Today’s quick review: Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps. On the cusp of the 2008 financial crisis, Jacob Moore (Shia LaBeouf) loses almost everything when his firm goes underwater and begins plotting his revenge on Bretton James (Josh Brolin), the business rival who made it happen. Meanwhile, Jacob seeks permission from Gordon Gekko (Michael Douglas), a Wall Street veteran once convicted of fraud, to marry his estranged daughter Winnie (Carey Mulligan).
Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps is a drama about a young stock broker trying to navigate the choppy waters of his career and his personal life. Set two decades after Wall Street, the sequel picks up with a new protagonist and a new era of financial double-dealing. The one holdover is Gordon Gekko, now out of the financial game and trying to make amends to the daughter whose life he missed. These threads form the basis of a well-rounded drama.
However, the whole of Money Never Sleeps is less than the sum of its parts. The film is unfocused, pulled in too many different directions by its various plot threads. Jacob’s financial revenge, his relationship with Winnie, Gordon’s attempts to use Jacob to get back in his daughter’s life, and commentary on the subprime mortgage crisis all clamor for the film’s limited attention. The result is a distracted story with no clear theme to tie it together.
The individual pieces are still enough to make Money Never Sleeps a decent watch. Jacob has good motives but makes poor choices, giving him potential as a protagonist. Gordon isn’t featured as heavily this time and has less charisma than the first film, but the sequel earns points for trying something new with his character. The fictionalized version of the financial crisis also does a reasonable job of laying out the players and incentives involved.
How much you get out of Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps will depend on what you’re looking for. Those hoping for a tight moral drama in the same mold as the original Wall Street will be disappointed. Money Never Sleeps lacks the focus, sense of proportion, and relatable conflict to follow in the footsteps of its predecessor. But the combination of a solid cast, interesting direction, and the germs of some good ideas make it worth a watch for those curious.
For a tense drama about the opening hours of the same financial crisis, try Margin Call. For a quasi-documentary depiction of the actual events of the crisis, try The Big Short.
6.2 out of 10 on IMDB. I give it a 6.5 for scattershot drama without a full, satisfying central arc.