WALL STREET: MONEY NEVER SLEEPS REVIEW - The Movie Messenger

Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps is Oliver Stone’s latest film starring Michael Douglas and Shia LeBeouf.  This, of course, is the sequel to the 1987 original which Michael Douglas won an Oscar for portraying corporate Raider Gordon Gekko. 

In his film, Gekko is released from prison to find himself alone.  Flast forward six years, Gekko attempts a comeback, and we learn that Jake Moore (LeBeouf) is dating Gekko’s estranged daughter Winnie (Carey Mulligan).  Winnie wants nothing to do with her father, while Jake, a Wall Street man himself, finds Gordan Gekko’s knowledge and insight enticing – and desires to meet him.

I wondered why Winnie Gekko was with Jake to begin with if she hates her father so much, since Jake is very similar to him with the fact they are both Wall Street guys.  You’d think on their first date as soon as he says he works on Wall Street, she’d just get up and leave. 

Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps seems to be about two things – rise and fall of corporate greed, and also about a man who is lost in his life, for he loves something that can never love him back – money.  The movie is a twist of events that continually display how lust for more money can lead to downfall at the expense of others, while maybe halfway the film takes a turn and focuses on the relationship between Gordan Gekko and his faltered relationship with his daughter.  It incorporates these two themes well enough, but the corporate greed plot takes a backseat in the latter part of the film to the family story dynamic. 

It’s great to see the Gordan Gekko character in action again, but the movie focuses on the Shia LeBeouf character.  Although Shia does well here, Michael Douglas and his iconic character beg to be on screen much more, and the supporting cast with the likes of Josh Brolin and especially Frank Langella, in the small part that he has, are much more interesting.  Even so, this film displays that Shia LeBeouf is growing as an actor, and he stands tall in this film.

People unfamiliar with finances and the likes of Wall Street may have difficulty understanding the jargon spoken between characters in this movie at times. Luckily, it isn’t stuff that is crucial to the story.

Overall, although the original is far superior, Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps is a good sequel worth checking out.