Fail State

Name: Fail State
Genre: Documentary
Released: October 19, 2018
Duration: 93 min
Rating: 68
Cast: David Halperin, Gibson Frazier, Maxine Waters, Tom Harkin

2018

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Generally favorable reviews based on 5 Critic Reviews

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Movie Details & Credits

Gravitas Ventures | Release Date: October 19, 2018 | Not Rated

Starring: David Halperin, Gibson Frazier, Maxine Waters, Tom Harkin

Summary: Fail State investigates the dark side of American higher education, chronicling decades of policy decisions in Washington DC that have given rise to a powerful and highly-predatory for-profit college industry. With echoes of the subprime mortgage crisis, the film lays bare how for-profit colleges exploited millions of low-income andFail State investigates the dark side of American higher education, chronicling decades of policy decisions in Washington DC that have given rise to a powerful and highly-predatory for-profit college industry. With echoes of the subprime mortgage crisis, the film lays bare how for-profit colleges exploited millions of low-income and minority students, leaving them with worthless degrees and drowning in student loan debt. Director Alexander Shebanow traces the rise, fall, and resurgence of the for-profit college industry, uncovering their Wall Street backing and incestuous relationship with the regulators and lawmakers charged with overseeing them.… Expand

Director: Alexander Shebanow

Genre(s): Documentary

Rating: Not Rated

Runtime: 93 min

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Critic Reviews

Gary Goldstein

Oct 18, 2018

It’s an appalling, infuriating story. Read full review

Movie Nation Roger Moore

Oct 31, 2018

It’s a lot to take in, and Fail State doesn’t leave the viewer with a lot of hope. When the Obama Administration figured out how to grade such operations and shut down the ones plainly set up to fail their students, Corinthian, Everest, ITT Tech and DeVry went away. Read full review

John DeFore

Nov 12, 2018

It gives the feature doc treatment to a topic TV journalists (and news-comedy hero John Oliver) have looked at over the decades — showing the slimy ways that reforms prompted by public outrage have been neutered by politicians on both sides of the aisle. Read full review

André Hereford

Oct 25, 2018

The film’s disparate elements add up to less than the sum of its parts, and this would-be fiery take on the failures of the American higher-education system never really ignites. Read full review

Hunter Lanier

Nov 8, 2018

The ham-fisted approach undercuts the valuable information that makes up Fail State. Read full review

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Sandrick

Dec 30, 2018

It was a powerful film that takes on a topic long overdue-- how the US higher ed system has been compromised by private interests and unchecked greed. It was an emotional rollercoaster because it hits home the depths that those in power have gone to in order to corrupt the system and tip theIt was a powerful film that takes on a topic long overdue-- how the US higher ed system has been compromised by private interests and unchecked greed. It was an emotional rollercoaster because it hits home the depths that those in power have gone to in order to corrupt the system and tip the scales to their advantage. It makes me realize that my story is the story of so many others, victims of Ai, ITT Tech, DeVry, Kaplan, Westwood, and countless other chains.

While it is infuriating to watch at times, it also has a message of hope -- that we can enact change if we are able to organize. There are many, many allies that know the truth about the deception and the way we win is to spread knowledge about the schools and fight the public opinion of them, and us. Keep in mind that there has never been a film that has gone to this level on the history of the subject and had such wide release. We have the numbers and the power to change the future for the better if we simply choose to have our voices heard as one.… Expand

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