Never saw the first film, but it was so popular that I am very familiar with the characters. In this long, overdue follow up, we meet Gordon Gekko (Michael Douglas) as he is released from prison after being convicted of insider trading. The sad part about his release is that there is no one there to meet him and take him home. Move up a couple of years, right before the burst of the real estate bubble and we are introduced to a young couple, Jake Moore (Shia LaBeouf) and Winnie Gekko (Carey Mulligan). Both are idealistic and in love with their chosen fields. Jake is a trader on Wall Street for a major bank lead by his mentor Louis Zabel (Frank Langella) and Winnie runs her own non-profit online newspaper. After seeing Winnie's father give a speech, Jake is intrigued by Gordon Gekko and uses the fact that he is engaged to Gordon's daughter to get in good. Gekko also sees an opportunity in Jake to get back on good terms with his daughter, but more importantly to exact his revenge and make a miraculous comeback on Wall Street.
There are several poignant events that occur in the movie and ultimately Gekko does get his revenge but at what cost? It is a great movie and although I am not at all in love with the financial world of Wall Street, it was an interesting view.
I give it an 8 out of 10.
Next up is "Wake."
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