In 1986, the economy was strong. It was the “Me” Decade, and Wall Street was thriving. The brokerage firms of Wall Street had just gone through the insider trading scandals just a few years before, and confidence of the market had been shaken just a bit. The time was ripe to make a movie about Wall Street, and the excesses of those who worked there.  That year, Oliver Stone released the movie Wall Street, where he villainizes the corporate raiders of the film and the greed-filled society where everyone lived in a way that actually glamorized them, and created the current markets and the people who run them. In 2010, twenty-three years later Oliver Stone decided to revisit that world, and bring along one of the characters of the original film, Gordon Gekko, the Villain that everyone seemed to love, and wanted to imitate. In the sequel, Stone treads the waters of the market a couple of years back, during the recent financial collapse.

Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps follows the stories of both Gordon Gekko as he navigates the current economic market, and Jake Moore in his current life as a stockbroker, and his relationship with Winnie (Gordon’s daughter).

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The film opens with Gordon Gekko being released from prison in 2001, and jumps to seven years later on the cusp of the most recent financial collapse. We then jump to Jake working at his job, and receiving a 1.4 million dollar bonus. Only to find the brokerage firm in financial ruin, the next day, after investing all of his bonus in the firm’s stock. We then get to see some of the driest, yet most interesting parts of the movie, where the major banks and brokerage firms of America are meeting for the first time in the film, at the Federal Reserve Bank to discuss a buyout of the firm where Jake works, Keller Zabel Investments. We then move ahead to Jake’s friend taking him to a lecture that Gordon Gekko is making, and this is where Gordon and Jake meet for the first time, after Jake tells him that he is planning to marry his daughter. One of the more important moments of the film is also played out in the meeting room at the Federal Reserve Bank. We get to see all of the brokerage firms, and the major banks try to work out what they are going to go when the market collapsed in 2008.

The film stars Shia LaBeouf as Jake Moore (Transformers, Disturbia, Even Stevens) whose performance is on-par with his usual acting style. He seems to be playing the same character as he does in every film he is in, with one minor difference. That difference is that he seems to be a little more invested in the portrayal of this character than usual. It seems that the director of the film, Oliver Stone (Wall Street, JFK, Platoon), has gotten Shia LaBeouf to act more than he has before. Josh Brolin (W, No Country for Old Men, The Goonies) portrays the role of Bretton James with an adept handling of the material. He exemplifies the corrupt, unfeeling, yet revenge-seeking financial executive in this film. There are moments that you see the subtlety of his acting style shine, as it seems as effortless as acting should be. And Michael Douglas returns to the character of Gordon Gekko. He plays this film with the same capability that he did the first time in the original Wall Street, but here he gives it the fresh eyes of a man rejoining a different world than he left oh so long ago. He truly drives the film forward by leading Jake down the path that he has devised to restart his long lost career in the financial industry. No other actor could play Gordon Gekko like Michael Douglas can. There remains the inherent glamour and masculinity that was seen in the first film, coupled with a hunger and very light touch of humility that being in prison will give someone.

Special Features

• Audio Commentary with the director of the film Oliver Stone.
• A Conversation with Oliver Stone, and the cat of Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps.
• “Money, Money, Money: The Rise and Fall of Wall Street”: A five part look at the economic climate, decisions, and changes that took place over the last twenty years since the first movie.
• “Fox Movie Channel Presets ‘In Character With…’”: Five interviews with the main cast members, Michael Douglas, Shia LeBouf, Josh Brolin, Carrey Mulligan, and Frank Langella , about their characters and experiences on the film.
• 15 Deleted and Extended Scenes with optional Commentary by Oliver Stone.
• A digital copy of the film to take with you wherever you go.
• And two BD-LIVE features: “Live LookupPowered by IMDB” where you can get up to date information about the stars of the movie, and “The Return of Bud Fox”
• 5.1 DTS HD Audio
• 1080p Video

Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps is a rather engaging film. It brings you in during the scene where Gordon Gekko gets released from an eight-year stint in prison for insider trading, and keeps you interested throughout; whether it’s through Gordon Gekko’s old eyes in a new world, or Jakes career, the relationship of Jake and Winnie, or even the economic situation presented throughout. The cast handles the script in a way that lets you think about the plot and the characters without any notice of any of the performers personal acting styles. No one in the entire ensemble puts in a single sub par performance throughout the entire film. This really shows what a great deal casting has to do with the final out-put of the movie. The director of the film, Oliver Stone, kept each and every moment from dragging too long. There are some slow moments, but they are crucial to the story of the film. Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps is a fun ride through the lives of the characters within, and an interesting look at the recent financial collapse that the country, and the world, went through, albeit through the eyes of America’s financial capital. They use many different stories throughout, ranging from extremely personal, to a global crisis. I thoroughly enjoyed the film, as it was engaging and entertaining. Wall Street: Money Never Sleepsis by no means the best movie that I have ever seen, however it is good enough to keep any viewer of the film interested, engaged, and enjoying it throughout.

ComicsOnline gives Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps – 3.5 financial collapses out of 5.

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