major tobacco company decides to purchase the company himself, but a bidding war ensues as representatives from other companies make their own offers.President F. Ross Johnson of a major tobacco company decides to purchase the company himself, but a bidding war ensues as representatives from other companies make their own offers.

  • Director
    • Glenn Jordan
  • Writers
    • Bryan Burrough
    • John Helyar
    • Larry Gelbart
  • Stars
    • James Garner
    • Jonathan Pryce
    • Peter Riegert
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    7.2/10
    3.6K
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Glenn Jordan
    • Writers
      • Bryan Burrough
      • John Helyar
      • Larry Gelbart
    • Stars
      • James Garner
      • Jonathan Pryce
      • Peter Riegert
    • 22User reviews
    • 4Critic reviews
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • See production info at IMDbPro
    • Won 1 Primetime Emmy
      • 8 wins & 16 nominations total

    Photos14

    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    + 6
    View Poster

    Top cast58

    Edit
    James Garner
    James Garner
    • F. Ross Johnson
    Jonathan Pryce
    Jonathan Pryce
    • Henry Kravis
    Peter Riegert
    Peter Riegert
    • Peter Cohen
    Joanna Cassidy
    Joanna Cassidy
    • Linda Robinson
    Fred Thompson
    Fred Thompson
    • Jim Robinson
    • (as Fred Dalton Thompson)
    Leilani Sarelle
    Leilani Sarelle
    • Laurie Johnson
    Matt Clark
    Matt Clark
    • Edward A. Horrigan Jr.
    Jeffrey DeMunn
    Jeffrey DeMunn
    • H. John Greeniaus
    David Rasche
    David Rasche
    • Ted Forstmann
    Tom Aldredge
    Tom Aldredge
    • Charlie Hugel
    Graham Beckel
    Graham Beckel
    • Don Kelly
    Peter Dvorsky
    Peter Dvorsky
    • George Roberts
    Peter Frechette
    Peter Frechette
    • Robert Allegro
    Judy Altman
    • Robinson's Aide
    Bruce Beatty
    Bruce Beatty
    • Anthony the Pizza Man
    Raye Birk
    Raye Birk
    • Travis Gaines
    Julia Calderón
    • RJR Cleaning Woman
    • (as Julia Calderon)
    Ron Canada
    Ron Canada
    • Vernon Jordan
    • Director
      • Glenn Jordan
    • Writers
      • Bryan Burrough
      • John Helyar
      • Larry Gelbart
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews22

    7.23.5K
    1
    2
    3
    4
    5
    6
    7
    8
    9
    10

    Featured reviews

    7SnoopyStyle

    solid TV from Garner

    F. Ross Johnson (James Garner) is a born salesman and a self-made millionaire. In 1988, he's the wild-spending high-flying CEO of RJR Nabisco. The stock is stubbornly low. He decides to try to take the company private but he's worried about the debt at first. He is eager to promote the revolutionary new smokeless cigarette Premier but then he's told about its problems. Others become attracted to the deal and it becomes a greedy stampede in the search for a leverage buyout.

    This is a solid depiction of 80s Wall Street. It is all James Garner and he drives this movie with glee. It is top notch HBO although I still want a bit more cinematic style. It would be great to have music from the era. There are plenty of great costars but Garner overshadows them all. This is a big time TV movie.
    7helpless_dancer

    financial headhunters at work on Wall St.

    Entertaining look at the in-fighting involved in the takeover of the Nabisco Co. The CEO of Nabisco wants to buy out the company, but is thwarted by the machinations of a big money rival. A rousing financial war begins leading to a satisfying grand finale. I liked the dialogue, especially the witty quips that James Garner was fond of throwing out. Jonathan Pryce was great as the chilling corporate raider. Thumbs up.
    9rc223

    A real find!

    I was delighted to stumble on this excellent TV movie late one night. Garner is great as the mega-rich company exec who comes unstuck when he tries to buy his own company. The financial shenanigans are well explained and there's genuine tension in the result. Based on a true story. It's like WALL STREET with laughs. [rating 9
    9Masterplan00

    Guilty pleasure of greed

    A story of greed, F. Ross Johnson's attempt to rid himself of troublesome shareholders who bug him with cries to curb his excessive management and lifestyle ignites a bidding war for ownership of RJR-Nabisco. Through sessions of number-crunching, men's room meetings, and personal loyalties and competitions, the fate of the company and those involved is decided and standards set for what will be allowed or punished by the captains of industry of the 1980's heyday.

    For a movie dealing with such despicable and probably in real life boring characters, the final product is delightful, entertaining, and almost educational. While the level of greed and excess is appalling, you can't help getting caught up in the wheeling and dealing and the competition, rooting for one side or the other while knowing you shouldn't like either one. The greedy CEO or the heartless junk-bond trader (Henry Kravis), take your pick and enjoy. No one is immune to the satire of the film, down to the trophy wives and their manicurists who know more about Wall Street than they do. Still, the comic tone is maintained; as much as you want to hate them, the film avoids moralizing, content just to ridicule and make the audience laugh.

    The attention to detail in the movie is simply brilliant. Whenever there is a TV screen or someone lighting a cigarette in the background, pay attention or you may miss a good laugh. It boasts clearly the best costumes of any Wall Street movie, from costume parties to Bush-Quayle hoedowns. Witty and satirical dialogue is accompanied by a well-chosen score. Details and incidents with little to do with the actual plot add to the entertainment value while not distracting from the story. Overall a great movie, funny and cool, makes you think a little: would you really want to be one of them?
    7blanche-2

    "They make money the hard way -- they steal it."

    "Barbarians at the Gates" is the insane true story of the leveraged buyout of RJR Nabisco. The stars are James Garner, Jonathan Pryce, Peter Riegert, Joanna Cassidy, Fred Dalton Thompson, Jeffrey DeMunn, Tom Aldredge, and David Rasche.

    Upset that the stock price for RJR Nabisco isn't rising, and realizing that new item that was to raise it, Premier Cigarettes, taste and smell horrible, F. Ross Johnson (Garner), the CEO, decides to buy the company at $75 a share, which is $4 more than the stock's highest price. He gets the idea after talking to an expert in the LBO field, Henry Kravis (Pryce). When Kravis finds out that he's not involved in this LBO, he becomes upset. Soon, thanks to press releases that come out too soon, and embarrassing information hitting the papers, there are not only many players in the field, but the price being bid has gone up to $112 a share, meaning that the company will be put into billions and billions of dollars in debt.

    The battle of egos is outrageous and all too believable in this story of what became a gigantic takeover contest. The film compresses some of the incidents, but the characters and behind the scenes happenings make it an intriguing, entertaining, and ultimately depressing story. Outside the New York office, one is shown countless homeless people while inside, people are talking about billions of dollars. A true '80s story of greed.

    James Garner is fantastic and funny as good old boy, F. Ross Johnson, who gets into a game of oneupmanship with the elegant, quietly intense Kravis - Jonathan Pryce gives a tremendous performance as a man seething underneath while speaking very softly. Peter Riegert, as the man trying to put together the deal for Shearson Lehman is wonderful, as are two actors I've had the privilege of seeing on stage, Tom Aldredge as the head of the board of RJR Nabisco, and David Rasche, as a banker trying to get in on the deal. Fred Dalton Thompson and Joanna Cassidy are a married couple - she's the publicist for the LBO, and he's the CEO of American Express.

    After seeing the documentary about Enron, I really thought nothing could top it. This does. If you want to be appalled by corporate behavior, don't miss it.

    More like this

    Rogue Trader
    6.4
    Rogue Trader
    Too Big to Fail
    7.2
    Too Big to Fail
    Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room
    7.6
    Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room
    Floored
    6.7
    Floored
    Wall Street
    7.3
    Wall Street
    Boiler Room
    7.0
    Boiler Room
    The China Hustle
    7.1
    The China Hustle
    The Ascent of Money
    7.9
    The Ascent of Money
    Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps
    6.2
    Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps
    Margin Call
    7.1
    Margin Call
    Trader
    7.2
    Trader
    Wall Street Warriors
    7.1
    Wall Street Warriors

    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      A TV movie for the HBO network.
    • Goofs
      The film is set in 1988, but a post-1991 Chevrolet Caprice taxi is visible during a street scene.
    • Quotes

      1st Scientist: [talking about the smokeless Premier cigarette survey] Well of all the people we surveyed the results were just about uniform

      F. Ross Johnson: Uh huh.

      Edward A. Horrigan Jr.: They all said they tasted like shit.

      F. Ross Johnson: Like shit?

      2nd Scientist: Shit was the consensus, yes sir.

      F. Ross Johnson: They all said that? Nobody liked them?

      2nd Scientist: Fewer than 5%

      F. Ross Johnson: You said you heard the results were terrific.

      Edward A. Horrigan Jr.: There's nothing wrong with 5%, Ross, I'll take 5% of the smoking market any day of the week

      F. Ross Johnson: How much are we into right now?

      1st Scientist: Right now?

      F. Ross Johnson: To date, to here, to now?

      1st Scientist: Upwards of 350.

      F. Ross Johnson: We've spent 350 million dollars and we come up with a turd with a tip? God almighty, Ed! We poured enough technology in this project to send a cigarette to the moon and we come up with one that tastes like it took a dump?

      Edward A. Horrigan Jr.: We haven't even talked about the smell.

      F. Ross Johnson: Oh what did they say that was like? A fart?

      Edward A. Horrigan Jr.: Yep.

      F. Ross Johnson: Oh you're not serious! They really said that?

      2nd Scientist: We have an awful lot of fart figures.

      F. Ross Johnson: Tastes like shit and smells like a fart! Got ourselves a real winner here, it's one goddamn unique advertising slogan I'll give you that.

    • Connections
      Featured in Siskel & Ebert: Point of No Return/CB4/Fire in the Sky/Barbarians at the Gate/Il Lardo Di Bambini (1993)
    • Soundtracks
      G-String
      Written and Performed by Elmer Sheffield

    Top picks

    Sign in to rate and Watchlist for personalized recommendations
    Sign in

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • March 20, 1993 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Kaos på Wall Street
    • Production companies
      • HBO Films
      • Columbia Pictures Television
      • Rastar Pictures
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 47 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.33 : 1

    Contribute to this page

    Suggest an edit or add missing content
    Barbarians at the Gate (1993)
    Top Gap
    What is the Spanish language plot outline for Barbarians at the Gate (1993)?
    Answer
    • See more gaps
    • Learn more about contributing
    Edit page

    More to explore

    Production art
    Photos
    Hollywood Power Couples
    See the gallery
    Production art
    Photos
    Before They Were Famous: Actors' Early Roles
    See the gallery

    Recently viewed

    Please enable browser cookies to use this feature. Learn more.
    Get the IMDb App
    Sign in for more accessSign in for more access
    Follow IMDb on social
    Get the IMDb App
    For Android and iOS
    Get the IMDb App
    • Help
    • Site Index
    • IMDbPro
    • Box Office Mojo
    • License IMDb Data
    • Press Room
    • Advertising
    • Jobs
    • Conditions of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • Your Ads Privacy Choices
    IMDb, an Amazon company

    © 1990-2025 by IMDb.com, Inc.