• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Film
  • DVD
  • Editorial
  • About ScreenFish

ScreenFish

where faith and film are intertwined

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter
  • Home
  • Reviews
  • Interviews
  • News
  • OtherFish
  • Podcast
  • Give

The Big Short

And The Winner Is…or Should Be (Oscar Spotlight)

February 22, 2016 by Jacob Sahms Leave a Comment

revenant2The Oscar races this year are absolutely clear cut… in my mind. Having seen fourteen of the nominated films (out of approximately sixteen films in the major categories), these are my favorites to win.

At Best Actor, the portrayal of screenwriter and Communist Dalton Trumbo by Bryan Cranston put him in rare air, not that of the illicit drugs he manufactured as Breaking Bad’s Walter White. I was immensely moved by Cranston’s depiction of this flawed-yet-heroic man, and the way Jay Roach framed all of the movable parts around Cranston. Sadly, he’ll be runner up to Michael Fassbender, whose turn as Steve Jobs delivers something that Noah Wyle and Ashton Kutcher couldn’t: a performance that gets to the soul of the man. (Film I missed: The Danish Girl -my apologies to Eddie Redmayne.) Here’s a mad genius who lacks the emotional power to connect with others – until those who care about him the most challenge him spiritually.

stevejobs2I’ll openly admit that I’ve only seen a few of the five films in the Best Actress category but I have a hard time believing anyone could surpass Brie Larson’s portrayal of the kidnapped and raped young woman who raises her son in a garden shed in Room. While another year might produce more wins, this will be Room’s lone trophy. It’s harrowing and powerful, both in captivity and in the world outside, but all of it is made human by the quiet power of Larson’s delivery.

room1While this is a “makeup call” (a term ripped from other contact sports), I’ll predict that the Academy awards a lifetime achievement award to Sylvester Stallone for his Best Supporting Actor turn in Creed. Simply put, there are too few scenes in The Big Short, The Revenant, Spotlight, or Bridge of Spies for the other nominees to salt away a win. It’s Stallone by default, even if Michael B. Jordan deserves much of the credit for making Stallone look good (and recovering from the insufferable Fantastic Four).

Consider this your commercial break before we reach my big two awards for the year – consider it burying the lede.

creed-movieBest Original Screenplay: Straight Outta Compton delivers the time, the music, and the mythos of NWA. Were these guys prophets? Exploiters? Exploited? This complex story spins a tale that entertains, reminisces, and challenges us to think about how we define our worldview.

Adapted Screenplay: Michael Lewis’ The Big Short over Emma Donaghue’s Room robs the latter of a double win. Three times nominated, this one has to finally pull off the win. Greed sucks the life out of you in the long run – and proves there are no victimless crimes. It’s not the best film I saw this year, but it serves as a morality tale for all of us to consider in our day-to-day spending and relationships.

Cinematography: Director Alexandro Inarritu can do amazing things with film (think last year’s Birdman). This year, The Revenant dukes it out with The Hateful Eight (only win: Best Original Score). Both films are beautiful in their brutality, with the elements and humanity playing against each other for spellbinding cinematic moments.

straightouttaAnd now… Best Director goes to … Mad Max: Fury Road’s George Miller. Having established a dystopian world decades ago, he returns to the world that Hardy said was in Miller’s head and delivered it in a sprawling, dialogue-short film that visually does everything. No stone was left out of place, and every moment mattered to the overall picture. [Unfortunately, Inarritu will probably win… There, I said it.]

So, does that make Mad Max: Fury Road my Best Picture? Not exactly. While it (and Creed) was my favorite film of the year, it doesn’t qualify as the most important film of 2015. [It also came too early in the year, and surprised everyone with its depth.] A story about working within society to change it (versus running from the world we live in and hitting a restart) makes for a powerful testament of humanity in the midst of an apocalypse. It should be a challenge to us all – global warming, AIDs, violence, racism, whatever – be the change you want to be.

Mad Max Fury Road MainIs it The Revenant? No. Leonardo DiCaprio’s ability to grunt, Inarritu’s ability to shoot enigmatic scenes, and the makeup crew’s ability to generate the ferocious aftermath of a bear mauling do not make a complete picture. If you push me, I’ll admit this film looked cool but I thought the storytelling was shallow. (It’s why I preferred Mad Max: Fury Road.)

bridge3How about Bridge of Spies? Nope. While Tom Hanks delivers a tour de force performance, the film is almost entirely on his shoulders. Yes, it speaks to the way we are divided and guarded in society today, but it’s not enough to just have a strong lead. The film itself was good but not great; without Hanks, it’s a dud.

Left to right: Steve Carell plays Mark Baum and Ryan Gosling plays Jared Vennett in The Big Short from Paramount Pictures and Regency Enterprises

Does The Big Short…? An ensemble cast with solid performances couldn’t save a primarily financial film (here’s looking at you, Margin Call and Moneyball). Brooklyn? Didn’t see it. (Gulp). Room? Too claustrophobic.

And suddenly, we’re down to two.

martian-gallery3-gallery-imageWith the look on Matt Damon’s face as he accepted his award at the Golden Globes, I can tell there were fewer people laughing at the “comedy” that was The Martian. With the ridiculous categorization of the film, The Martian was condemned to be remembered not for Andy Weir’s story but the ridiculous politicization of the awards. And this isn’t even the best film where a dedicated group of brave people willingly sacrifice their lives to bring Matt Damon home or the best film where someone is castaway without human companionship…

spotlight3So, Spotlight it is. While Birdman and The Artist (2015 and 2012, respectively) proved that the Academy sometimes falls in love with the visuals, the track record of 12 Years a Slave, Argo, The King’s Speech, and The Hurt Locker show a trend toward based-on-a-true-story moments that highlight something about our society. With Spotlight, there’s an effort to show the power of the press (ding!), expose a hidden darkness (ding! ding!), and confront a powerful force in the world, the Catholic church (ding! ding! ding!)

Let’s hear the counter arguments. I know Chris Utley will be sharpening his knives… This should be fun.

Filed Under: Editorial, Featured, Film, Oscar Spotlight Tagged With: Alejandro G. Iñárritu, Bridge of Spies, Brie Larsen, Brooklyn, Bryan Cranston, Charlize Theron, Christian Bale, Creed, Eddie Redmayne, Emma Donaghue, Mad Max: Fury Road, Mark Ruffalo, Michael Fassbender, Michael Keaton, Michael Lewis, Room, Ryan Gosling, Spotlight, Steve Carrell, Steve Jobs, The Big Short, The Danish Girl, The Martian, The Revenant, Tom Hanks, Tom Hardy, Trumbo, Walter White

The Big Short – Winning Is(n’t) Everything (Oscar Spotlight)

February 18, 2016 by Steve Norton Leave a Comment

Christian Bale plays Michael Burry in The Big Short from Paramount Pictures and Regency Enterprises
Christian Bale plays Michael Burry in The Big Short from Paramount Pictures and Regency Enterprises

The Big Short is set in 2008 and tells the true story of Michael Burry (Christian Bale), a Wall St. guru who foresaw the downfall of the US economy due to sub-prime mortgage fallout. As a result of his discovery, he places over a billion dollars of investors money against the economy, drawing the attention of banker Jared Vennett (Ryan Gosling), hedge-fund specialist Mark Baum (Steve Carell), and other greedy investors. When these men throw their financial weight into the same endeavour, they make a fortune on the backs of millions of failed mortgages across the country.

If you’re like me, I know what you’re thinking: a movie about hedge funds, mortgages and investments? Thanks but no thanks.

But you’d be wrong.

One of the most remarkable things about Charles Randolph and Adam McKay’s screenplay is that it manages to walk the tightrope between maintaining the integrity of high financial concepts and the financial knowledge of the average moviegoer. Somehow, they make these incredibly difficult concepts (seem) accessible without ‘dumbing them down’. In fact, the film’s asides are absolutely hilarious, recruiting the likes of Margo Robbie (drinking champagne in her bathtub), Chef Anthony Bourdain or even Selina Gomez to keep us up to speed with financial language. What’s more, the performances are top notch with all the players working together and no one attempting to ‘one up’ anyone else. In fact, one gets the distinct impression that these men joined this film because of its important message, as opposed to any particular individual Oscar glory.

Left to right: Steve Carell plays Mark Baum and Ryan Gosling plays Jared Vennett in The Big Short from Paramount Pictures and Regency Enterprises
Left to right: Steve Carell plays Mark Baum and Ryan Gosling plays Jared Vennett in The Big Short from Paramount Pictures and Regency Enterprises

Interestingly, the film grapples with the idea of our own desire to be distracted by celebrity glamour or pop culture rather than be educated about the ways that those in power manipulate the people for their own gain. In other words, rather than seek out the truth about the greed of the banks and governments that affect us every day, too often we allow ourselves to focus on popular fluff in an effort to forget our problems. (Incidentally, this also adds an additional element of irony to those ‘asides’ where celebrities explain key financial concepts. Are we supposed to listen more effectively? Or are we meant to be distracted by Selina Gomez and her gambling?)

This leads the film to explore greed as an addiction in many ways as well. As each member of the ‘team’ discovers new ways to take advantage of the banks (who are taking advantage of the rest), we see them experience a sense of glee as they ‘out-manipulate’ the manipulators. However, once they realize that their success lies on destroying the backs of the average home-owner, the film completely changes its tone. No, these men aren’t the ‘heroes’ that they have made themselves out to be. Make no mistake: These ‘Robin Hoods’ are equally guilty of being ‘Prince Johns’ as well.

These men simply allowed themselves to be caught up in the river of sin and greed that they were in opposition to in the first place. In many ways, the film is as much a word of warning about diving in to personal sinfulness as it is about our own lack of awareness of others. All too easily, because of our sin nature, we can find ourselves serving our own needs (and that rabbit hole is awfully deep).

Is The Big Short Oscar-worthy? A resounding “Yes!” from this corner. The film’s tightly written script is remarkable and it offers us a fresh perspective on events that recently shaped our current financial climate.

But will it take home the gold?

I wouldn’t bet on it.

Filed Under: Reviews Tagged With: Academy Awards, Adam McKay, Best Picture, Brad Pitt, Christian Bale, Oscars, Ryan Gosling, Steve Carell, The Big Short

Primary Sidebar

THE SF NEWS

Get a special look, just for you.

sf podcast

Hot Off the Press

  • Squeal: Men are Pigs
  • The Legend of Molly Brown – One woman’s struggle
  • Sharp Stick: Sex and Sensibility
  • Syndrome K – Life Saving Disease
  • Emily the Criminal: Dancing with our Dark Side
Find tickets and showtimes on Fandango.

where faith and film are intertwined

film and television carry stories which remind us of the stories God has woven since the beginning of time. come with us on a journey to see where faith and film are intertwined.

Footer

ScreenFish Articles

Squeal: Men are Pigs

The Legend of Molly Brown – One woman’s struggle

  • About ScreenFish
  • Privacy Policy

© 2022 · ScreenFish.net · Built by Aaron Lee

 

Loading Comments...