10 Great Movies That Break The Fourth Wall
9. The Big Short (2015)
The Big Short is an ensemble comedy-drama starring Brad Pitt, Christian Bale, Ryan Gosling and Steve Carell, detailing the financial crisis of 2007-2008. A funny if worrying portrait of how money runs the world, the fourth wall breaks often come courtesy of Gosling, who serves as the movie's narrator and the only character aware they're being watched.
Gosling makes for a great focal point in a movie full to bursting with financial jargon and confusing concepts, but that's exactly where the film hits its stride.
Whilst most films would hit their audiences with a barrage of indecipherable gibberish, The Big Short features cameo appearances from celebrities such as Selena Gomez, Margot Robbie, Anthony Bourdain and Richard Thaler, who all come in at various points throughout the film to explain things such as subprime mortgages and debt obligations in layman's terms.
Rather than talking down to the audience, though, these cameos add a light burst of comedy to a film which could have otherwise been a serious and even over-the-top melodrama about power and politics.