In the second week of December 2008, Bernie Madoff informed his two sons, Mark and Andrew, that the investment business he had managed for decades was entirely a lie, leading FBI agents to his Manhattan doorstep on the morning of December 11.

Barry Levinson's HBO film The Wizard of Lies opens with that confession and explores its aftermath, starring Robert De Niro as Madoff and Michelle Pfeiffer as his wife, Ruth. Rather than detailing the mechanics of the massive fraud, the film focuses on the emotional collapse within the family once the deception was exposed. Released in May 2017, the production features a narrative frame tied to prison interviews conducted by New York Times financial journalist Diana B. Henriques, who plays herself onscreen and authored the underlying 2011 book.

Key Takeaways
  • Journalist Diana B. Henriques, who interviewed Madoff in prison, portrays herself in the film.
  • Robert De Niro portrays Madoff with a stark stillness, differing sharply from Richard Dreyfuss's television portrayal a year earlier.
  • Critics across English and Spanish publications praised the central performances while remaining divided on the runtime and the film's perspective on Madoff.
  • The 133-minute drama serves as a patient character study rather than a fast-paced true crime thriller.

What are the production details and narrative boundaries of The Wizard of Lies?

Credits: The Wizard of Lies · Director Barry Levinson · Screenplay by Sam Levinson, Sam Baum, and John Burnham Schwartz · Based on the book by Diana B. Henriques, The Wizard of Lies: Bernie Madoff and the Death of Trust (2011) · Cinematography by Eigil Bryld · Music by Evgueni and Sacha Galperine · Starring Robert De Niro, Michelle Pfeiffer, Alessandro Nivola, Nathan Darrow, Hank Azaria, Kristen Connolly, Lily Rabe, and Kathrine Narducci · HBO Films · 133 minutes · Rated TV-MA in the United States · Premiered on HBO on May 20, 2017.

While the historical events and legal fallout are well-documented public record, the narrative concludes without depicting the subsequent tragedies faced by individual family members in later years. A notable real-world update is that Bernie Madoff died in prison in April 2021 at the age of 82, an event that occurred four years after the film's original release.

The Wizard of Lies promotional still featuring Robert De Niro seated on a couch with Michelle Pfeiffer standing behind him
Bernie (Robert De Niro) and Ruth Madoff (Michelle Pfeiffer). Image: HBO (official promotional still).

How does the narrative of The Wizard of Lies unfold?

Levinson anchors the narrative around prison interviews, returning frequently to the visitor's room where Henriques converses with Madoff. De Niro plays Madoff with a subdued, restrained vocal delivery. In contrast to Richard Dreyfuss's portrayal in a 2016 ABC miniseries, which featured flashes of rogue charm, De Niro establishes the character through absolute immobility. Critics noted instances such as a dinner party scene where Madoff interrogates caterers over seafood prices and simultaneously persuades an investor to increase a commitment from $100 million to $400 million with the exact same expressionless demeanor, suggesting a practiced habit devoid of genuine engagement.

Ruth Madoff serves as the emotional anchor of the film, with Pfeiffer portraying more than fifty years of marriage while carrying the central question of what her character knew and when she knew it. Alessandro Nivola, who plays the older son Mark, received widespread praise among the supporting cast.

The Wizard of Lies scene showing the sons seated across from Madoff with Ruth Madoff viewed from behind
The sons confront their father. The film emphasizes the familial fallout of the confession. Image: HBO (official promotional still).

Screenwriter Sam Levinson is the son of director Barry Levinson, and cinematographer Eigil Bryld previously won an Emmy for the pilot episode of House of Cards. The Wizard of Lies earned four Primetime Emmy nominations in 2017, including Outstanding Television Movie, Lead Actor for De Niro, Supporting Actress for Pfeiffer, and Casting. This project marked the fourth time De Niro and Pfeiffer appeared in a film together.

What do global critics say about The Wizard of Lies?

On Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds a 73 percent approval rating from 51 reviews, with an average score of 6.5/10, while Metacritic records a score of 67 based on 26 reviews. Upon release, critics generally praised the lead performances while differing on the runtime and the film's proximity to its subject.

Writing for RogerEbert.com, Brian Tallerico described the film as Levinson's finest work in two decades, praising De Niro's depth while noting that the 135-minute runtime felt extended and the editing occasionally unconventional. Noel Murray of The New York Times emphasized that the film is less concerned with Madoff's financial crimes than with his psychological profile.

Conversely, Maureen Ryan of Variety argued that the strong ensemble cast could not overcome the film's sluggish pacing, suggesting it offered little new insight into Madoff. Simon Abrams of The Guardian offered a harsher critique, writing that the narrative expects audience sympathy for a self-pitying criminal without adequately examining why that sympathy is warranted.

Michelle Pfeiffer as Ruth Madoff holding a glass thoughtfully at a decorated social event
Ruth Madoff (Michelle Pfeiffer) at a social gathering. Image: HBO (official promotional still).

Spanish-language reviewers reflected similar divisions. In Colombia, Juan Carlos Rojas of El Tiempo found the narrative predictable but commended De Niro's impact, noting that the film refrains from either glorifying or demonizing Madoff, leaving moral judgment to the viewer. FilmAffinity aggregates professional Spanish-language reviews evenly split between positive and moderate assessments.

Audience scores remain moderate across platforms, including 6.8 on IMDb, a 3.26/5 average on Letterboxd, and 6.1 on FilmAffinity, alongside a 64 percent audience approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

Is The Wizard of Lies worth watching?

The film succeeds as a stark, solitary family drama best approached with the understanding that its focus rests on domestic fallout rather than financial mechanics. The monetary operations are referenced briefly, but the narrative spends the majority of its duration inside drawing rooms, legal offices, and prison visitor booths. The most compelling elements stem from the exchanges between De Niro and Pfeiffer, who convey decades of a taciturn marriage without overt melodrama. Due to its heavy reliance on close-ups and subdued audio mixing, the film benefits from a distraction-free viewing environment rather than casual viewing.

Audiences familiar with the 2008 financial crisis through companion titles like Too Big to Fail, admirers of De Niro's understated dramatic work, and viewers interested in the internal dynamics of the Madoff household will find the film rewarding. Conversely, those seeking a procedural breakdown of the Ponzi scheme may find it too distant, as it functions primarily as a character study rather than a fast-paced investigative thriller.

Official trailer, HBO UK YouTube channel.

Notes and Sources

  1. U.S. Department of Justice, Southern District of New York, Madoff Criminal Information (March 2009): Account balances and arrest details. Criminal Information document · fbi.gov ↩
  2. Streaming metrics and platform rankings for The Wizard of Lies. flixpatrol.com · title page ↩
  3. HBO Max catalog page: The Wizard of Lies, 2017, Drama, Crime. hbomax.com ↩
  4. Wikipedia production overview: Screenplay, source book, cinematography, and premiere date. wikipedia.org ↩
  5. IMDb title overview: The Wizard of Lies, 2017, runtime and user ratings. imdb.com ↩
  6. JustWatch platform availability index. justwatch.com ↩
  7. U.S. Department of Justice press release (June 2009) and FBI case files regarding Madoff's sentence and passing in April 2021. justice.gov · fbi.gov ↩
  8. The Atlantic (May 2017): Review of Barry Levinson's direction and Diana B. Henriques's role. theatlantic.com ↩
  9. The Hollywood Reporter, Daniel Fienberg (May 2017): Critical review and performance comparisons. hollywoodreporter.com ↩
  10. RogerEbert.com, Brian Tallerico (May 2017): Review of The Wizard of Lies. rogerebert.com ↩
  11. Television Academy: Primetime Emmy nominations and background for Eigil Bryld. televisionacademy.com · Bryld ↩
  12. Rotten Tomatoes critical and audience metrics. rottentomatoes.com ↩
  13. Metacritic aggregate score index. metacritic.com ↩
  14. The New York Times, Noel Murray (May 2017): Review of Robert De Niro's performance. nytimes.com ↩
  15. Variety, Maureen Ryan (May 2017): Critical review. variety.com ↩
  16. The Guardian, Simon Abrams (May 2017): Review of The Wizard of Lies. theguardian.com ↩
  17. El Tiempo, Juan Carlos Rojas (January 2018): Column review. eltiempo.com ↩
  18. FilmAffinity ratings and review aggregation. filmaffinity.com ↩
  19. Letterboxd user ratings and reviews. letterboxd.com ↩
  20. YouTube oembed verification for official trailer. youtube.com ↩