In Rachel Boynton’s (“Out Brand is Crisis”) documentary “Big Men,” she goes inside a start-up oil business as they begin operations in the heart of post-colonial Africa.
What distinguishes “Big Men” from the litany of purported expose documentaries on big oil is its abundant access inside the halls of power investing, where the big decisions are made.
Boynton’s documentary eventually takes viewers from tense stand-offs inside boardrooms with oil executives, at the start-up firm of Kosmos energy, to riding in speedboats with masked bandits in Nigeria.
Living up to its title, Boynton captures the rather large egos of men like Jim Musselman, a Texas investor in Kosmos, who ends up wrapped in a series of power plays made by the government of Ghana to force the company into a buyout.
“Big Men” juxtaposes Ghana’s new oil discovery with oil pipelines along the Niger Delta that suffer from environmental degradation, political corruption at every level and black markets where stealing black gold becomes a profitable business for oil robbers. Boynton makes the perilous battle lines very clear during the course of “Big Men.”
Boynton’s best tool is that she utilizes her unbelievably well-placed access to all manners of strange and dangerous individuals, but never does the looming threat of harm become a foregone conclusion. In fact, when Boynton finds herself filming oil bandits on the Niger Delta they seem flattered and happy that a camera is there to document their exploits.
“Big Men” is fascinating for delving deep into the murky waters of the Niger Delta, where oil covers the river in a slimy film. The documentary captures the frustration and jubilation of a multifaceted oil business where the stakes are high and the riches are vast.
