By Mr. Will Wong
Jenny Carchman‘s Documentary WHATEVER IT TAKES takes us on a twisty journey to the unlikely, unveiling a dark web of corporate corruption at eBay that threatened to destroy the brand.
We meet Ina Steiner, Co–Founder and Editor of EcommerceBytes and her husband David, who run a Blog which among other things, criticized eBay and other e-Commerce platforms. After doing this, they started receiving mysterious messages and package deliveries at their home. This escalated to the point where they genuinely feared for their lives, as their stalker(s) circled closer and closer to their home. The question though is who would be so invested in the couple that they would be all consumed in destroying their lives?
This Film explores the controversy which shook the world as we learned that multiple employees at eBay‘s Corporate Security Team were the masterminds behind this attempt to take down the Steiners, which resulted in guilty pleas and a $3 million fine to be paid by eBay.
Though we begin meeting the Steiners and become invested in their struggle, Carchman makes a sharp turn, instead exploring the politics and internal dynamics among the higher-ups at eBay and the Corporate Security team. The tone shifts from Thriller to more exploratory, where we learn about abuses of power and corruption, including a head of security who quickly got promoted to an executive position after joining the organization as a security guard, surrounding himself with young women he could manipulate.
Overall, a fascinating watch that uncovers some juicy, unsavoury things. We do wish it reconciled both sides of the story together a bit better, exploring more the part of the journey where these victims and how they confronted their tormenters. WHATEVER IT TAKES screens at SXSW ’24 as follows:
Whatever it Takes at Alamo Lamar 8
Mar 9, 2024 6:30pm—8:03pm
Whatever it Takes at Alamo Lamar 7
Mar 9, 2024 7:00pm—8:33pm
Whatever it Takes at Alamo Lamar 9
Mar 11, 2024 2:15pm—3:48pm
Whatever it Takes at Alamo Lamar 3
Mar 11, 2024 2:45pm—4:18pm
Whatever it Takes at Alamo Lamar 9
Mar 15, 2024 2:45pm—4:18pm
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