playing in the killing fields
by Douglas Messerli
Adam McKay and Charles Randolph (screenplay, based on the book by Michael Lewis), Adam McKay (director) The Big Short / 2015
The so-called “heroes”
of Adam McKay’s The Big Short, are not
so very different from the film’s villains: all desire just one thing, a big
profit in the markets—a “killing” as it is often and perhaps correctly
described, since it often means the destruction of so many others’ lives.
Since the book on which this film is
based used real figures to tell its story, I will recount it as a series of
historical facts, even though the character names have been changed.
Visiting numerous banks—who maintained
their faith, against serious bad signs, that the housing market was secure—Burry bet against the housing market, buying up credit defaults. Although his
clients, realizing how he had invested their money, soon begin threatening him
about leaving his fund, Burry bravely declared a moratorium on withdrawals, and
soldiered forward, ultimately winning 489% profits for his investors.
By accident Mark Baum (Steve Carell),
head of a smaller hedge fund, (FrontPoint Capital) , got wind of Vennett’s
actions, and soon after was approached by Vennett to join him in the
investment.
The two, along with Baum’s partners
discerned that the impending market collapse was being further perpetuated by
the sale of collateralized debt obligations (CDOs), groups of poor loans that
were packaged together and incorrectly given AAA ratings due to the conflicts
of self-interest and dishonesty of the system.
When Baum attends the American
Securitization Forum in Las Vegas, he interviewed a businessman who has created
synthetic CDOs, making what he described as a chain of increasingly large bets
on the faulty loans; Baum realized, much to his horror, that the scale of the
fraud will cause a complete collapse of the economy.
Attending a American Securitization Forum
in Las Vegas, Baum interviewed a wealthy businessman, who explained that he has
created synthetic CDO’s, which he describes as a chain of large bets on faulty
loans, leading Baum and his associates to perceive that the fraud would likely
cause a complete collapse of the economy. Baum, one of the strongest voices of morality
in this film, hesitated on betting against the American economy, but was
convinced by his partners to join in with Vennett. Baum is the last to collect
on his winnings.
Finally, a group of eager younger
investors, led by Charle Geller (John Maagaro) and Jaime Shipley (Finn
Wittrock), who, because of low capital, were not even able to trade in this
market, discovered Vennett’s scheme, and decided for themselves, after
interviewing several real estate agents in Miami, to also get involved in the
default swaps. They called in a retired banker Ben Rickert (Brad Pitt) to help
them with the investment. Eager and excited to finally be able to enter into
high stake trading, they were absolutely delighted when Rickert agreed to help,
but he (the most serious moral force in this work) upbraided them, reminding
them that their success would mean the destruction of thousands of US families
and perhaps a crisis that would utterly destroy American’s economy.
Still innocents, they attempted to alert
the press, friends, and family members about the impending disaster, but were
mocked for their efforts. One of the most devastating moments in this moving film
is after having made their “killing” in the market, they wander into the
offices of the now destroyed and emptied Lehman Brothers offices, their
confidence in the system now totally destroyed.
The often seemingly inexplicable
vagaries of investment activities and its terminology are explained, in a more
comic vein than the rest of the story and with theatrical flair, through
interruptive lectures by celebrities such as food author Anthony Bourdain,
Margot Robbie, Selena Gomez, and Richard Thaler.
Ultimately, it is the giddy sense of
greed combined with the realization of the economy’s impending doom, and the
tragedy it brings to so many millions of Americans that makes McKay’s serious
drama so engaging. Even as we learn how the banks, loan organizations, and even
those designated to oversee them are in cohorts, working against the average
American citizen, we recognize that both the true cynics and the more likeable
pragmatists of this tale are not so very different in their determination to
capture their piece used to be called the American Dream, which might now
better be described as the American Nightmare.
In real life, most of the “winners” in
this story, retired in disgust from the economic sector, attempting to use
their ill-begotten monies for better causes. But, of course, they could afford
to, while so many other American citizens are still suffering from the loss of
jobs and income in that unnecessary collapse.
Los Angeles,
February 2, 2016
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