Man in Full–Empty and Unhinged 

Based on Tom Wolfe’s book of the same title (1998),  Man in Full crosses genre.  Charley Croker, a “Succession” type aging patriarch like Logan Roy, still basks in his former football star fame  although he is now a mega real-estate developer and womanizing magnate with an oversized, explosive ego.  (Sound familiar?) Croker’s emotional dial tone is contempt for everyone who does not shine a light on him.   Now on the verge of bankruptcy from overleveraging and excessive borrowing, banks are calling in hundreds of millions of dollars of loans and Croker’s  extravagant lifestyle encased in a  sense of entitlement is about to come to an end. Or is it?

The Croker corporate conglomerate is replete with obsequious lackeys–including an in-house legal counsel and fixer, Roger White (Ami Ameen) who finally grows a spine, and Raymond (Tom Pelphrey), a bullied loan officer who wants restitution, or is it revenge?

The cast of collateral damage inflicted by the blustery, bloviating capitalist predator is not to be underestimated, however.  There is Roger White’s wife, Croker’s  ex-wife (Diane Lane), and Croker’s secretary whose husband has been wrongly accused of assaulting a police officer. Besides Raymond, there is Harry Zale, a determined senior bank compliance officer (Bill Camp of “Presumed Innocent” and “Queen’s Gambit”), determined to bring down Croker and his empire, freezing his assets and gathering enough evidence to destroy Croker’s business and reputation forever.  But Croker is confident he can maneuver and outsmart the political and legal systems.  His only desire–a thirst–is for domination.

This is a breathtaking legal and social class drama.  Jeff Daniels is always excellent, and while this is not his best performance his strutting, swaggering, and ferocious overconfidence in being above the law, astounds the viewer at times, particularly in the final scenes.  Diane Lane, the imposed-upon wife who has tolerated his infidelity for years for the sake of their son,  nearly steals the show with a measured, understated performance superbly matched to the undervalued person her husband thinks he can crush.  And Tom Pelphrey as the seething  ex-employee smelling of rank animal rage, commands each scene he is in face-to-face with Jeff Daniels in a crazily unexpected ending.  And one actor not to be overlooked is Bill Camp, with his Dickensian wealth of quirky characters in his resume, demonstrates  human decency, belief in a system that fails over and over again, but still refuses to give up.

Man in Full is storytelling at its best, particularly the ending with Croker and Raymond.  David E. Kelley’s writing never disappoints!

Availability:  Netflix