If You Saw ‘The Big Short’, You Really Need To Re-Watch ‘Inside Job’

I can’t tell you how excited I was to see The Big Short last weekend. Not only was I psyched to see Ryan Gosling, Steve Carell, Brad Pitt, and Christian Bale all donning glorious wigs, but I happen to have a soft spot for movies about math. Needless to say, I cancelled my Saturday night plans. Only problem? The Big Short turned out to be a huge piece of crap that just made me want to re-watch documentary Inside Job.

Based on the nonfiction account by Michael Lewis (who also wrote the book, Moneyball) and directed by comedy god Adam McKay, I expected a sharp satire about the greed that led to the collapse of the global economy back in 2008. After all, every character in the film is based on real-life investors who saw what was happening in our housing market and actively bet against it to make millions — in some cases, billions. About fifteen minutes in, however, I debated giving up. It dawned on me that I wasn’t watching a satire at all, but a half-assed mockumentary that, four Golden Globe nominations later, is benefitting purely from star power and the veil of seeming like it has something profound to say. Don’t be fooled, however: The Big Short does not criticize these handsome crooks, it humanizes them — despite the fact that at the end of the day, they all kept their millions of dollars. After sitting through an excruciating two hours, I was kicking myself for not re-watching Inside Job instead.

Filmed just over a year after the fold of Lehman Brothers in 2008, the 2010 Oscar-winning doc from filmmaker Charles Ferguson delves into the nitty gritty of how Wall Street swindled the American middle class and working poor out of billions of dollars before adding insult to injury and using taxpayer dollars to bail themselves out. Inside Job outlines what happened in the few years leading up to 2008, chronicling the housing market boom that made consumers feel confident in purchasing property. The only problem was that realtors and big banks were signing off on mortgages that were toxic, or subprime, just so their investors could make a profit. Banks and Wall Street firms then actively bundled and invested their money in ways that guaranteed if these subprime mortgages failed (which they did), they would still make money (and they did).

Narrated by Matt Damon, Inside Job features hard-hitting interviews with some of the country’s most influential economic figures and politicians in hopes to get to the bottom of the greed, including former governor of New York, Eliot Spitzer, Frederic Mishkin, Paul Volker, and many more. Instead of literally spelling out definitions or throwing in celebrity cameos to ensure you’re paying attention like The Big Short does, Inside Job treats you like the adult you are and clues you in on what went on behind closed doors on Wall Street before Ben Bernanke and the Federal Reserve came to their rescue.

It’s a fascinating and infuriating exposé that plays with a tongue-in-cheek soundtrack (with Bachman Turner Overdrive’s “Taking Care of Business” kicking things off) to make you feel fired up about your finances, your country, and those who put it all in jeopardy. So rather than sitting through The Big Short, or as I like to call it, “Economics for Bros,” do yourself a favor and watch Inside Job instead.