Movie Review: Money Monster


Just from its trailer, Money Monster reminded me a little bit of The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3, in that there was a hostage situation and the "bad guy" had an ulterior motive. The "bad guy" in this film is much different than Travolta's character in Pelham, but Money Monster was just as engrossing.

Lee Gates (George Clooney) advises people what to do with their money, on a TV show called Money Monster. The show is managed by Patty (Julia Roberts), who has recently given her notice of leave for another job. The show is being filmed on a normal day, when something not so normal interrupts the broadcast: a man waving a gun, named Kyle (Jack O'Connell), with a vest strapped with explosives, which he makes Lee wear. Lee and Patty must figure out how to get everyone safely out of the studio and the building, while keeping themselves safe as well, and soon the reason for the gunman's interruption is brought to light.

This movie also reminded me a little bit of The Big Short, because of the financial lingo involved, but I found this film to be much better than that one. Clooney is as charming as his characters always are, even when he's dealing with a hostage situation, and it was fun to see him and Julia Roberts in the same movie again; I'm a big fan of the Ocean's 11 movies in which they starred together. Jack O'Connell (Unbroken) was very good as the "bad guy" here too, whom we slowly start to see isn't really a "bad guy" after all.

Yes, see this movie. I recommend it for those who like fast-paced thrillers, and/or films where we slowly learn the "real story" behind the characters and their motives, if that makes sense. The cast worked together very well here too - Giancarlo Esposito also has a small role, as a police captain, and Aaron Yoo, who is almost unrecognizable as a programmer. I didn't recognize O'Connell from Unbroken until I looked him up on IMDb, too (he was great in that film), and he was very good here as the gunman, too.

Money Monster is in theaters today, May 13th, and is rated R with a runtime of 108 minutes. 4 stars out of 5.

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