Money Monster Review

3.0 Stars

 

Money Monster stars George Clooney as Lee Gates, an entertaining, over-the-top financial advisor on television, not unlike Jim Cramer on his show Mad Money.  While it looks like the movie and the character drew a lot of inspiration from Cramer's Money show, the Monster movie takes a terrifying twist that Cramer hopes he'll never have to face.  During a live broadcast, amateur investor Kyle Budwell (Jack O'Connell) takes over the set holding Gates hostage with a gun.  Per standard protocol, the feed is cut by Director Patty Fenn (Julia Roberts).  Once Budwell threatens Gates, Fenn restores the broadcast for the world to see.  Budwell lost everything following the advice of Gates, but he believes the conspiracy to rob Americans of their money runs deeper and higher than Gates' TV show.  

Money Monster reunites Clooney and Roberts for their fourth collaboration.  They first appeared together in Oceans Eleven in 2001 and were together immediately in 2002 with Confessions of a Dangerous Mind.  Though they were back in Oceans Twelve in 2004, Roberts did not return in 2007 for Oceans Thirteen, so it's been twelve years since the two have been on screen together.  O'Connell joins them for this conspiracy theory financial thriller.  O'Connell recently played the lead in Unbroken in 2014 and was brilliant in his performance, so we don't have to worry about him holding his own with the Clooney Roberts powerhouses.

The preview looked entertaining, thoughtful, provocative and infuriating in a time when we are consistently hearing about the erosion of the middle class while the wealthiest get even wealthier and the middle class that used to be is kicked down closer to poverty level.  Budwell wanted to invest and make a better life for himself and his pregnant girlfriend but loses the $60,000 he got after his mother's death on a single stock and demands to find out why.  One of the questions I asked during the preview was, will anyone be held accountable for falsifying the financial information and making out like bandits because of it?  Well, don't hold your breath.

 

The problem with Money Monster is that there are really no good "innocent" guys.  Gates is the host of a financial advice television show, he's wealthy and successful, but his most meaningful relationships are with money, not people.  Budwell wasn't smart to dump his entire $60,000 inheritance into one stock.  While he was right about something wrong going on, he held a man and crew hostage at gunpoint to uncover the truth.  The CEO of the company that lost $800 million overnight was shady and lied to his coworkers and the public.  So, if you're looking for the good guy to win and the bad guy to get what's coming to him, again, don't hold your breath.  

 

That being said, it was entertaining.  I didn't find it as infuriating as I thought it would be, but I enjoyed it.  I predicted 3 stars and that's exactly what it delivered.  It was worth the money either in the theatre or to rent, and it's one of those that I might watch again on cable, but not go out of my way to see again, nor make it part of my personal collection.  So, what movie will be on my mind next?  We shall see.