In 1987 Oliver Stone told the story of Bud Fox and the ruthless Gordon Gekko in the, for some, quite illuminating film “Wall Street. (1)” Wall Street told the story of times to come but it also told the story of the way things were. Greed in America and greed on Wall Street is nothing all that new; control of individual fate is why the pilgrims shipped out to the New World (where settlers went on to set up one of the most convoluted governments in the world; but that’s another story…) Still, making the most of your time on this earth is what every individual would like to have opportunity for; this is a thing which is, despite all the blame which is lain everywhere else, still very possible in America. But the question remains with the pending re-arrival of Gordon Gekko; is Wall Street really all that different than it ever was?
Wall Street 2: Is Wall Street Different: Wall Street 2: With all the attention turned towards the faltering economy in recent years, it should surprise no one that Wall Street 2: Money Never Sleeps (2) is set to hit theatres in September. Oliver Stone is a businessman; he wants to make films which get an audience; but has Wall Street 2 sold Oliver Stone out? In Wall Street 2 Gordon Gekko is back and this time he’s teamed up with a young trader played by Shia LeBeouf. The synopsis of Wall Street 2 is what sounds like is Gekko’s mea culpa. According to IMDB: “As the global economy teeters on the brink of disaster, a young Wall Street trader partners with disgraced former Wall Street corporate raider Gordon Gekko on a two-tiered mission: To alert the financial community to the coming doom, and to find out who was responsible for the death of the young traders mentor.”
Wall Street 2: Is Wall Street Different: Making Money’s the Name of the Game: I don’t know if ‘hokey’ is a good enough word for it, but the word on Wall Street and the word in America has always been about making money. Setting Wall Street 2 to the backdrop of where LeBeouf can be the hero will draw in the teeny bopper crowd, but as ruthless a money manager as Gekko suddenly coming back to the dance to ‘do the right thing’ is totally inauthentic. Are you telling me that Kenneth Lay (were he still alive) or Andy Fastow (both of Enron) would come out of hiding or jail to involve themselves in helping some kid trader find out who killed his mentor? It just doesn’t ring true. Even if Gekko were still connected as he was in his heyday, he definitely wouldn’t want to involve himself in a murder detective case. That’s just silly.
Wall Street 2: Is Wall Street Different: Oliver Stone’s Choice: We all make choices in life; in America we are blessed to be able to make whatever choices we want. Regardless of your individual situation or the hand fate has dealt us, we are each empowered in America to control our own destiny. Kenneth Lay decided his own fate; Andy Fastow decided his; Oliver Stone decided to direct Wall Street 2 henceforth affirming the accusation that Oliver Stone only lays down for the money. I haven’t even seen it and I am already sure that there is nothing illuminating about Wall Street 2 because there is nothing true about Wall Street 2. Oliver Stone would have been just as true about Wall Street had he included South Park’s “The Hardly Boys,” (3) and searched out their raging clue.
Sources:
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0094291/ (1)
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1027718/plotsummary (2)
www.southparkstudios.com/clips/155280/?searchterm=Mystery+of+the+Urinal+Deuce (3)
