Insightful, Informative & Entertaining But Also Difficult To Follow At Times!

Rating: Null/10 (3 January 2016)

Boasting a star cast of Christian Bale, Steve Carell, Ryan Gosling, Brad Pitt & others, all put together in an interesting story about the financial crisis of 2007-2010 that nearly crippled the world economy, plus regularly allowing its characters to break the fourth wall in order to explain the complexities of financial market to the audience, The Big Short is insightful but also messy at times.
Based on the book of the same name, the film intercuts multiple story lines and concerns the people who predicted the credit & housing bubble collapse of the mid-2000s but, after witnessing the corruption within banks plus its lack of foresight, decided to bet against the market and profited enormously when it all went down while majority of population lost its lifetime's worth of savings.
Co-written & directed by Adam McKay, The Big Short features a highly fascinating subject matter for there are still many around who were affected by the crisis that triggered the great recession yet aren't entirely aware of what exactly caused it & how. While McKay keeps his characters ready to simplify the complex terms of economy, the characters inhabiting this story themselves lack an interesting dimension.
The script attempts to juggle multiple subplots but hits a few barricades in the process for it lacks a smooth flow due to muddled editing. Camera-work is a bit chaotic and although the pace at which it all unfolds is consistent, the transition from one subplot to another isn't. As far as performances go, only Carell leaves a lasting impression while Bale, Gosling & Pitt are unexpectedly underwhelming in their given roles and just play along.
On an overall scale, The Big Short is an in-depth examination of the global financial crisis which is driven by McKay's kinetic direction, deftly written screenplay & fancy performances from its entire cast. Informative, investigative & entertaining yet requiring some effort from its viewers who need to keep up with its swiftly-paced, dialogue-driven narrative, the film tries to bring its complex tale to a more accessible level yet required a bit more transparency. Worth a shot.