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"Easy
Dot-com, Easy Go"
by Scott Mantz
"Startup.com"
Kaleil Isaza Tuzman, Tom Herman
Directed by Chris Hegedus and Jehane Noujaim
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| 'Com'
artist! Kaleil Tuzman cashes in on the American Dream in "Startup.com" |
You'd have to
have been living on a deserted island for the past 4 years not
to have noticed that the dot-com boom went dot-com bust. If you
were, then I
suggest you see "Startup.com" and catch up on all the
current events. Beyond
the fact that it's a riveting fly-on-the-wall account of the incredible
rise--and even more incredible fall--of an up-and-coming internet
company,
it's also an enormously engrossing--and at times rather amusing--examination
of how a strong friendship withstood the shark-infested waters of
the
technology sector.
In May 1999,
good friends Kaleil Tuzman and Tom Herman created govWorks.com,
an internet portal that was supposed to provide a link between the
general
public and government agencies. In a mind-bogglingly short period
of time,
govWorks went from having 8 employees to having over 250, and in
an
unprecedented feat, it raised more than $60 million in working capital.
Just
when it seemed like success was a foregone conclusion, a number
of
factors--including poor market conditions--forced govWorks to close
its doors
for good in just a few shorts months.
"Startup.com"
wouldn't have been nearly as engrossing had it not been for the
incredible access the filmmakers had to the partners and their many
behind-closed-doors meetings. Like a fly on the wall, we're there
from the
very beginning, when Tuzman ignorantly leaves his cushy investment
banking
job to partner up with Herman. We're there with Tuzman during his
many
nerve-wracking attempts to raise working capital from wealthy investors.
We're there when a visiting competitor elicits nervous animosity
from some
key employees. We're there when the partners give motivational speeches,
hugs, and high-fives to the rest of the staff for overcoming tremendous
business hurdles.
Tragically,
we're also there when the business crumbles and the foundation of
a once strong friendship is put to the ultimate test. After reaching
incredible heights--such as appearing on CNN and sitting side-by-side
with
President Clinton--Tuzman is forced to do what's best for the company
by
"asking" his naive and inexperienced childhood friend
to step down. As
Herman painfully weighs his options, he becomes the face of thousands
of
dreamers whose rags-to-riches plans went belly up with the stock
market.
Most Hollywood movies don't get this intense.
Since the internet
is still in its birth pangs, it makes perfect sense that
so many startup companies would come and go. Like with everything
else, it's
survival of the fittest, and only the strong survive. Fortunately
for Tuzman
and Herman, the strong did survive. Not only did their friendship
ride out
the murky waters that followed the dissolution of their business,
but they
were also able to pool their resources and take yet another stab
at a dot-com
venture--this time helping (what else?) struggling dot-coms.
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