Directed by Jodie Foster, Money Monster follows in the footsteps of The Big Short by providing an entertaining movie about the pitfalls of Wall Street. It is a gripping real-time thriller that blurs the line between villain and hero and that everything may not be as it seems. George Clooney, portraying a Jim Cramer-type host of a popular financial television show, is taken hostage by a desperate man, effectively played by Jack O’Connell, looking for revenge and answers after losing most of his money from a bad investment overhyped by Clooney’s character. As the man with the gun, O’Connell’s character at first blush seems to be the villain but over the course of the hostage crisis we are left feeling sympathetic for his plight. The movie resonates well with the current political and economic environment in which politicians like Bernie Sanders rail against income inequality and the perceived corruption of Wall Street. While having moments of comic relief, the film directly and indirectly addresses such serious subject matters as the implications of cable news, reality television, and the business of Wall Street. It is about a so-called journalist walking a fine line between entertainment and journalism and a violent situation that is broadcast live around the world like reality television and caused by the powerless feeling injustice at the hands of the rich and powerful. Overall, I found it to be an entertaining blockbuster that provides the right amount of thrills and smarts to make it worth watching in theaters.
KEITH on Reels 