The Banker (2020)
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Two African-American bankers navigate the complexities of real estate and banking in a segregated America.
The story
In 1954, Bernard Garrett moves to Los Angeles with his wife and son, seeking success in real estate. However, he faces systemic racism that hinders his progress. To bypass these barriers, he forms a partnership with an Irish immigrant and later joins forces with wealthy club owner Joe Morris. They employ a white man, Matt Steiner, to act as the public face of their operations. Together, they begin to successfully acquire and renovate properties, eventually aiming to challenge discriminatory practices by providing loans to black residents in their respective communities.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
In 1954, Bernard Garrett moves to Los Angeles and faces racial barriers in real estate. He forms a partnership with an Irish immigrant, Patrick Barker, and a white man, Matt Steiner, who acts as the public face of their business. After Barker's death, Garrett partners with Joe Morris; they continue using Matt as a front to navigate discriminatory laws. They become successful, eventually moving to Texas to open a bank and provide loans to black residents. Their success draws the attention of a suspicious bank executive who discovers their true identities and threatens them with exposure. Matt is forced to take a plea deal and falsely testify against his partners. Bernard and Joe are convicted and imprisoned. Upon their release, they find that Matt has purchased two homes for them in the Bahamas with funds they had entrusted to him before their arrest.
- First release year
- 2020
- Runtime (minutes)
- 120
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- George Nolfi
- Writers
- Niceole Levy · screenplay; George Nolfi · screenplay; David Lewis Smith · screenplay; Stan Younger · screenplay; David Lewis Smith · story; Stan Younger · story; Brad Caleb Kane · story
- Cast and characters
- Anthony Mackie · Bernard Garrett; Nicholas Hoult · Matt Steiner; Nia Long; Jessie T. Usher; Samuel L. Jackson · Joe Morris
- Genres
- drama
- Themes
- racism; civil rights; economic inequality
- Tone and mood
- dramatic
- Setting
- Los Angeles and Texas in the 1950s.
- Premise and plot tags
- period piece; biographical drama
- Source material / true-story basis
- fact-based story
- Reception
- The film received generally positive reviews from critics.
- Reported review scores
- Metacritic · score: 59 · scale: 100 · review count: 19
- Production trivia
- The film was originally set for a premiere at AFI Fest in November 2019.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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