Big Men, Small Minds.
As an ‘oil man’ myself (yes, The Chairport don’t pay me a pretty penny…yet) I probably find this documentary a touch more gripping than others. However, you don’t have to be in the oil business to appreciate the debilitating effect natural resources have had in Africa which this documentary brings to light.
Africa is teeming with natural resources such as oil, gold, copper etc. My better half is from Zambia so I don’t have to look far to hear first hand how the African resources boom has empowered and enriched the few but still left the majority begging. In stark contrast, with The Chairport originating in West Australia, none of us here have to look far to see how the iron ore mining boom actually benefitted the vast majority of West Australians.
Anyway, enough of all that and let’s get to the nitty-gritty. Big Men is focussed around ‘Kosmos Energy.’ A firm founded by Jim Musselman who in 2007, when this documentary begins, make a life-changing discovery in the Jubilee Oil Field situated off the coast of Ghana, West Africa. Note the phrase life changing, however. Who is this life-changing for? Is it Jim Musselman? Is it shareholders and board members of Kosmos Energy? Is it life changing for the politicians of Ghana? The people of Ghana, perhaps? Would Ghana follow the corrupt and crooked path of neighbour Nigeria and self-implode? Or would it follow Norway’s path which ensures that all Norwegian’s benefit financially from the flow of liquid gold? This is what Big Men delves in to.
The documentary is directed by Rachel Boynton and I appreciate her approach in how nothing is suggested or forced upon the viewer. This could easily have been one-sided and as propaganda to portray either Kosmos Energy, the Ghanaian government or the oil business as the bad guys. There’s a negative to this though and that is the constant virtue signalling by representatives of the Ghanaian government when interviewed. We consistently hear from them how Ghana will not be another Nigeria and how they will invest in the infrastructure of the country. There’s no real conclusion in respect to which direction Ghana goes in with the documentary ending in 2013. However, fortunately, we are in 2018 and we have the benefit of hindsight to see that Ghana has not taken advantage of their oil boom. It’s refreshing to have answers for what would have been rhetorical questions.
It can be a fickle business, oil, and this is personified when Jim Musselman and George Owusu, who was tasked with helping Kosmos Energy gain a foothold in Ghana, are both relieved from their duties after a depreciating oil price and fraud scandal rock the business. Before the accusations and firings, both men are pro-Kosmos and pro-oil business. After, let’s say not so much. Both are a touch more critical and play with a more twisted bat when being interviewed. It’s a cutthroat business and that is realised in this documentary.
Big Men can make you look at the ‘oil curse’ in a couple of different lights and it really is all held in the eye of the viewer. Is the greed and corruption of government to blame? Or is it the oil itself, which seems to worsen a countries situation for many places such as Nigeria, Venezuela and, post-Big Men – Ghana. Does it play on human nature, after all – we all want the biggest slice of the pie. It’s a fascinating insight into a lucrative business and even more fascinating to see how the actions and greed of so few can affect so many.