You’d think that trying to wrap my ‘non-numbers-oriented’ head around the financial market speak of The Big Short might be the hardest thing about the movie. That would be incorrect. Because being forced to endure the musical tastes of Michael Burry, Christian Bale’s eccentric character proved far more challenging.

Burry’s penchant for heavy metal aside, the story about the men who saw the credit and housing bubble collapse coming – and proceeded to profit from it is one I enjoyed quite a bit. The narrative structure, dialogue, pace, editing and performances all came together beautifully. Steve Carell was particularly entertaining as Mark Baum. A performance I see as a great follow-up to his notable work in Foxcatcher (2014).

Like The Wolf Of Wall Street (2013), the Wall Street setting of The Big Short is very much a boys’ club and from such situations often comes the opportunity for rather entertaining banter, hence my appreciation for the film’s dialogue.

Director, Adam McKay’s movie didn’t teach me anything new in terms of how the world works. What it did do is remind me that it pays to have a good understanding of the reality of the bank’s priorities and what that can come to mean for the average person.

Some people have called The Big Short depressing. The reality the film deals with isn’t the kind of news that’ll make your day. However, there’s humour here and the information within the movie, plus its creative execution makes the experience worthwhile.

The Big Short is based on a book of the same name by Michael Lewis. Ryan Gosling, Steve Carell, Brad Pitt and Christian Bale are the main stars. Watch it if you’re curious.

Happy Film Loving,

G