When Does "The Big Short" (2015) Take Place?
"The Big Short" is a historical fiction film written by Charles Randolph with Adam McKay and released December 11th, 2015.
It takes place in the years:
We know this because when the main action of the plot begins, at the end of the scene introducing Doctor Michael Burry: 1971-present, there is a time setting title card over the footage that reads: "March (2005)".
2005 AD - 2008 AD
We know this because when the main action of the plot begins, at the end of the scene introducing Doctor Michael Burry: 1971-present, there is a time setting title card over the footage that reads: "March (2005)".
At nearly halfway through the film, there's a "May (2006)" title card over the footage that tells us we've moved up to 2006 AD.
As the American subprime mortgage loan situation finally begins to show public signs of cracking, at almost exactly the halfway point of the movie, we know it's 2007 AD as there's a title card reading, "January 11 (2007)". Soon after, several of the men who've deduced that the entire Wall Street system is on the verge of collapse attend the American Securitization Forum in Las Vegas. A banner proclaims, "WELCOME TO THE American SECURITIZATION FORUM January 28-31".
In the movie's last hour, title cards read, "April 2 (2007)", "March 14 (2008)", and "September 15 (2008)". In the end, Jared Vennett (based on the real-world Deutsche Bank securities banker Greg Lippmann) is holding an enormous check dated "21ST NOV 2008".
During the first dramatized informational scene, Vennett just tells us it is "the late 70s" when "Lewis Ranieri came on the scene at Salomon Brothers". Ranieri: 1947-present is also a real-world figure. The important event described (the introduction of the mortgage-backed securities bond or MBS) happened in the real-world in 1977 AD.
