There is hope! It comes from creative thinkers who put their tho
ughts into actions that inspire and empower others. Here are two films that do exactly that:
- Where to Invade Next by the most wonderful Michael Moore from Flint, Michigan – based on ‘what ifs’ that could all become possible;
- The Big Short by American Adam McKay – based on the reality of the financial crisis in 2008-2009.
This email from David Pidcock makes the link to the UK Bradbury Pound as the MODEL for GOVERNMENT rather than BANK issued money as the basis for dishonest money in circulation:
“HONESTY, EVEN IF DEEMED STUPID, IS A FAR BETTER BASIS FOR FINANCE, THAN THE MOST ADROIT FINESSE”
H.M. SECRETARY TO THE TREASURY JOHN BRADBURY WHO ISSUED £500,000 TREASURY NOTES TO SAVE THE BANK OF ENGLAND FROM BANKRUPTCY IN 1914
In 2008, quixotic hedge fund manager Michael Burry spots the credit and housing bubble is about to burst and he bets millions against the American economy. Other financial wizards get wind of the deal including deeply cynical hedge fund manager Mark Baum and his team. Inexperienced investors Charlie Geller and Jamie Shipley use personal ties to retired banker Ben Rickert to orchestrate their own high risk bets as financial authorities ignore warning signs and Lehman Brothers prepares to fall.
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LondonNet Film Review
The Big Short (15)
A fool and his hard-earned money are soon parted and in 2008, many of us turned out to be unwitting fools when the mortgage crisis in America catalysed the collapse of financial institutions, resulting in an ice age of global austerity that has yet to thaw. Bankers were demonised, political establishment passed bucks as if they were handling red-hot potatoes and hard-working families paid an eye-watering price. The Wall Street meltdown don’t sound like ripe fruit for a cocktail of potty-mouthed hilarity and heartbreaking drama but Adam McKay, director of the Anchorman films, begs to differ…
Stepping away from the dim-witted Will Ferrell comedies that have made his name, McKay draws inspiration from Michael Lewis’s non-fiction account of the housing and credit bubble to dramatise the incredible true story of the men, who made a killing by wagering against the US economy. “While the whole world was having a big ol’ party, a few outsiders and weirdos saw what no one else could,” explains sharp-suited narrator, Jared Vennett (Ryan Gosling), a bond salesman at Deutsche Bank with a keen nose for profits. He is our wise-cracking guide to this high pressure world of bulls, bears and multi-million dollar trades.
However, Jared is not the first person to spot impending doom. That honour goes to quixotic hedge fund manager Michael Burry (Christian Bale). “It’s a time bomb… and I want to short it,” Burry informs his incredulous boss (Tracy Letts) and bets against the housing market. Jared gets wind of the deal and follows suit, drawing in deeply cynical hedge fund manager Mark Baum (Steve Carell) and his team: Danny Moses (Rafe Spall), Porter Collins (Hamish Linklater) and Vinnie Daniel (Jeremy Strong). Inexperienced investors Charlie Geller (John Magaro) and Jamie Shipley (Finn Wittrock) use personal ties to retired banker Ben Rickert (Brad Pitt) to orchestrate their own high risk bets as financial authorities ignore warning signs and Lehman Brothers prepares to fall.
The Big Short is a blisteringly funny and provocative portrait of irresponsibility, fraud and gaudy excess, brought vividly to life by a superb ensemble cast. Carell and Bale shine brightest in the glittering firmament, imbuing their socially awkward oddballs with vulnerability and regret. McKay’s film is acutely aware that most of us don’t speak the Wall Street lingo so the writer-director cutely interrupts the wheeler dealing with glossy edutainment spots. Wolf On Wall Street star Margot Robbie sexes up subprime mortgages while sipping champagne in a bubble bath, celebrity chef Anthony Bourdain explains a collateralized debt obligation (CDO) using leftover seafood, and actress and singer Selena Gomez makes sense of synthetic CDOs over a game of blackjack. We might not always keep up with McKay’s dazzling film and its rapid-fire, whipsmart dialogue but by the end credits, we’re not far behind.
– Jo Planter
London Cinemas
2016 OSCAR &BAFTA Nominated:
5 OSCAR nominations, including Best Picture, Best Director and Best Supporting Actor
5 BAFTA nominations, including Best Film, Best Director and Best Supporting Actor
It’s 2005, and the housing market is booming. But four outsiders see what no one else can: the whole thing is a time bomb. ‘The Big Short’ is their story.
People were buying houses they couldn’t afford, with money they didn’t have, which they borrowed from banks that were negligent and greedy. Four men realised a crash was coming, and bet against the American economy to take on the banks. And make themselves rich as well, of course.
The true story of a crisis we’re still reeling from, ‘The Big Short’ boasts an outstanding cast including Christian Bale, Brad Pitt, Ryan Gosling and Steve Carell.
NOTTINGHAM AND ACROSS THE UK
NO NEED FOR GOVERNMENTS TO BORROW FROM CROOKED OR STRAIGHT BANKERS
THEY ONLY NEED TO CREATE WHAT THEY NEED
- FREE OF DEBT AND INTEREST AND, THEREFORE,
- FREE OF THE NEED TO RAISE REVENUES THROUGH TAXATION AND OR PUBLIC SECTOR BORROWING.
In the Spirit of the Forum for Stable Currencies 