Money Monster positions itself as an angst-filled rallying cry, but for something that so desperately wants to insight impoverished rage, its voice couldn’t be more monotone. Maybe that’s because The Big Short better addresses financial outrage, or because three writers (Jamie Linden, Alan Difiore, Jim Kouf) jam-pack their personal attack on Jim Cramer with an embarrassing amount of corruption clichés. A hackneyed suicide plot and an unfocused agenda that reeks of 90s paranoia? Even George Clooney’s dashingly obnoxious buffoonery can’t save Jodie Foster’s return to the director’s chair, as Money Monsters steadily – and aggressively – dips lower and lower into the red with each passing second.

In an age dominated by Wall Street and big business, television personalities have become a trusted resource for investment advice – and there’s none better than Money Monster’s Lee Gates (George Clooney). Episode by episode, Gates works his...