Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps (Oliver Stone, 2010): USA

Reviewed by Kathleen Amboy.  Viewed at Paseo Nuevo, Santa Barbara, CA.

Twenty-three years after the original, Michael Douglas has reprised his role as the corporate raider Gordon Gekko, in Oliver Stone’s Wall Street:  Money Never Sleeps.

Upon his release from prison Gekko authors a bestseller, accepts numerous media interviews, joins a lecture circuit and attempts to reconcile with his embittered daughter Winnie (Carey Mulligan).  Winnie, who is thoroughly disgusted by her father’s white collar crimes and his mantra that “greed is good,” becomes engaged to Jake Moore (Shia LaBeouf) who just happens to be a top trader at a major investment bank on Wall Street.

When Moore’s banking firm goes belly up, he soon discovers (with the help of Gekko) that Bretton James (Josh Brolin) was indirectly responsible for the death of his boss and mentor Lou Zabel (Frank Langella), as well as the collapse of their firm Keller Zabel Investments.

As his stocks rapidly plummet, Jake is bled financially by his mother (portrayed by Susan Sarandon) who makes one bad investment after another, and he suddenly has no choice but to accept a position with Bretton James’ firm and sets about to destroy him.  Meanwhile, Gekko is doing a little wheeling and dealing of his own, catching Jake unaware. (Read more: Bitcoin Superstar Fake)

Michael Douglas delivers a solid performance, as does Langella and Sarandon, but Brolin gives a stand-out performance as the icy Bretton James.  There is a nonsensical cameo by Charlie Sheen, but the performance of Eli Wallach as Jules Steinhardt (Bretton’s boss) more than makes up for that blunder.

The casting of LaBeouf is highly questionable, as he’s a 24 year old who looks like a 24 year old.  It’s a bit hard to swallow that this kid is the lead trader for an investment firm on Wall Street, given that he is handed a bonus check for over a million dollars by his boss, but does not exude anything special in the way of a genius, nor are we shown anything extraordinary about him as he works side by side with others who’ve in the business far longer than him.

The role of Winnie is also slightly absurd, as Mulligan portrays her character as pouty, bitchy, tearful and condescending, and not only unlikeable but downright annoying.

Worth a DVD rental, but skip the cinema price.

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Published:
10.02.10 / 9pm
Category:
Films