Money makes the world go round. That fact makes it a mature and compelling subject for great films. Hollywood has always been obsessed with stories about money, how it works, what can be done with it, how it changes people, and what it makes them do.
Financial movies have always been a popular genre for movies, and through them, viewers learn more about how things like the stock market work, how people use it to their advantage, and possibly how they use it to take advantage of everyday people. especially watch the audience. Here are ten films where money is a character, for better or for worse.
10 Wall street
Perhaps the most influential financial film of all time, Wall Street, directed by Oliver Stone and emerging from his Best-Picture-winning film Platoon, revolves around sinister corporate raider Gordon Gekko (Michael Douglas) who owns junior stockbroker Bud (Charlie Sheen) takes wings under his role, who transforms into Bud, who has to fight for his soul while working for the company.
Wall Street and Gordon Gekko became a cultural phenomenon and a symbol of corporate creed, reflecting the Reagan-era economy. Gekko’s famous “Greed is Good” line has become synonymous with the evil of financial institutions and one of the most classic lines in cinema. Douglas won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his incredible performance as an icon.
9 Wall Street: Money never sleeps
23 years after the release of the classic Wall Street, director Oliver Stone returned to the financial world with the sequel. Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps was produced in a contemporary financial period in America and is set in the real financial crisis of 2008 and gives the fictional film a relatable background and a forward-looking context.
Michael Douglas returns to the role of Gordon Gekko, now out of jail and trying to get back into the financial game and reconnect with his daughter Winnie (Carey Mulligan). Wall Street 2, starring Shia Labeouf and Josh Brolin, received mixed reviews when it was released, but many critics called it a worthy sequel, if no better than the first, and the best Oliver Stone movie in years.
8th Other people’s money
Acclaimed director Norman Jewison is directing Danny DeVito, Gregory Peck and Penelope Ann Miller in an adaptation of the comic book of the same name. DeVito plays Larry “The Liquidator” Garfield, a corporate raider who buys and sells undervalued companies.
However, company chairman Larry, who tries to take over his beautiful stepdaughter, hires her to defend her. Larry falls in love with her and has to choose between her or money. The film received poor reviews when it was released and would unfortunately be the last theatrical performance of legendary actor Gregory Peck.
7th The wolf on Wall Street
The Wolf of Wall Street is based on the true story of Jordan Belfort, who founded a company that relied on unloading worthless stocks from unsuspecting investors by selling them through misleading positive statements. The company would make millions out of the stock while the investor did nothing. Leonardo DiCaprio plays Belfort in one of his best performances in one of Martin Scorcese’s best films.
Wolf is an endlessly entertaining 3 hour film set in a darkly entertaining and tragic film starring Jonah Hill, a quick but memorable performance by Matthew McConaughey, and a standout performance by Margot Robbie. Ultimately, the film was nominated for five Academy Awards, but went home empty-handed.
6th Money monster
Jodie Foster directs this financial thriller about a TV show personality Lee Gates (George Clooney) hosting a financial investment advisory show. However, the show goes into chaos when a shooter shows up on the live show and takes them hostage for losing money, thanks to the bad advice Gates gave on his show.
Initially, viewers believed the film was inspired by Mad Money host Jim Cramer, who was notoriously criticized for giving bad financial advice that made people lose money, even though Clooney and Foster had denied it. Money Monster starring Julia Roberts received mixed reviews from critics but exceeded box office expectations and did well.
5 boiler room
Dubbed “Wall Street for the 90s,” Giovanni Ribisi plays a college dropout recruited by a brokerage firm that specializes in getting people to invest in companies that don’t really exist. After discovering this, the FBI brings him in to overthrow the company for defrauding people from millions.
Boiler Room played a cast of emerging actors such as Ribisi, Vin Diesel and Ben Affleck and received very good reviews from critics. The film is based on the true events that Wolf Of Wall Street portrays. Wolf focuses more on the company founder, while Boiler Room focuses on the employees and the human drama that surrounds the ramifications of their dirty businesses.
4th The wizard of lies
Based on the life of the notorious Ponzi schemer Bernie Madoff, Robert DeNiro shows an outstanding achievement as the man who made his company the largest financial pyramid scheme in history, with investors losing millions. The story deals with his double deals and how they ruined his family’s life, ultimately resulting in a jail for Madoff and causing his son to commit suicide.
Directed by Barry Levinson and starring Michele Pfeiffer as his wife, Ruth Madoff, critics hailed the film as powerful and for some of the best work by DeNiro and Pfeiffer. Produced for HBO, it was one of her most popular films.
3 Request for additional funding
Margin Call takes place over a 24 hour period, primarily on the 24th floor of One Penn Plaza in New York City amid the 2007-2008 financial crisis. The film revolves around a company based on a combination of financial institutions like Goldman Sachs and Lehman. Zachary Quinto plays an analyst for the company who finds that the volatility in mortgage-backed securities may make the company close to bankruptcy, so employees are quick to try to control the damage.
The film featured an all-star cast including Zachary Quinto (who also produced), Demi Moore, Kevin Spacey, Jeremy Irons, and more. Margin Call has been recognized by many critics as the best Wall Street movie of all time and has been recognized for turning the complicated financial crisis into a tight, tight, and gripping thriller. Ultimately, Margin Call would be nominated for an Oscar for Best Original Screenplay.
2 Equity
Starring Anna Gunn from Breaking Bad, Equity is an investment banker trying to sell shares in their new IPO despite being a hackable social networking site. The situation worsens when her insider dealer friend reveals information about the fallible site.
The film premiered at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival and critics and audiences hailed Equity for its perspective on women in finance. A perspective that hadn’t really been shown on screen before, following films like the rough-and-tumble Wolf Of Wall Street, in which the financial world is largely portrayed as a “boys club”.
1 The big short
Based on the bestselling book, The Big Short tells the story of the men who discovered the housing bubble was on the verge of bursting, which ultimately sparked the 2007-2008 financial crisis. In the film with Christian Bale, Brad Pitt, Ryan Gosling and Steve Carell, the crisis is viewed from different angles and perspectives in a tragic and sometimes very funny film.
Anchorman’s director Adam McKay adds a unique twist to the normally dry and complicated material by bringing in his signature humor, for example in scenes where celebrities like Margot Robbie and Anthony Bourdain appear as themselves to give the audience some of the complicated ones Explain financial information. His humorous and unconventional storytelling techniques would also be applied to his next film, Dick Cheney’s Biopic Vice. Ultimately, The Big Short was released to critical acclaim for its accomplishments and unique interpretation of the material and received five Academy Award nominations including “Best Picture,” “Best Director,” and winning Best Adapted Screenplay for McKay.
About the author
Justin Van Voorhis
(79 articles published)
Justin Van Voorhis is an actor / writer / filmmaker. He is the creator of the award-winning feature film “Slate Yourself,” which is currently streamed on Amazon Prime. As well as contributing to Screen Rant, he is also a contributor to The Take and co-hosts the Dissident Film Club podcast. He portrayed 40-year-old Warren Buffett in “Becoming Warren Buffett” on HBO and sits in front of Joaquin Phoenix in “Joker”.
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