Dumb Money might have the widest appeal to TIFF audiences this year and that’s in part due to how relevant it still is. The film covers the GameStop short squeeze in 2021 that made headlines worldwide and even got the attention of the US Congress. Director Craig Gillespie tells this story and while there are a few hiccups along the way, it’s an enjoyable retelling that will keep audiences optimistic and guessing, even if they know how it ends.

Dumb Money is very well-rounded from a production standpoint. Gillespie’s direction is on point, in yet another scandal torn from the headlines. (He also premiered I, Tonya at TIFF in 2017) The script, written by Lauren Schuker Blum and Rebecca Angelo, is sharp, concise, and funny serving the story very well and allowing all of the main players time to shine. 

The sets and production design transport us back to one of the bleakest times in recent history and will make you feel like you are back in the height of the pandemic. Considering the time crunch this film had and the quick turnaround, Gillespie and his team did a respectable job of bringing this to the screen.

The cast of this film is both a blessing and a curse. The ensemble cast, which consists of Paul Dano, Pete Davidson, Vincent D’Onofrio, America Ferrera, Nick Offerman, Anthony Ramos, Sebastian Stan, Shailene Woodley, and Seth Rogen, is outstanding, with Dano and Davidson shining the brightest. However, I also feel like this caused some problems story-wise because we didn’t have enough time to become invested and care about each character and see their story unfold. It made for some messy and loose ends that left me a bit frustrated.

Dumb Money feels like it is a bit outside of Gillespie’s comfort zone and doesn’t fully work at times but thanks to the breakneck pacing and excellent lead performances, the movie manages to be entertaining and will be one of 2023’s biggest crowd-pleasers.