MARKET MOVIES
16 must-see Wall Street
films that will make you wish the market is open even on holidays
ROGUETRADER (1999) A
SENTENCE: Faster paced British version of Wall Street.PLOT: Based on the
real-life story of Barings Bank trader Nick Leeson, Ewan McGregor does a
surprisingly awesome job of emulating the British wunderkind down to
his addiction to fruit candies. While a relatively unsuccessful movie at
the box office, Rogue Trader is entertaining.
BOILER ROOM (2000)
A SENTENCE: For those in a sales job or
telemarketing.PLOT: Vin Diesel and Giovanni Ribisi as Long Island pump
and dump brokers? Count us in. This classic flick showcases Ribisi's
rise to the top as he learns the ins and outs of operating in a boiler
room. It's very similar to Jordan Belfort's upbringing, minus the yachts
and excessive drug use.
AMERICAN PSYCHO (2000)
A SENTENCE: You'll never look at business
cards the same way again.PLOT: Patrick Bateman, played by Christian
Bale, is the consummate Wall Street professional, beyond the fact that
he's losing his mind. Throughout the film Bateman utters some absolute
classics, including a soliloquy on Phil Collins that likely changed his
career for ever.
MARGIN CALL (2011)
A SENTENCE: Consider this one a new classic
-it seems like everyone else is.PLOT: One banker creates a model that
shows that his firm is completely under water, but before he can show
anyone, he gets fired.He hands his model off to junior banker and the
firm goes into emergency mode trying to save everything.
TRADING PLACES (1983)
A SENTENCE: No movie about Wall Street is
funnier than this.PLOT: Eddie Murphy and Dan Akroyd are at their best
as director John Landis tells the tale of how one man's fall from Wall
Street is another man's blessing. Watching Murphy talk about futures and
markets is hilarious and unparalleled in humour.
GLENGARRY GLEN ROSS (1992)
A SENTENCE: “The leads are weak?
You're
weak!“ -Alec Baldwin PLOT: Glengarry Glen Ross takes place off of Wall
Street but still deals with incentives that salesman deal with,
including bonuses and cars and how they'll do anything to close the
sale. Baldwin is only in the movie for about 10 minutes but gives an
speech that deserves an Oscar.
BONFIRE OF THE VANITIES (1990)
A SENTENCE: The film's ability to
tackle different New York City social classes is without question.PLOT:
Originally a book by Tom Wolfe, the film targeted the Manhattan elite
of the 1980s and their distance from the rest of the city. Tom Hanks
gets involved in an extramarital affair and, eventually, a tragic murder
results.
COSMOPOLIS (2012)
A SENTENCE: You may come out of this one
scratching your head.PLOT: Eric Packer, a billionaire investor rides
around Manhattan in his state-of-the-art limooffice.Throughout the day
you'll meet his wife, his lover and his associates.After a currency
speculation goes awry, Packer's life begins to unravel.Enter murder,
intrigue... etc.
WALL STREET (1987)
A SENTENCE: Classic Wall Street film.PLOT:
Oliver Stone originally set out to depict the greed associated with Wall
Street in the 1980s. Little did he know, it would go on to become one
of the finest pieces of financial cinema ever created. Everyone loves
Michael Douglas' character Gordan Gekko, who is modelled after Michael
Milken and Ivan Boesky.
ENRON (2005)
A SENTENCE: One of the best documentaries ever
made. Ever.PLOT: The film tells the tale of Enron's rise and fall from
grace, including the strange tales of executives Ken Lay, Jeff Skilling,
Andy Fastow and Timothy Belden.This movie also features interviews from
former energy traders and hedge fund king Jim Chanos.
QUANTS (2010)
A SENTENCE: A rare look inside the minds of
mathematical geniuses who have invented financial models that have both
destroyed and made Wall Street.PLOT: Quants: The Alchemists of Wall
Street is 45-minute documentary on the inner workings of quantitative
analysts on Wall Street.
THE PIT (2010)
A SENTENCE: A slightly sad look at the end of
the open outcry trading floor.PLOT: Follow a bunch of veteran traders
as they discuss their careers and the end of their way of doing
business.
MONEY NEVER SLEEPS (2010)
A SENTENCE: It's the sequel to Oliver
Stone's classic.PLOT: Gordon Gekko gets out of prison for securities
fraud. He teams up with his future son-in-law Jacob to repair the
relationship with his daughter, Winnie. Gekko also helps Jacob get back
at the man who screwed his mentor's firm over.
TRADER (1987)
A SENTENCE: Brilliant... If you can find it.PLOT:
This little-known documentary stars Paul Tudor Jones and chronicles his
day-today life as an active investor. Jones uses techniques like
historical chart reading, taken from Jesse Livermore, to predict the
Black Monday crash on film.
TOO BIGTO FAIL (2011)
A SENTENCE: Surely you remember the
financial crisis.PLOT: Lehman Brothers implodes, global markets are at
risk, and Washington has to catch up to save the economy.
WOLFOF WALL STREET (2013)
A SENTENCE: It's by far the raunchiest
Wall Street movie.PLOT: Jordan Belfort's best-selling tell-all memoir
that chronicled his boozy, drug-fuelled, high-flying Wall Street
lifestyle running 1990s-era boiler room Stratton Oakmont was adapted
into a film directed by Martin Scorsese starring Leonardo DiCaprio.