Legal Loopholes & Loopy Lunatics
The film starts by introducing us to the men behind the scam, who are all from Slovakia. They claim to be working for a company called “Eco-Labs”, which is actually a front for a scam organization called “The Group”. The men tell us that they were approached by someone who claimed to be from Eco-Labs, and that they needed their help with something important. The man in question told them that he had found a way to get around the carbon quota system, and that they would be able to earn millions of euros in the process. The men tell us that they didn’t believe their caller, and started digging into the story. They soon realized that there was no such company as “Eco-Labs” - instead, it was just another scam operation run by The Group. The men then went on to create a fake company called “Eco-Lab”, which they used as a front for The Group’s real business. They managed to con over 1 million people out of money, and they are still at it today. This documentary is an interesting look at one of the most unique cases involving scammers in recent history - but it takes its time getting down to business. It’s clear that these guys have been doing this for years, and they have managed to pull off some pretty impressive scams. If you’re interested in learning more about this case, Lords of Scam is definitely worth watching!
Lords of Scam is a documentary film that follows different men as they go about their days. While some of the footage is interesting, the film’s slow pace and lack of focus make it difficult to watch at times. When the film actually focuses on the issue at hand, it’s much more enjoyable. ..
We’re introduced to other key players in this operation, including Dominique Ghez “Dodo”, Gregory Zaoui “The Brain”, Arnaud Mimran and Samy Souied. Now, there are other people involved here too, but the latter is particularly important to note given the key role this person has in the story that follows. No spoilers of course, but around the hour mark a big revelation turns this story from simple scamming to something far darker.
The problem with Lords of Scam is that it feels like a documentary rather than a movie. The film starts off with some interesting footage, but quickly devolves into fly on the wall footage that’s not really related to the story. The only thing that keeps the film from feeling disjointed is the consistent pace, which makes it easy to follow.
The ending of this novel leaves many questions unanswered, most notably the identity of the true narrator. The ambiguity and lack of clarity in the story makes it difficult to determine who is telling the truth and who is lying. Additionally, there are some expository paragraphs that follow that confirm what happened to these men, but certain elements – such as an unresolved murder case – remain black clouds over the validity of the stories being told here.
Lords of Scam is a financial documentary that is not as tightly constructed and pacey as it could be. This could very easily be about 20-25 minutes shorter and you would not miss much. Despite its slow pace and questionable editing though, there’s enough here to make for an enjoyable watch nonetheless. Just be sure to approach this one with some patience!
