The Big Short

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  • The Big Short

    Couldn't see a thread for this...

    I really liked it, best film I've seen in a while. Very funny film but also got me emotionally as you root for the characters and get mad at the establishment.

    Although Bale got the Oscar nod, I actually thought that Carrell gave the best performance, with Bale I feel you can always see he's acting (overacting even) whereas Carrell kept it much more natural.

  • #2
    Re: The Big Short

    They were both great. I didn't think Bale was overacting. I thought his part was more fun and quirky, which I enjoyed. I think the voters gave him extra credit for being such a wonderful chameleon. Carell gave the film much of its moral compass

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    • #3
      Re: The Big Short

      I don't know. I found the film to be extremely condescending. The celebrities explaining different aspects of the financial sector was more annoying than informative. I do think Bale earned his nom. That character felt like a real person. Carrell just seemed like Carrell playing a role (though I thought the members of his team were amazing).

      I couldn't help but compare it to All the President's Men. That film made me feel like I was witnessing a piece of history. It left me with a desire to do something. Demand our public servants be more accountable. Watching the Big Short made me feel like it's all hopeless. There's nothing anyone can do unless you have access to tons of money where you can bet against the corrupt system.

      I really appreciate what McKay was trying to do. I almost wish this had been a documentary instead of a fictionalized story.

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      • #4
        Re: The Big Short

        Agreed the Margaret Robbie and Selena Gomez cameo's weren't the best, really liked the chef.

        Also, would have liked a bit more of Carrell's team, the three of them worked really well together with Vinny a stand out.

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        • #5
          Re: The Big Short

          Loved this film! I'm totally amazed by everything about it: that someone could have the guts to make a black comedy that nails every aspect of a situation that was a real life tragedy for millions of people, and in such a way as to bring that tragedy home in the most entertaining way possible; that someone could write a screenplay to pull this hat trick off (I never could); and that the directing and acting could be so outstanding across the board.

          Frankly, with Straight Outta Compton not in the running, I hope The Big Short wins the Oscar for best picture.

          Late Night Writer

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          • #6
            Re: The Big Short

            because destroying the global economy is *hilarious*

            the book was fantastic. have no interest in this adaptation based on the silly trailers.

            having worked on residential mortgage backed litigation, the idea that somehow the banks didn't know they were selling **** and calling it gold is ludicrous. everyone knew, from top to bottom. they just didn't care.

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            • #7
              Re: The Big Short

              This is the best film of the year.

              And it's got a hilarious message. The rich can steal and plunder the banking system all they want, because the general public is too distracted by Kim Kardashian's ass to even notice.

              Even if you TELL the public that, the way you would explain something to a four year old, they won't listen, (because, again, dat ass) so the 1% can plunder the system again and again.

              Funny because true.

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              • #8
                Re: The Big Short

                Originally posted by JoeBanks View Post
                they just didn't care.
                That's what Mark Baum (Steve Carell) says in the movie: "they knew, they just didn't care."

                Worst thing is there's no regulation to stop it happening again. And it is starting to happen again.
                Story Structure 1
                Story Structure 2
                Story Structure 3

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                • #9
                  Re: The Big Short

                  The humor is based around the little guy sticking it to the big banks which was funny. Okay the 'little guys' here are all multimillionaires but the film is skilled in making you root for them as David against the evil Goliath's.

                  And the banks did know what they were peddling was crap, but they really didn't see it all falling down, none of the top guys at these banks are self aware enough to think that was ever remotely a possibility - as we've seen they all emerged stronger and richer than before

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                  • #10
                    Re: The Big Short

                    Originally posted by Bairn_Writer View Post
                    The humor is based around the little guy sticking it to the big banks which was funny. Okay the 'little guys' here are all multimillionaires but the film is skilled in making you root for them as David against the evil Goliath's.

                    And the banks did know what they were peddling was crap, but they really didn't see it all falling down, none of the top guys at these banks are self aware enough to think that was ever remotely a possibility - as we've seen they all emerged stronger and richer than before
                    Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan both made staggering amounts of money and survived the meltdown precisely because they did see it coming and hedged against the risk early enough in the process. The ones who didn't wasn't for lack of foresight but simple greed in not wanting to pull their money off the table.

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                    • #11
                      Re: The Big Short

                      But for the intervention of Governments across the globe the whole system would have come down. JP Morgan and Goldman's might want people to think they're smarter than everyone else, but they absolutely didn't see it coming in time and even if they had there would have been no liquidity for them to get paid on their hedges. There's no real way to hedge the entire banking system in any event. You could of course hedge the housing market by buying CDS's but these two were still on the other side of that, issuing them until late in the game.

                      Goldman's at least of course had direct information from the Treasury as evidenced by the phone calls between them and Paulson so they knew more than most at the very end, but by that point it was done. Every single bank in the US was done if it had been allowed to play out as it should.

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                      • #12
                        Re: The Big Short

                        Originally posted by Bairn_Writer View Post
                        But for the intervention of Governments across the globe the whole system would have come down. JP Morgan and Goldman's might want people to think they're smarter than everyone else, but they absolutely didn't see it coming in time and even if they had there would have been no liquidity for them to get paid on their hedges. There's no real way to hedge the entire banking system in any event. You could of course hedge the housing market by buying CDS's but these two were still on the other side of that, issuing them until late in the game.
                        http://archive.fortune.com/2008/08/2...tune/index.htm

                        "Dimon and his team are on top today because they took a daring stance at the height of the credit bubble. J.P. Morgan mostly exited the business of securitizing subprime mortgages when it was still booming, shunning now notorious instruments such as SIVs (structured investment vehicles) and CDOs (collateralized debt obligations). With the notable exception of Goldman Sachs (GS, Fortune 500), J.P. Morgan's main competitors - including Citigroup, UBS (UBS), and Merrill Lynch (MER, Fortune 500) - ignored the danger signs and piled into those products in a feeding frenzy."

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                        • #13
                          Re: The Big Short

                          If you read onto the next paragraph in that article it mentions how JP Morgan still took big losses in the housing market along with other items.

                          Goldman's were in at the beginning issuing CDS's, it's all very well to say some of them stopped towards the end, but that didn't change the fact they were the ones laughing at Burry and the rest wanting to create the CDS market. If they saw this coming they would have been the ones buying the CDS's not issuing, Its made clear in the film that Goldman's refused to pay out, rigging the prices at the end and selling them onto some other poor schmuck before honoring their deal with Burry.

                          These two may not have done as badly as some of the other banks, but they still lost a lot during this time and as I said but for Government interventions all banks were finished, every single one of them was effectively bankrupt whether exposed to the housing crisis or not.
                          Last edited by Bairn_Writer; 01-28-2016, 09:21 AM. Reason: Spelling

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                          • #14
                            Re: The Big Short

                            I very much preferred Inside Job to this.

                            IJ reveals that not only are the banks and US government corrupted and working in their self-interest, but the malaise has already spread to teaching institutions like Harvard, etc.

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                            • #15
                              Re: The Big Short

                              Originally posted by UnequalProductions View Post
                              I don't know. I found the film to be extremely condescending. The celebrities explaining different aspects of the financial sector was more annoying than informative. I do think Bale earned his nom. That character felt like a real person. Carrell just seemed like Carrell playing a role
                              +1
                              I also think Bale earned his nom. Never been a fan of his performances, but I think he nailed it here.

                              I'm not a fan of the directing, which felt too "on the nose" while trying to be arty. Felt very condescending, and without any nuances.

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