2015 (88th) Academy Awards Best Picture Nominee
The Big Short is a
sharp comedy that assembles a strong cast to tackle an important, but
complicated true story. It stars Christian Bale, Steve Carell, Ryan Gosling,
and Brad Pitt, but the actors share little screen time with each other. In
fact, Bale’s storyline does not cross paths with any of the others. Bale plays
Dr. Mark Burry, an eccentric fund manager whose bosses don’t take seriously
because he wears shorts, goes barefoot in his office, and gets his hair trimmed
at Supercuts. In spite of his appearance, Burry is smart enough to figure out,
in 2005, that the housing market is headed for disaster…and that there is a way
to profit from the impending collapse. Ryan Gosling, as Deutsche Bank bond
salesman Jared Vennett, most closely resembles the stereotype of a slick Wall
Street executive, but is still seen as an outsider by his co-workers; he is
also our narrator. He partners up with Mark Baum, played by Steve Carell,
another hedge fund manager and Wall Street outsider who is trying to maintain
independence while working within the system and dealing with his loathing for
the Wall Street way. He and his team (Hamish Linklater, Rafe Spall, and Jeremy Strong) also notice the housing bubble about to burst and see a way to make a
profit. John Magaro and Finn Wittrock play two young investors from Colorado who
are eager to make it big—and move their hedge fund out of their garage—so they
seek out the help of a retired banker, contentedly approaching hermit-hood,
played by Brad Pitt. There are good performances from the ensemble all around,
but only Bale snagged an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor. I didn’t
think that there was a clear stand out of cast, but I was impressed at how
close all the actors came to going over the top without actually go over.
The Big Short has to
explain a lot of dense, complicated exposition about credit default swaps,
synthetic CDO’s, bonds, and other things that people take college classes to
understand and finds some interesting ways to do that, some more effective than
others. Gosling’s character tells the audience that explaining financial stuff
can be boring and complicated, so in order to keep our interest we are shown
scenes of celebrities explaining clearly and simply rather dense concepts. All
of those expository segments are quick and fun and liven up the movie, in
addition to actually explaining bonds and synthetic CDO’s. The first of these
scenes, Margot Robbie in a bubble bath drinking champagne, is the least
effective because unlike the segments with Anthony Bourdain making fish soup
and Selena Gomez playing blackjack, Robbie’s actions and setting don’t help to
illustrate the thing she is explaining. Several characters break the fourth
wall and address the audience directly, sometimes explaining that a scene
didn’t exactly happen the same way in real life; more often they tell us that a
ridiculous, unbelievable thing really did happen.
Carell’s character is one most likely to strike a chord with
audiences because his loathing for Wall Street turns to outrage when he
uncovers the stupidity, corruption, and fraud rampant among the big banks and
the complete lack of concern for how these actions will affect the country and
the world. Carrell is also not afraid to say as much to the people he meets, no
matter their standing, or even interrupt a speech at a conference with an
annoying, but completely reasonable and legitimate point. He really did that,
Gosling assures us. We can like these characters, despite that their goal is to
profit from the collapse of the U.S. economy, because each one has a scene
where they try explaining what they’ve discovered and are ignored by the people
who should be most concerned. We can’t help but root for these guys because
that is what we are used to doing when characters in a movie are smart or
insightful, but are ignored by the stuffy, arrogant old guard. Pitt’s jaded
ex-banker makes a point to damper the excitement of his young protégés by
telling them that they “just bet against the American economy;” if they’re
right, they will profit greatly, but many people will lose their jobs and homes
as well.
Director Adam McKay has received an Oscar nomination for his
direction of The Big Short and
commentators cannot help but point out that this the same director who made the
broad comedies Anchorman, Talladega Nights, and The Other Guys. The Big Short is different in tone than his previous films, but it is
ultimately still a comedy despite its serious and true subject matter. There
are some stylistic choices in this film that didn’t quite work for me. There
are montages of images from pop culture—a rap video, people buying iPhones,
etc. that are meant to show what American culture was obsessed with while the
economy was beginning to crack and crumble, but felt more like a failed passage-of-time
montage. I understood the purpose, but I didn’t feel the intended effect. In a
film where actors will look right at the audience and explain what everything
means, these montages are the one thing which are not given a clear definition
or purpose. Another thing that bothered me must be mentioned, minor though it
is: the multitude of bad wigs. It seems like each actor was made to pick out a
wig and apply it themselves. Pitt’s beard, real or not, looks like a wig on his
face.
What The Big Short
does well is deliver facts about an incredibly important and unfortunate
chapter of American history in a high energy, entertaining movie; but it never
gives us more fun than frustration over the absurdities which hold up the
American economy. The Big Short at
times feels like an episode of Seinfeld
or Curb Your Enthusiasm, in which a fairly
average person is confronted by an absurd, bizarre character or situation and
can’t understand how this could be happening. Adding to the absurdity and
frustration is that we already know the results; so when, as the perfect sour
cherry on top, Gosling tells us that nobody learned anything and nothing
changed, it comes as no surprise. The same material in The Big Short is covered in the documentary Inside Job (2010), which is a sharp, rage-inducing look at the
financial collapse which also explains clearly and simply what happened and
why. Inside Job won the Academy Award
for Best Documentary and should be sought out by anyone who hasn’t seen it yet;
however, if I ever want a refresher on the hows and whys of the 2008 financial
collapse, I will revisit The Big Short.
A little levity–and seeing characters share my repulsed reaction to the
behavior of the banks– goes a long way to help digest such a stomach churning
material.
Nominees: Brad Pitt, Dede Gardner, Jeremy Kleiner, Producers
Director: Adam McKay
Screenplay: Adam McKay and Charles Randolph, based on the
book by Michael Lewis
Cast: Christian Bale, Steve Carrell, Ryan Gosling
Production Companies: Plan B Entertainment, Regency
Entertainment
Distributor: Paramount Pictures
Release Date: December 11th, 2015
Total Nominations: 5, including Best Picture
Other Nominations: Director-Adam McKay, Supporting
Actor-Christian Bale, Adapted Screenplay-Charles Randolph, Editing-Hank Corwin
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