Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps

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In terms of sheer magnitude, which one will have a more lasting effect on mankind: an apocalyptic world seen in Emmerich’s “2012” and “The Day After Tomorrow” or a financial crisis meltdown wiping out almost $ 8 trillion in wealth from the market?  One can speculate what would have happened if the Federal Reserve didn’t bail out the too-big-to-fail banks. Nonetheless, even with the bailout, the recent financial crisis has brought the economy to its knees, caused the worst economic downturn in decades, and left consumers and companies struggling. Even now, both consumers and companies are not back to their old spending ways. Furthermore, the real estate market plummeted to the lowest level seen in generations. The aftermath of the current crisis is nothing but apocalyptic in nature, in which everyone in some way is surrounded by the shambles left by the irreparable crisis. So, what could have caused this? Are humans responsible for this? Is it greed at play? Or is it uncontrolled, evil capitalism at play?

The original “Wall Street” (1987) came after the financial crisis of 1987, popularly know as “Black Monday,” which was triggered by the deep sell-offs in the Asian market and the aftermath trickling through the European and American markets. But the original did not address the cause of the crisis, nor did it provide any commentary on the nature of the crisis.  It did, however, bring up the greedy human nature that forms the backbone of Wall Street, with insider trading at the forefront. As the main character, Gordon Gekko, says: “It is not about the money, its about the game”; it is the greed that dictates this game be run.

Fast forward twenty years, and now the financial world is completely transformed. With a slew of complex financial instruments at play, there is a lot at stake on Wall Street. Complex derivatives, leveraged equities, hedging, hedge funds, and debt-laden loans form the foundation of financial products. It is no surprise that Oliver Stone decided to make a sequel, “Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps,” when the financial crisis is winding down; at least that is the impression we get.

“Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps” begins with a powwow session of Wall Street bankers trying to brainstorm new money-generating investment opportunities. One such bright  banker is Jake Moore (Shia LaBeouf), who is focused, sharp, and ambitious. He works for Keller Zabel Investments and has a close bond to the owner of the company, Lewis Zabel, played by Frank Langella. Soon, rumors start to circulate on the liquidity of Keller Zabel Investments (KZI) and its ability to meet financial obligations. Of course, the sequences in the first thirty minutes are a reminder of what happened to Bear Sterns and later to Lehman Brothers. Stone shows us the madness surrounding the issue and how difficult it was to develop trust and confidence in the market.  Enter Bretton James (Josh Brolin), a fictional take on Jamie Dimon, the C.E.O. of JPMorgan Chase, who offers to buy KZI for $3 a share.

The financial crisis started with the Bear Sterns collapse, their almost going under before being bought by JPMorgan Chase for $10 a share after an initial offer of $2 a share. The KZI situation is similar to the Bear Stern fallout. The boardroom tension in “Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps” increases with representatives from the Treasury Department and other key investors and bankers offering Zabel to sell itself or go bust; there are no other deals to be made. Stone brings to light the gamble played by Wall Street bankers, who are responsible for creating and trading complex financial products that are based on derivatives and debt-laden loans, the value of these loans being very difficult to determine even by the stoutest of financial experts.

Over the years, several investment companies were operating at a leverage ratio of 35:1, a key ratio used to determine if a company can keep up with its financial obligations.  It also means that for $1 in cash, a company can borrow $35,  based on the value of its assets. Stone’s vision of KZI represents a highly leveraged company that later became a moral hazard because of its greedy investors; it's a commentary on the financial state of companies like Bear Sterns, Lehman Brothers, A.I.G., and Washington Mutual.

While the first-half of the movie is brilliant, with Stone throwing in financial mumbo-jumbo to a good measure, it is the second half that fails to sparkle.  The first half is more like a short documentary segment, and the latter half gets more personal. The wizard investor from the original, Gordon Gekko (Michael Douglas), returns after spending eight years in prison. Young Jake hears Gekko speak about his new book, “Is Greed Good?,” and soon approaches him to explain his relationship to Gekko’s daughter, Winnie (Carey Mulligan). It seems that Jake has found a new mentor. Meanwhile, Winnie hasn’t spoken to her father in years and seems disinterested in developing any further relationship with him. At this juncture, the economical turbulence on Wall Street switches to an emotional turmoil for the Gekkos.

I would have loved to see Gekko back on his investing desk, commandeering this traders to buy and sell. But by the time he is back to his old ways, it is too late. In addition, Gekko has been ostracized by the financial world and is slowly trying to find his footing, but at the same time making it difficult for him to get back on Wall Street. That said, Gekko’s character still carries the charisma of a former Wall Street investor, and Gekko still speaks in a manner indicative of his shrewd nature with many memorable lines. Carey Mulligan delivered a terrific performance in “An Education,” but in the new film her character fails to ignite into something substantial. Instead, the character is marred by sappy lines and a soap-opera performance.  LaBeouf has come a long way and is convincing most of the time, but he lacks the obsessive ambition of Bud Fox (Charlie Sheen) in the original movie.

Oliver Stone has definitely mellowed over the last ten years, starting off with “World Trade Center,” “W,” and now “Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps.” The ferocity of greed in the original fails to deliver a killer punch in the sequel. Instead, we are left to come up with a probable solution for the greed. More so, Stone is busy showing us how the characters feel about the situation they are in; the operational aspect of the trading desk and its consequences is missing. As Gordon Gekko says in the end, “What, you don’t believe in comebacks?” Unfortunately, the sequel is not Stone’s return to form or a comeback in any way. Still, it packs in plenty of good moments to make it entertaining.

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