‘Dumb Money’ Movie Review (TIFF 2023)
Image credit: Courtesy of TIFF
Written by: Gracie Lowes
Craig Gillespie heading back to the big screen with his latest film which is based off of a true story and the book ‘The Antisocial Network’ by Ben Mezrich.
Gillespie whose previous work includes ‘I, Tonya’, ‘The Finest Hour’ and ‘Cruella’ came back to Toronto International Film Festival to premiere his new drama comedy ‘Dumb Money.’
In the year 2020, COVID-19 hit the world and changed lives forever. From being in-person and switching to remote work, to wearing masks and social distancing, everything was changing.
While at home during these times, Keith Gill (Paul Dano) decides to take a risk and invest in the stock market, specifically GameStop.
After investing $53 thousand into GameStop and being called crazy by his friend, Keith decides to take to social media and become a streamer to share why he likes this specific stock with the public.
When his streams and posts on a Reddit forum start to blow up the public starts to support Keith’s idea and purchase stocks as well. Once GameStop’s stock quickly rises in value after almost declaring bankruptcy, Keith’s stock tip becomes a worldwide movement where everyone gets rich… except for Wall Street.
Quickly losing millions and billions of dollars to a video game store, the rich side of society, specifically Wall Street billionaires, start to rise and fight back.
With the stock splitting people into two very different sides both are determined to fight until they get what they want, even though there can only be one winner in the end.
The film showcases a star-packed cast with names like Paul Dano, Shailene Woodley, Pete Davidson, Seth Rogen, Sebastian Stan, America Ferrera, Nick Offerman, Anthony Ramos, Talia Ryder, Myha’la Herrold and more.
From start to finish this cast gave their all in these performances, Paul Dano has once again proven that he can sell any character in a dramatic film with his defined facial expressions switching from his “steaming face” to his “family face”, to the heartfelt way he was able to deliver his lines.
It was easy for audiences to relate to and feel he was a struggling father just trying to do what he loves while supporting his family through COVID-19. Overall Dano portrayed the character in an expected way.
I was surprised by Pete Davidson and what he added to the cast. The former SNL star is known for his comedy, so it’s expected that his role in the film would include witty jokes and work as a comic relief.
But you could tell that Dano fed off of the energy and jokes that Davidson had, with Dano being known for dramatic-based roles he was still able to break out a few witty comebacks and comments towards Davidson’s character (Kevin Gill) that earned laughs from the audience.
Davidson also proved that he has range when it comes to acting. Although most of his screen time had the audience laughing he was also able to deliver deep and heartfelt moments while staying serious and even shedding a few tears.
Image credit: Courtesy of TIFF
Another key component that had me hooked on this film was the editing and overall soundtrack. The film opens on an unexpected note that had viewers watching in awe and wondering if they could laugh or be somewhat shocked when it goes back and forth between cut scenes of both Paul Dano and Seth Rogen’s characters running (both for different reasons) to ‘W.A.P’ by Cardi B feat. Megan Thee Stallion.
It might seem like a random choice, but surprisingly with the editing of the clips the song worked perfectly. There are more moments like that in the film that include hit songs that you might not have thought of for this movie like ‘Savage’ by Megan Thee Stallion, ‘Humble’ by Kendrick Lamar, and more.
Overall, I’d give ‘Dumb Money’ a 4 out of 5. The film was able to capture and create a near-perfect mix of family dynamics, common struggles during COVID-19, passion, and comedy all while still staying true to the event it’s based on.
If you enjoyed ‘The Wolf of Wall Street‘ and ‘The Social Network‘, but want something similar with lots of laughs and witty jokes then I highly recommend you watch ‘Dumb Money’ when it hits theaters on September 22, 2023.
