Christian Bale: ‘Money Has To Be Taken Out Of Politics’

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Credit: ew.com

Though the movie The Big Short came out in 2015, the message actor Christian Bale relayed to  media outlets afterward couldn’t be more relevant. Considering the November election is approaching fast, the discussion of financial influence over lawmakers is an important one.

Actor Christian Bale brought this topic to the forefront of attention shortly after the movie The Big Short, which he starred in with Brad Pitt, Steve Carrell, and Ryan Reynolds, hit the box office. The movie portrayed the housing market collapse of 2008 through the eyes of a few that saw it happening on the inside.

Being a part of the film undoubtedly opened Bale’s eyes to flaws within the system, and this is exactly what he commented on in an interview with The Daily Beast. The Dark Knight said:

“You know it’s wrong. That it shouldn’t be happening. That it’s stacked against the everyman. It’s this elitist class that is managing to just fleece the rest of America. OK: What can be done?”

The actor notes that the movie reminds the audience of the not-so-distant past and the potential for another economic crisis.

“The film can hopefully begin a conversation about: Why the hell is it that only seven years after this crisis happened, it could very well happen again?” he said. “How come money has become such a part of American politics that this could happen—again?”

His many questions lead him to determine that the market crash and, then, the subsequent bail-out of bankers on Wall Street is a major political problem. It has allowed the financial district to accumulate too much influence over the lawmakers passing out tax money.

Fortunately, the movie does an excellent job of conveying the seriousness of the situation without boring the audience. That’s what Bale’s most excited about. He praised director Adam McKay for turning “what could be the most boring subject on Earth” into something the average citizen can understand. Said Bale,

“[McKay can] have you understand that these bastards—of course they want to confuse you, of course they want to talk down to you. The whole point is that they want to make you feel dumb so that you need them. Then they make a fortune, because we feel we couldn’t possibly do what they do. But it’s not about having to know what a bloody credit default swap is, or whatever. It’s about understanding what it does to people.”

“In 2008 it was, ‘How could this possibly go back to business as usual?’ And here we are—business as usual,” he added. “Sometimes you do a film and start to think it’s more important than it really is, but this one, you know… what if it could really change the game?”

Credit: JAAP BUITENDIJK/PARAMOUNT PICTURES
Credit: JAAP BUITENDIJK/PARAMOUNT PICTURES

To understand Michael Burry, the character he was portraying, Bale spent time with the former neurologist-turned-hedge-fund-manager and even wore his clothes during filming. Undoubtedly, this helped him grasp the amount sacrificed to make such a huge financial win. Said Bale:

“They were earning a fortune from the downfall of the housing market and the American economy and the world economy. That’s not heroic in the slightest. But these men all knew that. Mike Burry, he would be the last man on Earth to ever say he was a hero from it.”

Commenting on the flaws within the system, Bale concluded:

“Obviously Citizens United, all the Super PACs, everything like that—oh my god, all of that has to be gone out of the way before we can even begin to think about changing. Money has to be taken out of politics. It’s done in many other countries; it’s not difficult. This is bloody America. It can be done.”

Following is the trailer for the movie:

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