On B List of Movie Reviews
(For optimum viewing, adjust the zoom level of your browser to 125%.)
Boiler Room (2000)
Rate:
8
Viewed:
8/19, 10/19
8/19:
Boiler Room makes it nice for me to be behind the times because it's a movie that was news to me and I had already
considered Wall Street among films of the decade for the 80's.
When I saw the guys watching the Oliver Stone masterpiece, I was impressed when they showed off their memory by reciting
every single line. In the 80's, when Wall Street came out, traders across the country wanted to be Gordon Gekko; he
was practically God to them.
What's important is accuracy. That's why there's a strong disclaimer shown before the movie began. Back then, people
didn't trade online; they had stockbrokers making trades for them over the phone. It cost a huge deal of money to do so. Those
who were inside and/or possessed a seat had the most knowledge and access to information.
The trouble was that many people had no idea of the intraday action and that the only way to find out was to scan the newspapers
for closing prices and price changes the next day. Because there was no internet, it was easy to create companies out of thin
air and sell shares to the completely uninformed public. Once the internet became the mainstay, trading platforms started to be
offered which cut out the stockbrokers as the middlemen which was good news overall, ending the deceptive practices as shown
in Boiler Room that destroyed many people's lives financially.
There are many great performances, and the best comes from Nicky Katt. He's too good and sadly doesn't
get enough credit for it. Ben Affleck is a close second because of his Alec Baldwin-esque speeches.
At least one of them should have been nominated for an Oscar. I've never been a fan of Giovanni Ribisi and hate him, but in
Boiler Room, he gives the performance of his career. His character reminds me of myself. Vin Diesel, Ron Rifkin, Thomas
Everett Scott, and Nia Long are hands down excellent.
While emulating Glengarry Glen Ross, Boiler Room references many films such as
The Godfather, Goodfellas,
Wall Street, and Reservoir Dogs.
Atop them are excellent lines such as "Don't pitch the
bitch," "Anybody who tells you money is the root of all evil doesn't fucking have any," "There is no question whether you'll
become a millionaire. The only question is how many times over," and "Don't write wood."
All in all, to say that Boiler Room has been awfully accurate will be an understatement.
10/19:
I'm knocking down the rating of Boiler Room by a notch, but it's still a good movie with great writing.
The acting remains excellent as ever, and Nicky Katt and Ben Affleck are the true standouts. Giovanni Ribisi is weaker
now but still gives the best performace of his career. I think too much time was spent on Seth and Abby's romance
which isn't relevant to the central story. Ditto for the conflict between him and his father that feels worn out over time.
By the way, if you're confused how Michael Brantley makes his money, it goes like this. He first buys, say, a
million of shares of a penny stock. Then, he has his employees to make a pitch to their clients to do the same.
When the stock price starts to going up because there's a lot of buying activity, Michael can unload his shares to make
a huge profit. After he has sold them all, the price therefore goes below the original buy price which will transform
J.T. Marlin's clients into bagholders. This illegal scheme is what Wall Street calls "pump and dump." That's how "rips" are
generated for Michael's employees as he passes on some of his profits to them.
All in all, Boiler Room is the current millennium's mishmash of
Wall Street and Glengarry Glen Ross.