The Big Short - Winner of 1 Oscar!

Remember the Recession?? The thing we used to make fun of and use as an excuse when we wanted to spend less money! Wonder what caused it or what caused a huge downward spiral for the World's Greatest Economy?? Based on True Events, The Big Short, adapted by the Book of the same name, has some answers.

The film follows 3 parallel stories of how these Genius Bankers had predicted the fall of the mortgage market in 2008, well before it actually happened, and wanted to cash in on it by shorting on the market. In other words, they were going to bet against the one thing that the US had never had a problem with in the past, and that was, the payment of  Loans in the Housing Sector. People think they are stupid to do so but gladly accept their investment because it was like someone was giving them charity. But if what they had predicted would come true, then the returns were going to be astounding!!!

Now this is no The Wolf of Wall Street. It's not as racy or fun. But what they were dealing with here was much more serious. It was to be a pivotal point in American History. They were basically looking to cash in on America's downfall. If people were to lose their jobs and become homeless, they win!! In some weird way, this is a satire of sorts. One that does take itself too seriously at times.
There is a lot of Financial Technical Jargon in this Movie, but don't worry, the makers of the movie recognize the same and have some unique cameos by Celebrities explaining a few terms in the most 'easy to understand' manner. It definitely adds the dose of humour too. Towards the end though, you still might feel a bit lost if you were a Science student in college!!

Now coming to the Oscars. The Movie was nominated for 5 Oscars including Best Editing, Directing, Picture and Best Supporting Actor for Christian Bale, but the only one they won was for Best Adapted Screenplay, which to a certain extent, was fair enough. This movie's writing is what drives it through in spite of it being a rather serious and somewhat non-patriotic movie. It's not an easy subject to handle.

The cast is super-star-studded. But the 2 who really stood out for me were Christian Bale and Steve Carell. While Christian Bale is amazing as an awkward Metalhead Investment Banker it's Steve Carell who truly surprises you because he has always had this comic image, and he steers away from that so well an the cynical and angry Banker who doesn't trust anyone!!

Overall it is a Good Movie, but not a Great One. It tells a Great Story and one we must know for sure. But among the Best Films of the Oscars, this one was definitely a bit short.

I'm going with 3.5 out of 5.

Keep Reeling!!

The Revenant - Winner of 3 Oscars!

Revenant: A person who has returned, especially supposedly, from the dead.

Probably the most talked about Movie about the Oscars, was 'The Revenant' for more reasons than one. The First and Foremost reason was of course the nomination of Leonardo Dicaprio for the 6th Time at the Oscars and for once, was the favourite to win it. Secondly, the  movie had the most nominations of the night-12 to be exact. And was also the favourite to win Best Film. And Lastly, It was the second year running a 'Alejandro Inarritu' Movie was favourites at the Oscars(after the critically acclaimed, 'Birdman' last year).

Inspired by true events, the Revenant tells the story of American Explorer, Hugh Glass, abandoned by his fellow mates, after being attacked brutally by a Bear. The harsh brutality of his experience is chilling enough and set across the backdrop of 19th century America, this Movie undeniably makes you go through so many emotions, as you see Hugh Glass going through them. It is the ultimate story of human spirit, will power and what a man is capable of when there's no other option!!

Now let's get this straight, this through and through is Leo's movie. He owns it!! Without him, this movie would have still been good, but definitely not great. Every expression, be it of discomfort, anger, disappointment, happiness and even Love is expressed with such ease that you really feel for him in every scene. Mind you, he does speak very little but his silences sometimes speak louder than words. It is debatable whether this is his Best Performance Ever or Not( personally I loved him more in 'The Wolf of Wall Street'). But this Oscar for him was definitely a long time coming. If he would not have won this year, I think the Academy would be shamed even more than the 'White Oscar' controversy.

The movie won 3 Oscars in total-Best Actor, Cinematography & Director making Alejandro Inarritu a 2 time winner and a record breaker! With all the attention being stolen by Leo, people didn't notice that he won this award two consecutive years and became the first person in 65 years to do so. He also is the first ever Mexican to achieve this feat ( wonder what Trump feels about that ;) ) . Although Birdman wasn't my favorite movie last year but I thing he definitely deserves it for this one.

This is a long movie though, and is definitely slow paced But for all Leo fans this is certainly a must-watch. It's also not necessarily a movie for the faint hearted but people who have an appetite for Good Cinema, please make sure you see this one if you already haven't.

I'm going with 4 out of 5 for this one!

Keep Reeling!!!