Gordon Gecko - Greed is good!

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Warning: I've included SOME details, not quite spoiler material but might ruin a suprise or two... you've been warned...
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The day has finally arrived. Wall Street 2, Money Never Sleeps, has finally been released!

I went to see it today, and I was very impressed! I've been anticipating this movie since I first heard about it from the NY Times "teaser article" back in May of 2007.
htp://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/05/movies/05movi.html

Back when it was first announced, Oliver Stone wasn't directing, and that just did NOT sit well with me. After seeing the movie today, I am positive this was a movie ONLY Stone could have pulled off. It was well worth the 3 year wait! (or 23 year wait... depending on how you look at it... :)

I am a huge fanatic of the original 1987 film, so I had some seriously high expectations. With that said, it was definiitely a VERY good movie. It met all of my expectations and even exceeded at times.

Could it have been better? Absolutely. Here's the thing though, since it's release in 1987, the original Wall Street has become larger than life.
For me, Wall Street was SO much more than just a movie. It was a glimpse into a world I'd never seen before. It triggered dreams for my future that I never knew I had. I grew up with the movie! I went through my teen years wanting to be Gordon Gekko!

As I grew, so did the way I viewed the movie and Gordon Gekko. The movie and Gordon certainly didn't change, I did. With that kind of evolution, what the movie means to me may be completely different than the next guy. I've known people who would jump at the chance to work for Gekko, and I've met people who viewed me with complete disgust for admiring Gekko in any way! When a movie has taken on such a life of it's own, it becomes difficult to make a movie that fits everyone's view of what the sequel SHOULD be.

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** Warning: Semi-Spoiler Ahead **
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The movie starts with Gordon Gekko being released from prison, recieving his belongings including an empty money clip and a god awful giant cellular phone from the 80's. Oh yeah, he also gets a bus ticket and a state-issued check for $1,800. The movie doesn't hang around that time period though, instead, jumps from there to 2008, 7 years in the future.

Gekko has written a book and as always has plenty to say about the state of the business. His daughter's boyfriend/fiance is a gutsy and ambitious trader, so when he gets the chance to talk with Gekko at a speaking engagement, he jumps at it! It should go without saying though that when you run with wolves, you may get bitten.
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I was actually really glad they went with something completely new, since it is a different movie in completely different financial timesl! Oliver Stone did a fantastic job creating a brand new movie, with just enough ties to the original to fill you in on what Gekko has been through since the 80's, with a few bits of nostalgia thrown in strictly for vanity sake.

Bud Fox makes a cameo appearance, and we learn that after doing some time in prison, he ended up going to work for the airline and making his millions turning it around. If I'm not mistaken, he had not one, but two gorgeous dates along with him... Good job Bud Fox! About the time he started reminiscing, asking Gordon if "Blue Horseshoe still loves Anacott Steel", I was as ready to dismiss Bud Fox as I'm sure Gekko was.

It was oddly very comforting to know that things turned out okay for Bud. He did the right thing and deserved a good life. I kind of figured he'd be okay after doing his time, but I worried a bit about him getting together with the wrong people in prison, developing a meth habit after his money ran out and he couldn't afford coke anymore, and he'd end up hustling old ladies to invest in Ponzi schemes. :)

Also making a cameo is the real estate lady that Bud had used to buy his place. I got a big chuckle from that scene, I absolutely loved her character in the first Wall Street, so I'll forgive how INCREDIBLY unlikely it is that he'd have the same real estate lady that Bud Fox had, all those years ago, of all the realtors in New York City.

One thing that was quite apparent was that Oliver Stone wanted to hammer home just how much of a bastard Gordon Gekko and his kind really are, and how rotten greed really is. Stone has said quite often in interviews that it was never his intention to inspire people into "Becoming Gordon Gekko" in the original Wall street, but far more than he ever wanted, that was the often what happened. For better or for worse, Gekko doesn't inspire the same sort of "Greed Fantasy" that he seemed to in the first one. In that regard, 23 years later, Stone presented a more responsible and realistic portrayal of the cut-throat nature of the business world.

There is definitely an underlying theme this time around that "money isn't everything, but time is!", where-as at the end of the first one, even though Gekko was going to prison and was obviously screwed, and even though Bud Fox got the crap kicked out of him physically, financially, and criminally, not to mention worrying about his father's health and how he had embarrassed the family, despite ALL of that, you still wanted to do what they were doing in some way, shape, or form. All but that pesky "getting caught and going to jail part"." I didn't feel that way after this one. Gekko definitely didn't seem to have that razor sharp edge like he did in the first one. It was a more sentimental, self-reflective Gordon Gekko. Still a prick, but a slightly more sensitive prick. Between prison, his age, the death of his son, and being estranged from his daugter, there's a lot for him to reflect on.

The only other complaint I have is a tad nit picky, but what can I say, I'm such a fanatic of Wall Street I just can't help it.

Why oh why, did Oliver Stone tone this movie down to PG13?? Keep in mind, this is Oliver Stone. The man who, according to IMDB, used the F bomb 224 times in Scarface. He used it 16 times in the first Wall Street. In this one, only twice, and I don't even remember hearing those. I'll have to be on F-bomb alert when I see it again this week.

So there you have it. That's my rundown of Wall Street: Money Never Talks. If you haven't seen it yet and you enjoyed the first one, it's worth your time to go see it for sure!

Not too late to pick up a gift! Possibly a box of Cuban cigars from that contact at the airport??

*Below is a bunch of news I had collected as more word of Money Never Sleeps came out. I'm keeping it for historical value, but, as we know, the movie is finally out!*

That's right! Word on the street is that Gordon Gecko is coming back into town REAL soon. He's spent a few years thinking, and lets face it, it wasn't about some new found morality and how to be a better person.

Greed has it's place in this world, and Mr. Gecko is all about keeping that place right at the top. Now there aren't many details, and as Mr. Gecko himself would say, "I only bet on a sure thing". So I am not even close to betting the farm on this thing, I mean, come on, it's hollywood, we know how wishy washy those bastards can be, but it sounds damned promising for sure!

I mean, what Wall Street enthusiast wouldn't be excited by this news? I for one am completely stoked!!!

So what the hell am I talking about you might ask?

A sequel of course!!!!

The New York Times just broke an article a few days ago that there is to be a sequel made of Wall Street. The title, is going to be "Money Never Sleeps", and Michael Douglas confirms he has signed on to the project.

Check out the article here: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/05/movies/05movi.html

Come on people, show some love!! Gordon Gecko is gonna be back at the helm, tacky suspenders and all!

UPDATE: IMDB is showing a release date of September 24, 2010. For anyone who hasn't seen the trailer, check it out at the official Money Never Sleeps site:
http://www.wallstreetmoneyneversleeps.com/

Update: 9/18/2010 ... One more week to go! I am beyond excited, I've been tracking this thing since it was pre-production. This movie better perform!