Dumb Money Review: GameStop Stock Exchange Film Trades In Middling Drama
🎞️ When will “Dumb Money” be released in theaters? September 22, 2023
⭐️Our rating: 3/5.
🎭Who's in it? Paul Dano, Shailene Woodley, Seth Rogen, America Ferrera, Pete Davidson, Nick Offerman, Anthony Ramos and Sebastian Stan.
👍What we liked. Craig Gillespie brings an element of human drama to the story through the use of compelling supporting characters, making it easy for viewers to connect with the real-life events surrounding the GameStop investment and the changing script on Wall Street.
👎 What we didn’t do. the film lacks intensity due to the events it is based on
📖 What are we talking about? In 2021, YouTube's desire to invest in GameStop will lead to a tipping point where ordinary people begin to challenge Wall Street's fat cats with the video game store masses.
Dumb Money is a modern-day David and Goliath story straight from the headlines. It tells the story of a group of investors who came to Wall Street when YouTuber Roaring Kitty, aka Keith Gill (Paul Dano), inspired many Reddit users to invest in GameStop stock.
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They are putting pressure on hedge funds that bet the business would collapse during the Covid pandemic and made huge profits in the process.
That's one of the joys of rich storytelling. the little guy takes power away from the elite and gets his own game. On paper this seems like a great idea for a film; In practice everything is fine.
One side of the ring features a unique ensemble of characters such as America Ferrera's nurse Jenny Campbell, GameStop employee Anthony Ramos Marcus and Gil's brother Kevin (Pete Davidson). On the other side are hedge fund managers Gabe Plotkin (Seth Rogen), Steve Cohen (Vincent D'Onofrio) and Kenneth Kay Griffin (Nick Offerman).
Craig Gillespie (i.e. Tonya/Cruella) leads a stellar cast of Dano, understatedly charming, as Gil, the suave and unlikely leader of a modern movement. The original Gil decided to step away from the spotlight after the GameStop stock market frenzy, but thanks to this film, he will forever be on the big screen.
The director was right to include more voices in the story besides Gill, as the large cast adds a human element to the story; in action and action films, audiences can be interested until they lose interest, but when they lose interest, there's something to connect with, there's something on screen that feels less clinical.
Read more. A year later, GameStop champion Roaring Kitty is quiet but much richer (Reuters, 4 minute read)
Among the supporting cast, Ferreira stands out the most as Jen, as her fiery passion helps convey the impact of real-life events on the average investor, while Sebastian Stan gives a great comedic performance as Vlad Tenev. - Executive director of a financial technology company. Robin Hood
The problem with Dumb Money is that it doesn't have enough plot to make it as intense as it can be. This is not Wall Street (or The Wolf of Wall Street).
While the film is presented as a thrilling battle between investors and a shady group of billionaire bankers, the stakes are never that high as much of the film takes place on Zoom. It was the truth, no matter how intense it was.
"Dumb Money" will keep viewers interested in the story thanks to its interesting characters, but it won't actually inspire a movement like Gill did.
Dumb Money hits theaters Friday, September 22.
Watch the trailer for the movie "Dumb Money".
