Tag: wall street

FAIR PLAY (2023) – Review

Now what would be more cozy on a brisk Fall evening than a film about an office romance? Y’know, just like Pam and Jim on that TV sitcom set in the previously mentioned locale. The flirting, the smoldering glances, and the eventual declarations of affection. Ah, but what if employee intimate relationships are frowned upon, or just plain verboten, at the company? That too has been fodder for sitcoms like “The People’s Choice” and “Occasional Wife” and…I’m really, really aging myself. In this week’s new release, that notion isn’t played for laughs as the stakes are truly high. So, if all’s fair in “love and war”, then what could truly be considered FAIR PLAY when the “going gets tough” and desperate?


This tale starts with the story’s main couple full of the excitement of, often physically exhausting, romance. Twenty-somethings Emily (Phoebe Dynevor) and Luke (Alden Ehrenreich) twirl away from the dance floor of a wedding reception into the ladies’ lavatory! They don’t get “busted”, instead Luke “pops the question”. Emily gives him an excited “yes”, but insists that they keep it “under wraps” for a bit (except for their folks). The passion continues at the NYC apartment they share, allowing themselves a brief slumber before they get to work. The duo go their separate ways out of the subway. Luke arrives at the headquarters of the hedge fund firm One Crest Capital and hops into an elevator. Before the doors close, Emily also jumps in. Ah, they both work at OCC, which has a no “inter-office romance” policy (they hope to “prepare” everyone, and maybe have a “back-up plan”, before “coming clean). At their desks (several feet apart), the two, along with the rest of the staff, observe the firing of an MP (management partner) who has disappointed OCC’s tyrannical owner Campbell (Eddie Marsan). As the former MP is led away, Emily overhears some “scuttlebutt”, which she passes on to Luke: he’s next in line for the vacated spot. That night in the apartment is celebratory, only interrupted by constant nuptial calls from Emily’s abrasive mum. Finally, an important call comes through from one of the other MPs at OCC. Emily needs to join him at the preferred “watering hole”. Though it’s late she jumps in a cab, and enters the pub, but can’t find him. Oh oh, she does see Campbell. Joining him for “last call”, he offers her the MP job. She giddily accepts, but how will Luke react? Can he handle being passed over…for her? And can their engagement handle this added stress, or will “love conquer all”?

After her breakout role on the Netflix streaming sensation “Bridgerton”, Ms. Dynevor confidently dives into a most modern romance, as a woman doing her best to balance her personal and professional lives. Her Emily is smart and savvy, but never cutthroat as she tries to maneuver through the big business “boys club”. Through Dyvenor’s darting eyes and hesitant line delivery, she conveys that Emily is “weighing her words” She tiptoes, briskly, through that stock market minefield. Somehow she seems to be most careful and deliberate in her dealing with her true “partner” Luke. It’s great to see that the engaging Mr. Ehrenreich has bounced back professionally from the box office “drubbing” he endured after trying to fill some big “space boots” as Chewy’s co-pilot. Only a few months ago he shined as part of the big OPPENHEIMER ensemble, Ehrenreich utilizes that leading man charisma as the likable Luke who believes he can keep treading water and evading “the sharks”. We’re rooting for him even as we can almost smell Luke’s sweaty desperation as he strains to make the “big score” in order to be on the same level as his lady love. But can anyone keep their cool when they’re on the receiving end of a dead-eyed glare from the thuggish Campbell, played by the always impressive Mr. Marsan? He’s the seething barrel of venom as he appears to sniff out weakness and failure in his “fiefdom”. At his side is the cold-blooded sycophant, and “hatchet-man” Paul played with creepy passive-aggressive spite by with equal evil banality by Rich Sommer, in quite a change from his affable “Mad Men” role. Speaking of that classic series, one of his co-stars, Patrick Fischler has a tasty cameo as a self-help guru who seems to be throwing out a life preserver to the floundering Luke.


This modern cautionary fable marks the feature film debut of TV series veteran writer/director Chloe Domont. She has an excellent ear for workplace dialogue, matched by the quieter scenes after hours. Domont keeps the action and exchanges in low light, giving the film a claustrophobic and often intimate aura. This makes the greatest impact in those moments of raw passion, whether Emily and Luke are exploring each other’s bodies or verbally hammering away at their inner demons. Some viewers may feel quite queasy by the sexual content, but the intense emotions may prove the most unsettling. Fragile egos and ambition prove to be the true destroyers of this couple. This makes the story’s final act so frustrating as the lead characters go “off the rails” while these big “blow-ups” have consequences that don’t mesh with the established setting. And then it sputters with a final encounter that feels exploitive and violent (from verbal to visceral). The actors are compelling while in the political “Thunderdome” of Wall Street, but the script’s collapse will have many screaming foul play at the uneven FAIR PLAY.

2.5 Out of 4

FAIR PLAY is now playing in select theatres and is streaming exclusively on Netflix

THE HUMMINGBIRD PROJECT – Review

Here’s an interesting movie hybrid, a flick that’s both a wall street drama, a family character study, and a chase thriller. Really, that’s because in the financial world, speed is everything (or perhaps the only thing). It’s the old adage, “he who hestiates is lost”, though in split-second trades and deals, the hestitant can lose a fortune. Hold up, a split-second is too long, it’s now down to a millisecond, or (as one character calls it) one flap of that teeny bird’s wing. That quest to be a jump ahead of your competitors forms the family scheme known as THE HUMMINGBIRD PROJECT.


After a brief prologue detailing the ins and outs of “high frequency trading” (older info for fans of the WALL STREET flicks), we’re in 2011 as “idea man” Vincent Zaleski (Jesse Eisenberg) is meeting (and selling) with the silver-haired veteran exec that will bankroll his plan. Soon after, Vincent is back at the financial consulting firm where he toils away, a cog in a big wheel, with his tech-savvy socially awkward cousin Anton (Alexander Skarsgard). At lunch the two of them meet with engineer Mark Vega (Michael Mando) concerning the logistics of “the plan”. Basically they want to run an underground fiber-optic wire right from the Kansas City nationwide financial data processing center to their offices in the NYC area (bypassing the satellites and towers). If they can get the landowners to sign exclusive NDA deals to run the cables (a foot or so wide) under their property, then it can be done. The cousins head back to work and promptly resign, enraging the company’s CEO, the ruthless Eva Torres (Salma Hayek), who vows retribution if Anton uses any of the proprietary codes he created for her. Vincent tells Anton not to worry and soon they are on the road, though Anton is working out of a Pennslyvania hotel near the line in order to trim a millisecond of the data speed. But the idea runs into some snags as the line must pass through a mountain inside a national park and the hard-charging, chain-smoking Vincent deals (or chooses not to deal) with a serious health issue. Even worse, the sensitive Anton is rattled by the threats of prison tossed at him (like a dagger) by the vengeful Eva. And she’s got a high-speed scheme of her own. Can she beat the boys to the punch (and the big, big bucks)?


With this role, Eisenberg puts a harder edge on his fast-talking, intellectual screen persona. His Vincent has a touch of the tech savant from THE SOCIAL NETWORK, warped into a desperate, sweaty hustler rattling off any bit of deception in order to meet his needs. That frustration intensifies as his body begins to shut down, as Eisenberg gives us a man barely able to function, only awake through sheer force of will (and frustration and greed). Vincent’s a complex, complicated character who only shows affection to his family particularly his partner in chaos, Anton who Skarsgard plays with a hyper-focused intensity and, with his shaved head and glasses, is a stark contrast to his leading man roles (hey, he was Tarzan remember). Anton is hunched-over, mentally distracted (here’s that word again) savant with little patience for those lacking his tech skills. With his quirks, Anton could be “on the spectrum”, as he only emotionally connects with his wife and daughters (a real doting dad) and his cousin. Together on the road the two do have a bit of the RAIN MAN vibe, especially when they board a plane (of course Anton has issues). They find strength in that familial bond in battling the story’s villain (or villainess), former boss Eva played with great energy by the formidable Hayek. With her jet black and platinum silver streaked hair and big purple-tinted goggle glasses, Eva is a modern siren/sorcerous shifting from cool seductress to fiery vengeful demon (a touch of Medusa perhaps) who targets Anton for her full fury and manipulations (she can’t pierce Vincent’s armor). Hayek brings a real sense of urgency and a touch of sexy fun to this big “race”, while Mando as “hired muscle” Mark brings a bit of the everyman and working class compassion to the big “idea” (it takes brains, but somebody’s gotta’ get their hands dirty to run the pipeline).

Writer/director Kim Nguyen gives us a great insider’s view of the high stakes business world while making all the machinations accessible to the “non-economically enabled” via the family dynamics and the competitive element (if they were reporters Eva and the duo would be racing to be the first to print the “scoop”). There’s the typical study of greed out of control, turning “good guys” into callous jerks (Vincent’s negotiations with landowners, especially an Amish elder, take a nasty threatening turn), but Nguyen pops in elements of a ‘caper’ thriller with several twists and unexpected turns. And with his excellent cast, the conflict has real power as do the smaller intimate scenes of the intense bond between the cousins (who seem more like brothers) as Vincent gently prods Anton into solving the time element (much as in “Of Mice and Men”, Anton is assured of a remote country home, rather than Lenny’s idyllic rabbit ranch). All of the conflicts and competition make THE HUMMINGBIRD PROJECT a unique high tech, big bucks unique “chase” flick.

3.5 Out of 5

Oliver Stone’s WALL STREET Returning to Theaters For its 30th Anniversary September 24th & 27th


“The point is ladies and gentlemen that greed, for lack of a better word, is good.”

Oliver Stone’s Oscar®-winning “Wall Street,” which defined an era of excess and predicted an ongoing obsession with wealth and power, will return to movie theaters across the country for two days only this fall – almost 30 years from the “Black Monday” global stock market collapse.

This special cinema event will be accompanied by a newly created featurette titled “Greed is Good” about the making and continued influence of “Wall Street,” which earned Michael Douglas the Oscar as Best Actor for his indelible portrayal of Wall Street corporate raider Gordon Gekko.

Fathom Events and Twentieth Century Fox will present “Wall Street” in nearly 650 movie theaters across the U.S. on Sunday, September 24, and Wednesday, September 27, at 2:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. (local time) each day.

Tickets for “Wall Street 30th Anniversary” can be purchased online by visiting www.FathomEvents.com or at participating movie theater box offices. For a complete list of theater locations visit the Fathom Events website (theaters and participants are subject to change).

Gekko’s infamous pronouncement that “Greed, for lack of a better term, is good” became one of the most quoted moments in movie history, crystallizing much of the cultural sentiment of the 1980s, and turned Gekko into a fascinating and unique movie character – both villain and hero.

“Wall Street” originally debuted in cinemas on December 11, 1987, less than two months after “Black Monday,” when global markets plunged and the U.S. stock market lost more than 22 percent of its value on a single day. Director Oliver Stone had shot “Wall Street” earlier that spring and summer, and the timing of the film’s original release gripped the public’s interest.

Also starring Charlie Sheen as young stockbroker Bud Fox, Martin Sheen as his blue-collar father Carl, Darryl Hannah as Bud’s girlfriend Darien, and Hal Holbrook as ethical Lou Mannheim, “Wall Street” has continued to simultaneously inspire newcomers to the financial industry and serve as a cautionary tale of unchecked greed.

“Viewed 30 years later, Wall Street is both nostalgic and as remarkably relevant and compelling as the day it was released,” said Tom Lucas, Fathom Events VP of Studio Relations. “It’s a gripping experience on the big screen, and one we are excited to share with audiences.”

CHASING MADOFF – The Review

Most of the world was rightly stunned and horrified when the actions of investor Bernard Madoff became public. The terrific new documentary by Jeff Prosserman, CHASING MADOFF based on the book by Harry Markopolos, reminds us that not all the billions of dollars that Madoff swindled came from faceless firms and corporations-real human beings lost their life savings. And the real tragedy is that he could have been stopped nearly ten years before he was arrested. Aspects of this true story could not have been dreamed up by the most imaginative screenwriter.

The real focus of this work is Harry Markopolos. In the late nineties he was part of the Rampart investment firm of Boston. His boss, Frank Casey, wanted to attract the clients of a noted French businessman, Rene’-Thierry Magon de la Villehuchet. Magon said he only invested with an individual he would not name. Some research revealed that Investor B was Bernard Madoff. Markoplos looked at the figures on the returns on the investments and several red flags went up. It was too good to be true. His co-worker, Neil Chelo, checked the numbers and came to the same conclusion. The rest of the film concerns Maropolos’s decade long odyssey trying to get someone to listen and stop Madoff’s new use of the old “Ponzi” scheme. They enlist the aid of a financial reporter whose stories are blocked. Another from The Wall Street Journal continues to be reassigned. Reports to the Securities and Exchange Commission are ignored. Eventually  Markopolos resigns from Rampart to join a fraud investigating firm and works with Gaytri Kachroo, but still no authorities will listen. Markopolos begins to fear for his family and takes precautions, including arming himself, against any hired ” hit men”. Would doing the right thing get them killed?

Prosserman uses many familiar documentary techniques in telling this complex story. Markopolos and his allies are interviewed talking head-style against dark backgrounds. Archival footage is used to explain the origins of the “Ponzi” scheme. Many quick-cut graphic images are used to relate this including charts, an octopus, and a balloon supported by hundreds of tiny ones. Madoff himself is only represented by video of him at a sales talk, taped telephone conversations, and finally news footage ‘perp’ walks. The only time Prosserman really stumbles is when he has Markopolos and other non-actors recreating incidents-it’s a bit clumsy. This doesn’t take away from the tragedy. Many brief interviews with individual victims are spread through the film. The viewer is left with some many “if only” scenarios. How could the government watchdogs be sound asleep for so long? As Markopolos himself puts it, “I felt like ‘The Boy Who Cried Wolf” except I was never lying! The wolf was always there!”. That wolf may be behind bars now, but think of how long he was allowed to feast.

Overall Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars

Get Greedy for These WALL STREET: MONEY NEVER SLEEPS Goodies

Oliver Stone’s follow-up to WALL STREET hits theaters on April 23, 2010, and any worries as to how cool the new film was going to be have officially ceased with today’s release.  20th Century Fox unveiled the film’s official site which includes a link to the trailer and some awesome stills.  You can view the trailer over at IMDB by clicking on this link.

This looks very cool.  It has a nice setup, gives us a little of the Gordon Gekko we know and love, and shoots us straight into the modern world of cool traders and flashy office buildings.  What’s more, it doesn’t spell out too much of the film’s plot.  It just shows us cool images to whet our appetites.

Fox also released a number of official stills for WALL STREET: MONEY NEVER SLEEPS.

Check ’em out right here:

In addition to all these goodies, we also have ourselves the first shot of the film’s official poster:

WALL STREET: MONEY NEVER SLEEPS opens on April 23rd.

Shia LaBeouf Talks ‘Indiana Jones 5’ and ‘Wall Street 2’

shia indiana jones

Remember the end of ‘Kingdom of the Crystal Skulls’ when Mutt picked up the hat, and Spielberg teased us with the possibility that Shia LaBeouf might actually put it on?  Yeah.  That sucked.

Anyway, LaBeouf was promoting ‘Transformers 2’ on BBC News when he explained that Spielberg had “cracked the story” for an ‘Indiana Jones 5’ and that they are gearing up for that film.

LaBeouf also told the interviewer that the official title for the ‘Wall Street’ sequel is ‘Money Never Sleeps.’

Here is hoping ‘Indy 5’ gets made sooner than later.  As someone who absolutely loathed so much about ‘Crystal Skull,’ I still cannot convince myself that I would not highly anticipate another Indiana Jones adventure.  Now, if we get a film about Mutt Williams on his own, then there might be riots.

As far as the sequel to ‘Wall Street’ goes, I’m glad they aren’t calling it ‘Wall Street 2.’  There’s a sense of seriousness when you give a film’s sequel a completely different title than the original, and that is something this sequel is going to need for it to be a success.

Source: BBC News