Money Monster
01/06/16 Filed in: Cinema
We also saw this film in Nice while its debut took place at Cannes. Directed by Jodie Foster and starring George Clooney and Julia Roberts, this was a very different type of film to Café Society, which we had seen a few days earlier. Again it was Version Original (VO), with English dialogue and French subtitles.
Money Monster refers to a TV show whose star is Lee Gates (George Clooney), a financial guru who gives tips on where people should invest their money. No doubt there are TV shows in America that are as embarrassing as was portrayed in this film (and there may even be some in Britain), but the fatuousness of it turned me off from the start. I felt embarrassed for Clooney having to play the role.
Fortunately a turn of events interrupted the stupidity when a punter, who had lost everything following a Money Monster sure-fire tip, turns up in the studio armed and straps a suicide vest on Gates. Patty Fenn (Julia Roberts), the show's producer, continues to communicate with Gates through his earpiece, offering advice and trying to calm things down.
What follows is an interesting if somewhat unbelievable story line whereby the punter, Kyle Budwell, attempts to get Gates to explain what had caused the 'glitch' in the trading algorithm that had resulted in the drop in share value at IBIS, and thus his loss. IBIS CEO Walt Camby (Dominic West) has gone missing as Patty desperately tries to get information from the company.
Money Monster refers to a TV show whose star is Lee Gates (George Clooney), a financial guru who gives tips on where people should invest their money. No doubt there are TV shows in America that are as embarrassing as was portrayed in this film (and there may even be some in Britain), but the fatuousness of it turned me off from the start. I felt embarrassed for Clooney having to play the role.
Fortunately a turn of events interrupted the stupidity when a punter, who had lost everything following a Money Monster sure-fire tip, turns up in the studio armed and straps a suicide vest on Gates. Patty Fenn (Julia Roberts), the show's producer, continues to communicate with Gates through his earpiece, offering advice and trying to calm things down.
What follows is an interesting if somewhat unbelievable story line whereby the punter, Kyle Budwell, attempts to get Gates to explain what had caused the 'glitch' in the trading algorithm that had resulted in the drop in share value at IBIS, and thus his loss. IBIS CEO Walt Camby (Dominic West) has gone missing as Patty desperately tries to get information from the company.
Meanwhile Gates tries some psychology on Kyle, and attempts to reverse his loss by asking viewers (all this was going out on live TV) to invest just a small amount in IBIS to grow the stock value, and in so doing save his life. In perhaps the most profound statement that you will take away from this film, the people put their financial wellbeing above Gates' life, and were, we assume, happy to see him blown up.
After this the plot really does become a bit absurd as Gates and Kyle leave the studio and make their way to see Walt Camby. It turns out that Camby's absence has a lot more to do with the fall in IBIS' stock price than does an algorithm glitch, and at this point Gates has become Kyle's advocate rather than his victim.
In all honesty I'm not really sure that this film is worthy of Clooney and Robert's talent, although Clooney co-produced it, so he knew what he was getting into. The beginning is cringing, the middle not so bad, with some valid indictments of the financial sector, but the final part is pure hokum. Sorry!
After this the plot really does become a bit absurd as Gates and Kyle leave the studio and make their way to see Walt Camby. It turns out that Camby's absence has a lot more to do with the fall in IBIS' stock price than does an algorithm glitch, and at this point Gates has become Kyle's advocate rather than his victim.
In all honesty I'm not really sure that this film is worthy of Clooney and Robert's talent, although Clooney co-produced it, so he knew what he was getting into. The beginning is cringing, the middle not so bad, with some valid indictments of the financial sector, but the final part is pure hokum. Sorry!