By: Kyle Tooley ~Sports Editor~

Money Monster, starring George Clooney, Julia Roberts and Jack O’Connell, is a thriller telling the story of a Wall Street TV personality, Lee Gates (Clooney), who is held at gunpoint by Kyle Budwell (O’Connell) in an attempt to gain more information about the recent stock collapse of a major investment firm, IBIS Clear Capital.

This film draws you in from the moment you first view the trailer. It leaves you with so many questions that make you go see the film just so that you can sleep at night.

It grossed more than $14 million in its opening weekend and has since grossed an additional $30 million. I watched the film with my roommates last weekend, and we were not disappointed.

The thing I found most interesting about this film was how connected you become with the characters. It becomes obvious about halfway through the movie that Gates, though he appears to have everything a man could possibly want, is deeply saddened by the persona he gives off. There is a powerful scene where he begs people to buy IBIS stock in order to please Budwell and bring the value back up. The stock actually goes down, proving that the financial security of his viewers is worth more than his own life.

Also, once answers start surfacing about the deep corruption surrounding IBIS, I felt a deep sorrow for Budwell, even while he was holding several individuals at gunpoint. Here is a man who did an honest thing in investing his money, only to have it dashed away by the immoral actions of an IBIS CEO.

Julia Roberts put on an outstanding performance as the stage manager for the television show, literally acting as the person in Gates’ ear while all of the madness is going on. Roberts’ character, Patty Fenn, has such a strong bond with the entire crew, especially Gates, that seems to calm the situation to a level that doesn’t seem possible. She seemingly turns Gates from a bossy television host to a Good Samaritan over the course of 99 minutes.

This is a movie that everyone should see, if only because you have an interest in economics. It is definitely a thriller, keeping you on the edge of your seat and never wanting the movie to end. Though some parts of the movie seem a tad unrealistic, it begs the question of how far someone will go for money and the truth.