Globalization pertains to changes in international trade and economy which is what the film Commanding Heights is largely based on. The features of globalization as espoused in the film are: falling trade barriers, unrestricted capital flows fueled by technological innovation and a new mobile global workforce would all combine to transform the world economy (CERA, 2005).
The rules of the game in the global economy are set by the open market. Before, global economy rules were used to be set by the government. But the shift to open markets' influence began manifesting in the postwar period, from the "60s and "70s. The heavy reliance on government intervention seemed to be working (Fischer, 2001).
Government intervention proved to be very effective in the short run. Brazil, in which government intervention was apparent, enjoyed swift growth. During the "70s, after the energy crisis and the early "80s debt crisis, it became clearer and clearer that government control was not working. Gradual changes were then introduced. But total change is not implemented yet since it is not possible to get rid of government intervention totally (Fischer, 2001).
The key actors influencing the rules of global economy were John Maynard Keynes and Frederick Von Hayek. In Commanding Heights the struggle through the lives of two men, whose ideas had much more influence on shaping our world than most people know was effectively captured. One was John Maynard Keynes, the elegant Englishman who advocated government intervention to control the booms and busts of capitalist economies. The other was Frederick von Hayek, the Austrian émigré who argued that government intervention in the economy would erode human freedom and was doomed to failure (CERA, 2005).
The Asian countries experience immense growth during the globalization era and seem to enjoy the fastest growths. Hence were the biggest winners. Korea, Hong Kong, Singapore, China took advantage of globalization. Globalization allowed Asian countries to integrate into the world economy, to export, to rely on import markets and open up to other markets (Fischer, 2001).
Globalization is more and more being referred to as Americanization. During the early 1900's Americanization meant taking new immigrants and turning them into Americans. These days, critics define globalization as the imposition of American culture on the entire world. And the signs are everywhere from the number of American burgers and cola to nearly every country on earth. The influence is apparent everywhere (Porter, 2005).
But Thomas Friedman knows that by simply dismissing globalization as mere Americanization is misleading. Globalization can change not just the movies or food consumed by a society. Its effects are incalculable which could be good or bad or something in between (Porter, 2005).
