IMDb user comments for
"Traders" (1996)

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17 comments in total

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8 out of 9 people found the following comment useful :-
One of the best shows no longer on, 29 April 2003
Author: Raleon

This was a great drama which I wish stayed on the air longer than it had. Full of great actors and suspenseful plots which carry on from episode to episode. Rick Roberts and David Hewlett are hilarious together- David Hewlett himself is such an underrated actor. He's so different as Grant that it's almost hard to recognize him from his other work.

The only thing that irritates me is the camera work- too shaky and too many close ups. But the show itself usually makes up for that. I would recommend this for anyone.

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7 out of 10 people found the following comment useful :-
Makes me forget that it's Canadian, 25 February 1999
Author: robert from Stoney Creek, Ontario, Canada

This may sound unpatriotic, but I've always shyed away from Canadian attempts at this type of prime time drama. They've always had a kind of style about them that shouted "Canadian" in a non complimentary way. So when Traders premiered I was reluctant to give it a try. Thank heavens I gave in and viewed it. I was hooked from the very first.

Traders is decidedly Canadian. It takes place in a real Canadian city and is full of references to Canadian culture and institutions. Luckily, this is of no importance at all to the quality of the show. Both the writing and acting can stand shoulder to shoulder with any Prime Time drama produced anywhere in the world, including the best of both American and British television. It did not have to try and sell itself to me by appealing to some sense of patriotic duty to Canadian media like so many other past attempts.

When this show premiered, it was up against the brand new "ER". The magic of video allowed me to view both shows and make my choice. "ER" lost.

It goes to prove that when we stop trying to be so "Canadian" and just try to concentrate on quality, we can kick some major derriere.

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5 out of 7 people found the following comment useful :-
My Favourite Show, 22 March 2000
Author: John Carpenter (johncarpenter@execulink.com) from Hamilton, Canada

This award winning drama has everything that a person could want. Love, betrayal, money, sex, humour, great acting, everything! Bruce Grey as awesome as Adam Cunningham, the member of the Old Guard on Bay Street, and Sonia Smits is superb as Sally Ross, the scholar turned broker. Great writing makes the show fresh and interesting. It's only down point is that some of the terms used on the show are a bit too technical. All in all I give it 9 out of ten.

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2 out of 2 people found the following comment useful :-
Everyone seems to agree - a fantastic show!, 18 April 2006
Author: glwardberg from Canada

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

I just want to add my two cents. I don't comment on many movies or programs, but this was very, very good - and I will email HomeVideo@AllianceAtlantis.com to ask for more seasons on DVD.

Great acting, solid plots and wicked writing! I think I got a little dizzy just watching the camera bouncing around - which now seems to be an industry standard.

I love Patrick McKenna, Sonia Smitts, and all the other Canucks. By the sounds of the other reviews, everyone agrees. This was(is) a fantastic series.

I'm hoping enough pressure will release more seasons! cheers glwardberg

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2 out of 2 people found the following comment useful :-
Absolutely ... the best !!, 18 January 2006
Author: phbalanced

Thankfully this program is still in reruns and it takes a long time to get through five seasons, but what a series! A weekly TV series based on the goings on in the financial industry may sound like a yawner, but not at all. The cast is large and varied, but the most memorable cast member is head floor trader Marty Stephens, played by comedian Patrick McKenna, whose eccentric character is never underplayed. Great supporting cast also includes the wonderful David Hewlett as the quirky yet brilliant computer genius who specializes in the derivatives market. Drama, suspense, and even action-thriller in some plots keeps viewers on edge and wanting more.

Season three storyline about corporate financier Jack Larkin (played by David Cubitt) and bad guy Jean-Paul Brunet (played by Carlo Rota) is one of the best, though new cast additions in the fourth and fifth season and new story lines do not draw away the attention from the main characters.

Viewers not familiar with investment jargon will not be lost in trying to follow story lines. If Marty screams "SELL !!!" he's probably running with the bulls. Throughout the five seasons, we get to see a myriad of stories including some real business scandals made fictional, the popular activity of day trading, insider trading, bankruptcy and restructuring, and others.

Series was nominated and won numerous Gemini Awards in the mid to late 1990s, and most recently listed as one of Canada's Top 10 best shows of all time. Too bad only season one is available on DVD. Series deserves a finale two-hour movie.

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4 out of 6 people found the following comment useful :-
Better than "ER" anyday!, 16 November 1998
Author: spinbunny from London, Ontario

In Ontario, "Traders" is on at the same time as "ER". If you are as SICK of "ER" as I am...this is the show for you! (no stupid romances, repeated plots, characters you hate or patients you wish would die to be found!!!) Plus on Canadian TV they tend to swear which makes it even more realistic.

"Traders" is quirky, humourous, down-right off the wall at times and an enjoyable hour to spend in front of the tube! (take as a point the plot-line where a hooker was hired to pretend to be Grant's "adoptive mother". What does Grant do? Take her as a girl friend. And pays her for it!)

Patrick McKenna is a genius in his portrayal of Marty (just compare this character to Harold on the "Red Green Show"!) as is David Hewlett in playing Grant (a true computer geek to the end!) and Sonja Smits as the kitten-at-heart Sally Ross.

"Traders" tends to be current in regards to financial and political issues, and its ever-present black humour and is worth a look: you'll be hooked, for sure!

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3 out of 5 people found the following comment useful :-
Regarding Traders Seasons Two and beyond on DVD..., 2 August 2005
Author: mrtoby-1 from Canada

Hi everyone,

I am a fan of this show and I recently purchased Season 1 on DVD with the full intent of buying the rest of the series when it came out on DVD. However, it seems as though Alliance Atlantis is taking their time in releasing Seasons Two and beyond. So I emailed Alliance Atlantis and this is the response I received:

From: HomeVideo@AllianceAtlantis.com Date: Tue Aug 02, 2005 02:28:09 PM CDT Subject: RE: "Traders" Seasons Two and beyond?

Thank-you for taking the time to write to us here at Alliance Atlantis Motion Picture Distribution, Home Entertainment.

Unfortunately we do not have any immediate plans to release further seasons of "Traders".

I hope this answers all of your questions, any further inquiries please don't hesitate to contact us, and thank-you once again for writing to Alliance Atlantis Home Entertainment.

So if you, like I, love this series and would like the rest to be released on DVD. Email HomeVideo@AllianceAtlantis.com and request that they release it!!!

I just thought I'd share this with all the other fans of this great Canadian TV series.

-Mr Toby

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3 out of 5 people found the following comment useful :-
I thought it would be boring; happily instead, it's realistic., 1 October 1999
Author: Carlin Joie Belof from Toronto, Ontario, Canada

When I first heard of the show, my initial reaction was: "a show about traders? How boring! How can anything about finance be interesting?" Because of this, I missed the first season and half of the second before I finally started watching it, and I was instantly hooked. What caught my attention, more than anything else, was the wonderful acting jobs of the cast and how they truly brought their characters to life.

Not one of the characters in the show are predictable or stereotypical; there are no "good guys" or "bad guys". Instead, each of the characters are highly complex individuals with personal issues that they are forced to deal with on a regular basis, who struggle daily with the ethical and moral dilemmas of working in their professions. The credit for this realism must go to the excellent writers of the show. But even though the show deals with serious issues on a regular basis, it can also be quite humourous. Watching the interaction between the characters provides an incessant source of both laughter and tears, demonstrating both the writers' innumerous talents and the fantastic acting abilities of all of the actors on the show.

My personal favourite characters are Marty Stevens (portrayed by Patrick McKenna) and Paul Deeds (portrayed by Peter Stebbings). Marty is the head trader whose biting sarcastic remarks always make me laugh. Yet, underneath it all, his character is incredibly vulnerable and inherently lovable. On the other hand, Paul's character is far more seedy and is kind of a "bad boy". He is ruthless in his job and will go to whatever lengths he has to in order to get the deal signed, including breaking moral or ethical boundaries. But every now and then he shows that he is not entirely heartless and has his vulnerabilities, too. All of the characters in the show have characteristics that are both admirable and disagreeable ... making them incredibly human ... and which makes me come back for more. :)

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Traders: The Destruction of the Canadian Television Stereotype, 10 December 2007

Author: Jangling_Jack from Canada

"Traders," offered one simple thing: a glimpse of the parochial world of investment banking.

Unlike "Wall Street" and a host of American movies/television shows, though, "Traders" never attempted to moralize.

These characters were fully-realized; greedy, but understandable. Unpleasant, but human.

When it began in 1995, the show revolved around Jack Larkin (David Cubitt) a Vancouver based-trader recently transplanted to Toronto with the intent of landing a position in corporate finance with the small investment firm, "Gardner, Ross".

Larkin was sympathetic as an underdog who managed to use his financial acumen and street smarts to escape poverty and an abusive home. Often given to fits of explosive anger, Cubitt played him like a street thug in a $2,000.00 suit.

The show's decline came with Jack Larkin's death and Cubitt's departure to the United States.

There was a notable change in the positioning of Bruce Gray and Soja Smit's characters respectively and Patrick McKenna was forced to amp-up his performance even more to cover for the less-than-stellar contributions of Peter Stebbings and Rachel Crawford. The stories remained interesting, but the show suffered immeasurably from the loss of David Cubitt's presence.

On the whole, it remains a milestone in Canadian television as yet unsurpassed.

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raised the bar for Canuck productions, 16 October 2006

Author: yannybarney from Canada

This TV show was a turning point in Canadian production for me. I was always a fan of home grown art, music, etc. but not Canadian television until TRADERS. This is b/c Canadian TV was generally sub-standard when I was growing up (due to minuscule or non-existent budgets). If you were channel surfing and happened upon some low budget, made-for-TV movie the assumption or joke was that "It must be a Canadian production".

I'm not saying that this was first great Canadian show but it was the first one on my radar and my favorite TV show for the five years of its run. Now, there is a rich selection of Canuck productions to pick from, some of them being some of the more intelligent and edgy television out there, but it was a pioneer.

If you get a chance to watch this show, do yourself a favor...You will fall in love with these characters and be thoroughly entertained.

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