The Big Short (9/10): Economics for Dummies

"Everyone, deep in their hearts, is waiting for the end of the world to come."

The Big Short is such a refreshing and surprising film because it manages to perfectly balance a difficult subject matter and make it entertaining. It is perhaps one of the most important films made this year reminding us of the worldwide economic breakdown that began in 2007 and left millions of people without their life savings. Many of us don't understand much about economics or how it works, and that is why we have been so eager to forget what happened and continue moving on as if nothing ever happened. This film refreshes our memory and reminds us of what a terrible crime was committed during the housing bubble collapse. The film centers on the few men who recognized the problem early on and took advantage of the situation. The Big Short is a dramatic movie, there is no doubt about it, but it also manages to include some comedic moments by breaking the fourth wall and including pop culture figures to explain some of the more complicated financial terms. It does it in a brilliant way and it's been a while since I've seen a film break the fourth wall as well as this one did. I've seen many documentaries on this subject, but this film manages to explain things better and open our eyes to the dangers we might face again in the future because we've ignored the real problem and seem to be repeating the same mistakes once again. Mckay manages to infuriate and open our eyes while entertaining us at the same time with an engaging film thanks to a witty adapted script which he helped co-write with Charles Randolph.

It's not the first time that a film based on a Micheal Lewis novel manages to draw in an audience that doesn't necessarily need to comprehend the subject matter. You could be clueless about baseball, but in Moneyball the story still managed to engage a worldwide audience. The same can be said about this film because the economic terms are explained in a simple way. That is why I believe this is one of the most important films of the year because it allows even those that never seemed interested in economics to understand how it still affects them. It is an eye opening film for those that felt uninterested in trying to understand what happened in 2007. If there is one film that audiences should see this year then this might just be the one (not for its technical or artistic value, but for the importance of its subject matter). 

The Big Short is Adam McKay's dramatic directorial debut and his background in comedy is what probably helped this film become more accesible. The man who brought us Anchorman, Talladega Nights, Step Brothers, and The Other Guys, now brings us a thought provoking film. He's received two Oscar nominations (directing and writing) for his work here and what an impressive film he has crafted. The film is heavy on dialogue, but the script is so perfectly written that each character in this film becomes memorable. The performances are outstanding which simply proves what a key element writing is for an actor. It was refreshing to see Ryan Gosling back again after his retirement from the big screen for two years. He plays the charismatic character he could easily play in his sleep, but he is still a delight to watch. He delivers a solid role, but out of the four big names it was Steve Carell who stood out. He gets the best dramatic moments and lights up each scene he enters in. Brad Pitt has a smaller role but he makes perfect use of his screen time with an understated performance. Christian Bale is the only actor who received a nomination for his performance in this film and it is well deserved. He plays a socially awkward character and totally sells it. There are films where there are so many big names that no one really gets to shine, but this film manages to make every character memorable thanks to the wonderful script. 

My Review: Parental Guidance (5/10)

¨You gotta shape up Artie! You know what grandparenting is? A second chance! ¨

To be honest I knew I wasn’t going to like this movie before going to see it and didn’t expect much from it. I decided to go so I could spend some time with my family, and I knew it was a film my parents and younger brother would enjoy (and they did). This is a very family friendly film with several cheesy moments. This is also entirely predictable and the plot is one you could see over and over again in any sitcom on TV if you wanted to. The film was directed by Andy Fickman (Game Plan and Race to Witch Mountain) and if you’ve seen any of his previous movies then you kind of know what to expect. You either enjoy these types of movies or you don’t since the style and jokes are pretty similar. The film had some sweet and intentionally emotional moments, but it really failed to connect with me. Billy Crystal hasn’t made a lot of movies in the past decade and I know he is really funny, but this just wasn’t the right film for him. There is not much I can say really about the rest of the cast since they didn’t have much to work with considering they all played clichéd characters. Parental Guidance is a film that some might enjoy, but the truth of the matter is that you will forget all about it a few hours after you leave the cinema. It won’t stick with you and you won’t get anything out of it either, which is pretty sad considering the film tries to be a sort of social commentary as how differently we raise our kids in today’s society.

Artie (Billy Crystal) has been working as a baseball commentator for a minor league baseball team for several decades and is happily married to Diane (Bette Midler). His life dream has always been to be the announcer of the San Francisco Giants, but when he’s fired from the little leagues for being old school he is brought down to reality. They receive a call from their daughter Alice (Marisa Tomei) who wants them to babysit her three kids while she and her husband Phil (Tom Everett Scott) go on a work vacation trip. Artie and Diane don’t really see their grandkids much so they accept the challenge. The kids aren’t really thrilled about having their grandparents over since they have been raised in a very different way, and the truth of the matter is that Alice is really worried about leaving them with her parents (apparently she feels that they didn’t do a good job raising her) as well. Harper (Bailee Madison) is the oldest, a violin perfectionist, then there is Turner (Joshua Rush) who is taking voice lessons, and finally there is Barker (Kyle Harrison), the youngest who has an imaginary kangaroo friend named Karl. Artie and Diane’s methods of parenting don’t seem to connect with the way the kids have been raised by their type-A parents and things are about to get really interesting.

This family friendly film is really light hearted and doesn’t seem to take sides here as to which is the correct form to raise kids, because as Billy Crystal’s character says ¨being a parent doesn’t come with instructions.¨ The film makes fun of both extremes of parenting. There are some emotional moments, especially near the end of the film where Alice and Artie have a conversation about the way he raised her and why she has become so estranged towards them. No answer is really provided. The grandparents made several mistakes but in the end they did help out the kids a lot, but it seems that there was some sort of issue between Artie and Alice that never really got resolved. There are several funny moments involving the kids, but I really didn’t find it very amusing. I think Bailee Madison is one of the cutest child actresses and the rest of the kids were also all very cute. This is a light film that some kids and adults will enjoy, but like I said before it’s nothing groundbreaking at all and you will forget all about it as soon as it’s over.

  

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My Review: The Ides of March (9/10)

¨There is only one thing I value in this world and that`s loyalty; without it you`re nothing! ¨

This is the third 2011 film starring Ryan Gosling and I must say he does a great job at choosing his roles because all his movies this year were really great. He also has done very diverse roles, and this time he plays an idealistic media consultant for a presidential candidate who he admires (played by George Clooney). This is a political film that teaches us how the campaign trail works, but it also has very intense and surprising moments. I`m not a fan of political movies, but the actors and the story make Ides of March a really interesting and entertaining film. It does get the message across of how dirty politics can sometime corrupt even the most idealistic and well intentioned people. Ides of March does this very well, and it couldn`t be any other way considering George Clooney directed this piece and also contributed with the adaptation of the screenplay. The last time Clooney worked on a screenplay was in 2005 when he directed the six time Oscar nominated film Good Night and Good Luck. He did a terrific job once again with the script although he had some help from Beau Willimon who actually wrote the play in which this film is loosely based, ¨Farragut Night.¨ The performances in this film are also great. You can`t go wrong when you have the talents of George Clooney, Ryan Gosling, Phillip Seymour Hoffman, Paul Giamatti, Evan Rachel Wood, and Marisa Tomei. This is an all star cast and the movie would be worth watching for the performances alone, but the script is also pretty strong so this is one of the films you won`t want to miss this year.

Stephen Meyers (Ryan Gosling) is working in the democratic nomination campaign for presidential candidate Governor Mike Morris (George Clooney) as his media consultant. Stephen is young, but very experienced and is the best at his position. Stephen`s boss is Paul Zara (Phillip Seymour Hoffman) who also is his personal mentor and the campaign manager. They are currently in the Ohio primaries where the race is tight between Morris and his other democratic rival, Senator Pullman (Michael Mantell). Pullman also has a very smart campaign manager who is doing his best to keep him in the fight: Tom Duffy (Paul Giamatti). Duffy doesn`t always fight clean, he is experienced and knows how dirty politics works. Paul Zara believes the key to winning resides in the endorsement from Senator Thompson (Jeffrey Wright), but Pullman`s people have made him a very tempting offer which Governor Mike Morris is not willing to counter offer. Morris is idealistic and doesn`t want to buy his way into the Presidential office by making offers to senators with whom he doesn`t agree. This is one of the things that Meyers admires about Morris: his honesty and integrity. During the campaign trail Meyers has a relationship with an intern, Molly (Evan Rachel Wood), and soon realizes that not everything is what it seems. There is a twist that I don`t want to give away here, but the movie then takes an unexpected turn. This is where the emotion begins and the movie picks up from here.

Ides of March may start off slow, but it`s just a delight to see these actors work together with a decent story. I wasn`t disappointed one bit, and even though I am not into politics I found myself drawn by the story. I couldn`t predict what was going to happen either since the movie takes some interesting turns involving deceptions and dirty politics. Even the most idealistic people can be corrupted by the political game and the movie makes its point. Ides of March is really worth seeing, even if you`re not into politics, because the story is engaging, the performances are great, and George Clooney never disappoints as a director. Paul Giamatti and Phillip Seymour Hoffman are always at their best, and these kinds of roles are where they excel. Ryan Gosling has had one of the best years of his life career wise: Crazy, Stupid Love, Drive, and now Ides of March; they`re all great films and Gosling gives strong performances in each. My favorite film this year so far is Drive, and his performance is just captivating in that movie. Ides of March is a movie you have to see, you won`t regret it.

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My Review: Crazy, Stupid, Love (9/10)

¨I`m so mad at you; I`m really mad at you for what you did, but I`m mad at myself too; because I should not have jumped out of that car; I should have fought for you, because you fight for your soul mates.¨

Once every year out of the dozens of formulaic romantic comedies that come our way, one or two manage to stand out above the rest. Crazy, Stupid, Love is one of those films that manages to remain fresh and original, and balance the comedy and romance well enough without relying on the usual rom-com formula. It is one of those films where the chemistry between the actors feels real, and love is actually depicted like it can be in real life. It is one of those movies that manages to surprise us by remaining fresh and never letting us know for sure what direction it is going to take on every turn. You can predict how most romcoms are going to end from the very opening sequence, and even if you might do the same in Crazy, Stupid, Love; you will definitely not expect some of the twists that come your way. It also has the perfect emotional balance that will bring you to tears at some points and laughter at others. The cast is absolutely amazing and everyone does a terrific job. This is Glenn Ficarra and John Requa`s second feature film after last year`s critical success with I Love You Phillip Morris. That film was very risky, and in a way so is Crazy, Stupid, Love because it doesn’t follow the basic formula that other romcoms do. There are several scenes that could have been a total disaster, but really worked because they served as transitions from comedy to romance to drama and so on. The script by Dan Fogelman (Cars, Bolt, and Tangled) is another highlight of the film because the dialogue in this movie was great. The actors were given great characters to work with so every piece seemed to fit in perfectly for this film.

Cal (Steve Carell) and Emily (Julianne Moore) have been married for 25 years; they live with their two children: Robbie (Jonah Bobo) and Molly (Joey King) and they seem to be living the perfect life. That is until Emily asks Cal for a divorce because she seems to be going through a sort of mid life crisis. She tells Cal that she slept with another co-worker, David (Kevin Bacon), and that is more than enough to end the marriage. Cal moves out of the house and begins frequenting bars and moping about his miserable life. At the bar Cal meets Jacob (Ryan Gosling), a playboy who always gets the girl due to his charm. Jacob promises Cal that he will help him recover his manhood with a few lessons. The first thing they do is change Cal`s wardrobe, then he teaches him how to pick up girls in the bar, and pretty soon Cal becomes an expert on seducing women. Jacob meets Hannah (Emma Stone) one night in the bar and can`t seem to get his eyes off her. Hannah doesn’t fall for Jacob`s charisma at first, but Jacob will soon discover what being in love is really about. All the characters seem to intertwine with each other at one point or another making the movie all the more hilarious. For example we have Jessica (Analeigh Tipton), the 17 year old babysitter who has a crush on Cal, but at the same time Robbie, his 13 year old son, is in love with Jessica.

It`s these love triangles and confusions that actually prove that love can be crazy and stupid at times, but wonderful at others. There is a great amount of time dedicated to each character, and the focus isn`t solely on Steve Carell and Julianne Moore. There are several more relationships that the movie deals with, but it never loses the main thread. The film balances the romance with the comedy really well, making this a very emotional film. I actually enjoyed this movie quite a bit. The entire cast was just brilliant. I loved the mope performance from Steve Carell, although we`ve seen it before in other films like Dan in Real Life. Julianne Moore is always a talented actress and she brings her game. Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone are very talented young actors and the chemistry between both of them was really believable. Gosling has to be one of Hollywood`s best modern young actors around. The actors who really surprised me however were the relatively unknown ones: Analeigh Tipton and Jonah Bobo; they share the funniest scenes in the film. Marisa Tomei also has some screen time, and she is great as always. Crazy, Stupid, Love is just a complete film that manages to deliver on all levels. It is my favorite romantic comedy of the year so far, and will probably be on my list of best films of the year. This is a movie you will want to go see.

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My Review: The Lincoln Lawyer (8/10)

¨I checked the list of people I trust and your name ain`t on it.¨

The Lincoln Lawyer reminded me of one of those Grisham novels, but this thrilling drama was actually based on a Michael Connelly novel (as was Clint Eastwood`s Blood Work). The film has a lot of twists and surprises, but the true success of the movie relies on Matthew McConaughey`s performance. His charisma and spark are what make this film work, and he didn’t even have to take his t-shirt off this time. Relatively unknown director, Brad Furman, has made one of the best thrillers of the year. The script was adapted really well by John Romano as he handles all the twists really well. The court room scenes were actually intense and reminded me of other great lawyer films as Primal Fear. The movie begins pretty slow, it takes a while before it picks up. I had no idea where the film was going to go after it presented one twist and turn after another. I actually appreciated that the most from this movie because I couldn’t predict what was going to happen next. The plot seemed so simple at first, but once we get to the halfway point it’s hard to know what direction the story is going to take. Even at the end so many things came together so every piece of the puzzle fit in nicely. I really enjoyed this film; it`s a smart, intelligent thriller with a strong and reliable performance from Matthew McConaughey.

The title gets its name from the Lincoln Town car that defense lawyer, Mick Haller (Matthew McConaughey), operates from. He spends most of his time in the vehicle with his chauffer Earl (Laurence Mason) so he uses it as his personal office. Mick is a smart lawyer who actually learned all the shortcuts in his profession. He is street smart and doesn’t mind if his clients are actually innocent or not. He gets a huge break when a young realtor named Louis Roulet (Ryan Phillippe) asks him to defend his case after being charged for raping and beating a prostitute. Louis claims to be innocent and says the whole thing was a setup since his family is very wealthy. Mick doesn’t care if he`s innocent or not, what he wants are all the facts so that he can defend the case against prosecutor Ted Minton (Josh Lucas). Along with his private investigator, Frank Levin (William H. Macy), Mick discovers that there is more to this case than what Louis is telling them. He links this case to a previous one he had years ago where he just now realizes has sent an innocent man to jail. His name was Jesus Martinez (Michael Peña) and Mick was his defense attorney who made him plead guilty so he would get a reduced sentence instead. The film begins to take several twists and turns from this point on and it picks up in intensity. There is another subplot to this story involving Mick`s relationship with his ex wife, Maggie (Marisa Tomei), a prosecutor, but the story isn’t developed really well as it focuses more on Haller and the case.

I guess the subplot was introduced because you can`t waist the talents of such a great actress as Marisa Tomei. She`s great in the few scenes she has in this film, but her story and relationship with Mick isn’t developed very well. John Leguizamo and Bryan Cranston also have secondary roles, but we`ve seen them do better work in the past. The true star of the film is Matthew McConaughey and he carries the movie with the help of some good performances from Ryan Phillippe and William H. Macy. So yes, there is an interesting cast in The Lincoln Lawyer, but the success is mostly thanks to a great outstanding performance from McConaughey. The movie is intense, has interesting twists, and the court room scenes felt authentic. We can see these characters as real lawyers and the situations are very plausible. That is why I was reminded so much of a Grisham novel because the situations felt real. It`s hard to find interesting and smart films, so I was pleased with this movie because it isn’t only intelligent, it`s also entertaining and has some decent thrills; it`s complete.

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