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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Spend some money on ‘The Big Short’

Dan Webster

It's the day before Christmas Eve, the day I usually do my shopping — in fact, I do have a couple of things left to purchase — but it's also a perfect day to get away from all that snow by seeing a movie.

And just in time comes today's opening of "The Big Short." Here's how IMDB pitches the movie: "Four outsiders in the world of high-finance who predicted the credit and housing bubble collapse of the mid-2000s decide to take on the big banks for their lack of foresight and greed." Yadda-yadda.

From that slim treatise, Adam McKay has given us a movie that is attracting mostly good reviews (89 percent viewers, 86 percent critics on Rotten Tomatoes). Here are some of the more choice comments:

Dana Stevens, Slate: "One of the most appealing things about this very appealing movie — a stylistic Chex Mix of storytelling, satire, advocacy, and clip art — is its high regard for the intellect of the viewer."

Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times: "A funny, energetic and self-aware film that manages to entertain without diluting the complications - or the gravity - of its subject matter."

A.O. Scott, New York Times: "A true crime story and a madcap comedy, a heist movie and a scalding polemic, 'The Big Short' will affirm your deepest cynicism about Wall Street while simultaneously restoring your faith in Hollywood."

And for a more financial-oriented look at the movie, see:

Steve Denning, Forbes.com: "When a wonderful, popular movie like The Big Short based on the book by Michael Lewis appears, and accurately re-tells the story of the greed and chicanery that led to the global financial meltdown of 2008, we know that we shall soon see self-serving smokescreens and deliberate obfuscation from the financial sector claiming that it wasn’t—and isn’t—so."

So if you've got the time, you should take a break. According to Fandango, the movie is playing at the AMC River Park Square, Village Centre Airway Heights and Coeur d'Alene Riverstone Stadium theaters.