Some of the finance-speak terminology is hard to follow (few civilians have heard of a

collateralised debt obligation and The Big Short makes it clear that even the pros don’t
really know what goes into one) so McKay cooks up some kooky celebrity cameos –
Selena Gomez at the gambling tables; Margot Robbie in a bubble bath – to explain the
plot at key moments, a device that isn’t as amusingly educative as the film-makers
imagine.
No matter. The rest of the unfolding tragicomic drama is utterly engrossing, blending
the insight of JC Chandor’s 2011 gem Margin Call with the satirical bite of Po Bronson’s
prophetic 1995 novel, Bombardiers. By coincidence, The Big Short opens in UK cinemas
just as Ramin Bahrani’s 99 Homes, a powerful account of the human cost of the housing
crash, comes to DVD. Together, the two films make a riveting (and horrifying) double
bill.

A dramatic retelling of the 2007-8 financial crisis reveals a riveting

world of chaos, corruption and misfits
Very important film for all adults
This is such an important film. It's an entertaining but also serious look at how the housing crisis
and global economic meltdown happened. It's actually quite educational. It's a warning to all of
us to not let it happen again. The educational value alone makes this film worth watching.

Christian Bale's character work does not disappoint. Steve Carrell is also a very interesting
character in his dramatic role, more for the commitment to character and character arc
transitions that he offers.

This film is definitely for adults. It has A LOT of bad language -- A LOT, but it is all
character/setting driven (if that's any consolation). There are a couple of fleeting, short snippets
of nudity -- not much.

I have clicked that this film has a "great message" because it is a cautionary tale -- based on
true events; and the caution and education about the 2007-2010 era (which still affects us all,
unless you're in the top 1% of money on this planet) is a healthy reminder that greed and
ignorance have no good results. This is a good conversation to have among adults about the
"system" and the decisions that we make within this "system" can have bad or good
consequences for us.

I have not clicked "great role models" because virtually everyone in the film is caught up in the
perversity of Wall Street. The only good thing about that is that you see just how perverse it is --
you're educated on what happened (and still is happening) in the markets to bring down the
economy.

The Big Short is a flashy, quick-witted, and, yes, entertaining film about the housing and
banking collapse. But it might just be a little too entertaining, a little too funny for a film
that’s so sobering. You laugh at all the asides -- and they are funny, though perhaps not
all of them were necessary -- and then feel terrible for laughing.  (Though we really did
enjoy the celebrity-cameo-filled footnotes that explained the dizzying banking and
investment maneuvers and products that basically undid the economy.)

Then again, nervous laughter may just be an appropriate response to a movie about
how a small group of outsiders identified a weakness in a system high on arrogance
and avarice -- a system that, unfortunately, had such weight that, when it toppled, it took
so many innocent and not-so-innocent souls with it. Ultimately, The Big Short is whip
smart, supported by a script that manages to educate while it amuses. And then there's
the powerhouse cast, led by a brilliant Bale as a doctor-turned-hedge-fund-manager
who has an ease with numbers and an unease with people.

10. See one of the most intelligible and intelligent movies about finance since It’s a
Wonderful Life. See who you like better – Jimmy Stewart or Steve Carell (my money’s on
Stewart, by the way).

9. See Brad Pitt in a supporting role! I’m not a serious student of film, but when I have
seen Brad Pitt in a movie, he’s always been the star, or at least had a very major role. He
doesn’t disappear in this one (in fact, I think he carries his scenes), but he’s not the
leading man.

8. See Steve Carell in a serious role! Steve Carell is a very funny man. Here he
demonstrates that he’s a well-rounded actor. He’s one of the perspicacious few who
benefits most from the big short.

7. Watch a movie based on a great book by Michael Lewis, an outstanding storyteller

who shows you what happened, how it happened, and gives you some hints about why
it happened. The screenplay just won an Oscar! After reading the book or seeing the
movie, you’ll have learned a lot about what caused the Great Recession. And, you’ll have
had fun doing it.

6. See a key participant learn about the craziness in the Florida housing market in a
conversation with an exotic dancer. It turns out that the dancer is a major real estate
investor. Reminiscent of Bernard Baruch’s stories of ordinary people giving him (a
market maven of the Roaring Twenties) stock tips.

5. Get a very visual perspective on the fall of Lehman Brothers. Yes, it was a big
investment bank. Yes, it went bankrupt. But many people who worked there had nothing
to do with The Big Short. They lost their jobs anyway. I’ll bet you never thought you’d
sympathize with anyone who worked on Wall Street after the Great Recession.
4. Take advantage of the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to see a first-rate economist
(Richard Thaler – a behaviorist from the University of Chicago) play a role in a major
motion picture, opposite Selena Gomez, no less. Guess which one really knows what
they are talking about, and which one is there for star power.

3. Watch world famous chef and food writer Anthony Bourdain (Brasserie Les Halles,
Kitchen Confidential) make an unforgettable link between day-old fish and collateralized
debt obligations (CDOs). You’ll never think about fish stew the same way again. And,
you never thought you’d understand anything about CDOs.

2. See Margot Robbie explain mortgage bonds, sub-prime mortgages, and why the
movie is called The Big Short, all while taking a bubble bath and drinking champagne.
You’ll learn what a short is in an unforgettable way. [None of the classes I attended in
graduate school were anything like this!]

1. See that just trying to earn extraordinary financial returns is extraordinarily stressful.
Christian Bale’s character tells his investors they can’t have their money back (yet). They
sue him. Brad Pitt’s character has to close out his short position on a terrible internet
connection in a UK pub (let’s say that the other patrons are not impressed). Every
character is constantly worried that their trading partners will take advantage of them.
They’re right, but in this movie, fortunately for them, and unfortunately for the US
economy, the good guys have clueless trading partners. Taxpayers (that would be you
and me) ended up bailing out many of the clueless traders.