YNMS: Money Monster
Friday, January 15, 2016 at 9:23AM Chris here with more trailer happenings. One of the good things about Phase 2 of Oscar season is that we finally start seeing trailers for spring/summer films targeting adult eyeballs and reminding us that we start all over again with a new film year in March.
Here we have May's Money Monster, which finds Jodie Foster behind the director's chair again. It's her return to features following those well-received TV directorial turns with Orange is the New Black and House of Cards. She's brought the extra star power with Julia Roberts and George Clooney front and center against Unbroken's Jack O'Connell.
Take a look for Yes No Maybe So after the jump...
YES
- Ooh, Jack O'Connell.
- Jodie Foster is back behind the camera. She's been on a roll with her recent TV work and this looks like her most ambitious subject yet.
- Starting this trailer strong with the tense evacuation is right on the money. That breath Julia takes before speaking is fraught!
- Much like The Big Short, this is a condemnation of Wall Street that audiences are hungry to discuss right now. I smell zeitgeist.
- Even with the tension, the trailer hints at fun Roberts/Clooney repartee. We never get charming megastar chemistry anymore and we already know the Ocean's pair click.
NO
- Ew, not this Jack O'Connell.
- "Get some balls. Man up."
- Exactly how intentionally tacky is this financial-political show that Clooney's Lee Gates hosts? It seems too heavy-handed for the satire to really sing.
- There's a whole lots of tones going on here. Is this an edge-of-your seat thriller or socially conscious heartwarmer?
- The tension is killed by the larger context of everyone watching at home, even here in a trailer. There's not a strong balance between the human elements and the political polemic.
- Off topic: but what in the actual hell have they done to the TriStar logo??
MAYBE SO
- Money Monster will be coming at the perfect time, landing after the spring break glut of silliness like The Huntsman Winter's War. We'll need a nice break from DC and Marvel superheros, even if it's something easily digestible.
- The trailer promises a solid ensemble beyond its three headliners. We see you there, Giancarlo Esposito.
- While there is lots of story beats here, it doesn't feel like every moment is revealed moment for moment.
- There was the faintest of rumors early in the season that this could be ready in time for the current Oscar race. Maybe it might be a little more than a crowdpleaser...
- The script was included on the 2014 Blacklist of unproduced screenplays. Previous honorees include Oscar-winning scripts like The Imitation Game, Argo, and Little Miss Sunshine.
Money Monster opens May 13. Will you be there, definitely not be there, or still deciding?
Reader Comments (18)
Definitely a MS. I get he has a gun to his head, but how does a committed capitalist go from Jim Kramer to Elizabeth Warren in 2 hours?
I'm a Maybe so Leaning No. Based on that trailer, this would have to get a percentage in the 80s or 90s on RT for me to be convinced. Also: You're right, that new Tri-Star logo is HIDEOUS.
Another note: Putting THIS Jack O'Connell in the same movie as Dominic West is like putting Jackson Pollock next to Rembrandt.
Looks awful for a million different reasons
Can't they figure out how to put Julia in a comedy, preferably a romantic comedy?
I'll most likely see it for the pedigree, but this looks pretty iffy. A "Mad City" or "John Q" for the post-recession age.
Roark: Mad City is probably the better comparison. I mean, John Q was directed by Nick Cassavetes, a director who is pretty much the DEFINITION of "My dad did it, so what else was I gonna do?"
I always welcome Julia Roberts in anything these days when movieland is devoid of players with legit charm. And yeah, where's the rom com comeback? If that ever happens, please let it be with Nicolas Cage.
The premise of this is reminding me of something and I cant quite put my finger on what - haven't we seen "live on tv hostage situation" before? The last act of "The China Syndrome", but somewhere else too, right?
I do think Julia has the opportunity to connect again with audiences, but I am not sure if this is the right kind of vehicle? Maybe a fun long-form series where she can be smart and charming. Clooney is turning into my grandfather, and I don't know that audiences are into him anymore. I don't have the vibe that he will be a Streep, Hanks, Ford or Washington -- actors that are timeless, well loved, and stay fresh.
Julia I am convinced will win a second Oscar when she goes back to her brand of rom/com,I do like how her later career has given us some of her best work AOC included.
Yes from me. Even if it's not perfect, I really miss these type of studio drama/thrillers.
What do you mean ew? What's the problem with this Jack O'Connell?
alex: See also, Unbroken. I also gave a metaphorical description of a casting choice they made that will make O'Connell seem like an even worse casting choice in context.
Scratch the word metaphor. Meant simile. Still, basic point of "comparison" stands.
Yes.
MAD CITY was the movie I went to as well.
i have read the screenplay and julia's role in this is actually supporting. but the trailer is making her role seem bigger which is understandable because clooney is iffy when it comes to box office. granted, julia is iffy too but she is less... iffy.
but the screenplay was interesting, in a potboiler thriller kind of way, so it's a yes for me. plus jodie foster is directing and i will watch any film directed by her.
i think julia's next nomination is when she decides to headline a rom com or a comedy which has her in every scene.
JULIA YOU WILL GET A SECOND OSCAR! I had hopes for Secret In Their Eyes since the Spanish version was a masterpiece but through the transition to English it was ruined just like Vanilla Sky... maybe this will be the role that brings that 5th nom!