‘Money Monster’ falls short in its aim
Print Edition
GEORGE Clooney plays a Jim Cramer-like television personality who’s forced to grow a conscience when a disgruntled viewer holds him hostage on TV in “Money Monster,” a serviceable, if slight, real time thriller from director Jodie Foster.
Clooney’s character Lee Gates is one of those cable news stars who probably hasn’t spoken to a non-celebrity in decades. His flashy show opens with him in dancing costume with two gyrating ladies like he’s in his own rap video. The vulgarity escalates from there with ridiculous graphics and sound effects that even a shock jock radio host would likely find tasteless.
We see him being dismissive of the pleas from his put-upon producer Patty Fenn (Julia Roberts) to stick to the script, or at least give her a heads up as to where he’s planning to go, but Lee Gates is one of those roguish improvisational types who is somehow charismatic enough to get away with it. This is not really a likable guy, and it’s not even clear how smart a financial mind he is, but Clooney has that perfect combination of non-threatening smarm and swagger to make Lee not completely reprehensible.
It does, however, make it a little hard to care when Jack O’Connell’s character Kyle comes skulking in through the back of the set with a gun and a vest full of explosives made especially for Lee. Kyle, we find out, trusted Lee’s advice on an investment that went awry when a stable company’s stock plummeted and he lost everything. The company’s explanation and the narrative in the press is that it was just a computer glitch, but Kyle’s not buying it and wants some answers.
It’s an odd pairing, this somewhat daffy television dope against an unhinged blue collar fool with a hunch that US$800 million didn’t just disappear because of a glitch. Although it doesn’t make for the most scintillating conversation, as Kyle wails about the system being rigged tension builds and it seems like “Money Monster” is heading somewhere significant.
Unfortunately, it doesn’t. Instead, “Money Monster” stays rather small and fictional in its aim. It’s partially interested in the idea of systemic corruption in the finance world, sure, but it seems to be even more critical of the cable news media types who have grown soft, complacent and careless.
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