Written by: Max Borenstein
Starring: Michael Keaton, Stanley Tucci, Amy Ryan, Tate Donovan, Shunori Ramanathan
Rating: [4/5]
When asking an optimist and idealist of the world to assign a dollar value to one life, they might respond with the idea of each one being priceless. Something not matched by the reality of the world, especially when it comes to the realm of insurance. This larger philosophical discussion comes right front and center following one of the most horrific attacks against the United States of America in the way numbers and human emotion clash.
Following the attacks on 9/11, attorneys Kenneth Feinberg (Michael Keaton) and Camille Biros (Amy Ryan) receives the privilege to work with the families of the victims to come up with the proper compensation they could receive to avoid litigation against the airline industry. Needing to get 80% support for the formula devised, they need to find the proper way to calculate the life of each individual causing massive disagreement amongst the surviving families.
Of the unenviable jobs in the history of the world, the task Kenneth Feinberg and Camille Biros needed to accomplish would give anyone an aneurysm. Needing to find the proper compensation for each person who died in the tragic event is one thing, but needing to get the necessary buy-in for a formula to calculate it from the grieving families reached a level of impossibility it’s shocking anyone thought it would be feasible. Asking just one person what their deceased loved one is worth creates an impossible answer to give when allowing them the power to decide. Feinberg and Biros need to tell them their worth and have them agree with it.
Philosophically this feature really digs into this question where you have mathematics clashing with the emotions of grieving families. Feinburg’s initial formula considers factors such as the income made by the person who passed among other objective parameters to ascertain the payout amount. It makes sense mathematically and objectively, but trying to get others to agree with it, especially when they lost the person they love makes the formula immaterial. This undoubtedly causes friction when you tell someone the janitor who died does not have the same value in compensation as the executive in the corner office. In a sense, these individuals then become numbers instead of human beings.
This push and pull throughout the feature causes a rift with several scenes following individuals having difficult conversations with a timetable in which this must be agreed upon to avoid financial disaster. This then brings Charles Wolf (Stanley Tucci), the widow of someone who died who begins to represent the families and presents their side of the story. This gives Tucci another juicy role to take on and excel in portraying as he sheds the emotional side of this argument and how this mighty formula should not necessarily dictate everything when coming to this compensation fund allocation.
Of the many arguments in this feature, the clash of numbers versus people really comes to fruition when the attornies begin to interview the surviving family members giving a personal touch to each story and individual they try to calculate a value for. It creates so many heartbreaking conversations where the technicalities come out in the specificities of who holds the entitlement to receiving these funds only further complicating the matter for the two attorneys. Hearing these stories only further intensifies the difficulty of this job but also allows them to be heard in their pain, which ultimately gets at what Charles Wolf wants the attorneys to do rather than standing behind some formula.
A tension remains present throughout this entire feature because of the deadline set of December 23rd, 2023 where this agreement needs to be struck or financial catastrophe will ensue. With each hurdle they take on they see the gap they must make up in order to reach the required goal. This puts a distinct pressure on these two, justifiably, in trying to figure out exactly what will work in this difficult circumstance and what they can do to come to the rightful resolution. A ticking tock continues to run internally for these two attorneys and their associates with pressure on all sides weighing down on them that it surprised me neither of them died from a stroke from all the stress they endure during this process.
Showcasing some strong performances by Michael Keaton, Stanley Tucci, and Amy Ryan, Worth opens up a large philosophical debate but brings it to the real world and people in determining each person’s numerical value. Getting any group of people to agree to anything presents a challenge, but when it comes to something as hurtful and personal as the value of their lost loved one, it undoubtedly creates something quite melancholic and impactful to watch as a whole. Stress builds on all sides as the battle between the interests of the individual and the whole takes center stage. A superbly crafted feature filled with empathy but the necessary objectivity to get something done for everyone.
Films with Josh 