By: Aggie Rieger
Wall Street Money Never Sleeps is a sequel to an old movie your parents have heard of for sure- it earned actor Michael Douglas an Oscar. Chances are that you’ve never heard of the original film, but you will hear about this movie, or at least, its content and actors.
Wall Street Money Never Sleeps is all about money and the way humans react to one another. Character Gordon Gekko, played by Michael Douglas says, “It’s not about the money, it’s about the game between people. That’s all it is.” I had trouble catching onto the information on and process of the stock market, but this we can all understand. The plot follows along a swerving line, directed by the flow of money and who’s screwing who over. The story is, in short, all about this game between people, taking place on the stock market. While this aspect of the film can be difficult- and at times boring- to follow, the interactions between characters is not.
With such a fantastic cast- you’ve heard of them all- it’s hard to go wrong with performances, and they sure did not. Heartthrob Shia LaBeouf stars, along with Carey Mulligan (Pride and Prejudice) and Michael Douglas (Romancing the Stone). Also in the cast are Josh Brolin (No Country for Old Men), Susan Sarandon (Thelma & Louise) and Frank Langella (The Mark of Zorro). The whole film is very well acted and is worth watching almost entirely because of the actors. Their performances are remarkable and very real. In fact, the entire film has a “based on a true story” feel to it, including events such as the stock market crash, complex trades and revenge.
The story is layered and very interesting, but all the while I couldn’t decide whether the film was fantastic or bland; it quickly jumped between the two. I myself had moments of “woah” and then moments of “what the heck”. I wanted to turn to my friend to ask what was happening during moments of confusion, but she fell asleep. That’s the other side to Wall Street, it can be pretty darn boring at times. Strong moments of suspense, “Aha!” times and fantastic scenes make up for this, and I felt a whole lot more intelligent after watching the film.
Aside from boring stretches and a bland taste, if you have a problem with profanity, you might want to hold off on seeing this. Wall Street Money Never Sleeps is barely good, but actors and strong scenes make it worthwhile. Still, I recommend that this film be best saved as a rental- no matter how cute Shia LaBeouf is.
