The 17 Best Wall Street Movies of All Time

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Jammy Wall street tycoons! Aren’t we all jealous and some of us even daydream walking through those refined streets of Wall Street? But, who really gets to see those exclusive streets in reality?

Well, don’t be dismayed, as Hollywood Wall Street movies are there to give you the real view of those marvelous streets, anytime.

These movies are a fabulous blend of intense adventure, drama, menace, reward, riches, and brilliant characters. And, they are the absolute way of entering into those streets without actually being there.

Classes or masses, be it whomsoever, Hollywood Wall Street flicks panders everyone. Trust us, this adrenaline rush of Wall Street movies is worth your time!

So, sip on your favorite drink and get some popcorn ready, as here comes the best Wall Street movies of all time.

1. Wall Street

Wall StreetThis classic is an American drama co-written and directed by Oliver Stone. It was a tribute to the director’s father, a stockbroker during the Great Depression. Little did he know, the movie would become one of the excellent bits of financial cinema ever produced. The star cast of this film was Michael Douglas, Daryl Hannah, Charlie Sheen, and Martin Sheen.

The movie portrays a young stockbroker that gets involved with a moneyed, crooked corporate raider. He did everything including trading on illegitimate inside information to get to the top with this raider. Talking about the success of this film, it is one of the greatest hits of the 1980s.

“Greed is good.”

2. Boiler Room

Boiler RoomStarring Giovanni Ribisi, Nia Long, Vin Diesel, Scott Caan, and Ben Affleck, this 2000 flick was written and directed by Ben Younger. It is an American crime drama movie depicting a college dropout. This loafer lands a job as a broker in a triumphant suburban investment firm that lays him on the fast trail of success.

The job isn’t as awful as it appears. In essence, he wanted to win back his father’s high standards. You’ll get a glimpse of the world of business and its difficulties upon watching this movie. Moreover, the ones who ever worked in the job of telemarketing or sales, this classic will seem very familiar to you.

3. The Wolf of Wall Street

The Wolf of Wall StreetThe Most Favorite Wall Street Movie of all time! Rated as one of the most watched Wall Street movies, this flick was a biographical black comedy film made by Martin Scorsese. Featuring the handsome Leonardo DiCaprio and beautiful Jonah Hill, this breathtaking movie was a great hit.

This movie depicts times and fictional life of Jordan Belfort, a real-life Wall Street stockbroker, and his profligate lifestyle. One of the famous quotes that we remember from the movie is “The only thing standing between you and your goal is the story you keep telling yourself as to why you can’t achieve it.”

4. American Psycho

American PsychoMade in 2000, this American psychosomatic thriller comedy picture was directed and co-written by Marry Harron. It starred the talented Christian Bale, Willem Dafoe, Jared Leto, and Samantha Mathis. The film was about a Wall Street professional who became increasingly psychotic.

Based on a novel written by Bret Easton Ellis in 1991, the picture was filled with some dark humor. The main lead ‘Christian Bale’ portrayed his emotions splendidly. One should not miss watching this psychological humor-drama film.

We bet after watching this movie, you’ll never gaze at business cards the way you see now.

5. Trading Places

Trading PlacesIt is an American comedy movie directed by John Landis, featuring Eddie Murphy and Dan Aykroyd. In this 1983 comedy modern, you’ll essentially see the lives of a street hustler and a prosperous commodities broker are switched. They both have their roles reversed. Seeing Murphy talk about markets and futures is comical and matchless in hilarity.

The storyline of this comedy-drama is a modern take on the classic novel ‘The Prince and the Pauper’ by the Mark Twain. One quote that touched a lot of viewers was “Think big, think positive, never show any sign of weakness. Always go for the throat. Buy low, sell high.”

6. Glengarry Glen Ross

Glengarry Glen RossDirected by James Foley, it‘s a 1992 American humor starred Kevin Spacey, Jack Lemon, Alec Baldwin, and Ed Harris. This beautiful drama flick portrayed the lives of four real-estate salespersons that had less than a week to generate huge sales.

The main twist in this drama comes when their trainer declares that all apart from the top two salesmen will be fired. So, these salesmen use dubious and fraudulent tactics to make sales. You’ll get a foretaste of how these characters tackle the big-stakes world of sales, real estate, and big bonuses.

“A-B-C. A-Always, B-Be, C-Closing. Always be closing.”

7. Too Big to Fail

Too Big to FailBased on Andrew Ross Sorkin’s book ‘Too Big to Fail’, this American drama was directed by Curtis Hanson. It starred William Hurt, Kathy Baker, Edward Asner, and Amy Carlson. The movie spins around the annals of the 2008 financial meltdown and focuses on the secretary of Treasury, Henry Paulson.

To your surprise, this remarkable movie obtained 11 nominations at the 63rd Primetime Emmy Awards. Also, it won Writers Guild Award for Long Form Adaptation. Don’t you feel like you should definitely watch this interesting inside story of the Wall Street? We guess YES!

8. Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room

Enron: The Smartest Guys in the RoomAnother most-watched Wall Street movie, it’s a 2005 American documentary based on one of the bestselling novels of 2003 named ‘Enron’. The Fortune reporters Bethany McLean and Peter Elkind wrote this novel reflecting the study of one of the biggest business scandals in American history.

The movie featured the brilliant actors including Andrew Fastow, Ken Lay, and Jeffrey Skilling. You’ll see how these executives mangled a billion bucks out of the ensuing crisis. Moreover, the film received the Independent Spirit Award for Best Documentary Film.

9. Margin Call

Margin CallWritten and Directed by J. C. Chandor in 2011, this flick is an American sovereign drama film. The story shows the abrupt reactions of executives at the Wall Street investment bank when news regarding the financial crisis hits upon. The star cast of the movie was simply excellent, starring Jeremy Irons, Kevin Spacey, Paul Bethany, and Demi Moore.

Greed, Capitalism, and Investment fraud – these three things are perfectly depicted in this film. It offers a bit of insight into the untamed and sometimes strange world of finance to the readers. It is one of the most incredible Wall Street movies ever made. You should surely not miss the chance of watching this greatest hit.

10. Rogue Trader

Rogue TraderJames Dearden directed this biographical drama film in 1999. Starring Ewan McGregor and Anna Friel, the movie focuses on the life of former broker Nick Leeson and 1995 subside of Barings Bank. One of the most cerebral stories that will make you desire for more in the end.

In this movie, Ewan McGregor bankrupts the bank in which he works for making huge profits. He did a startlingly remarkable job of imitating the British wunderkind down to his obsession to fruit candies. Stop! No more spoilers! You need to see the movie to figure out how he bankrupted one of the aged and most imperative banks in Britain.

11. The Bonfire of the Vanities

The Bonfire of the VanitiesThis classic flick is a 1990 American humorous black comedy directed by Brian De Palma. It starred Tom Hanks, Melanie Griffith, Bruce Willis, and Kim Cattrall. Based on the best-selling novel of the same name by Tom Wolfe, the story marked the Manhattan privileged of the 1980s and their coldness from the rest of the city.

This movie is all about a Wall Street executive and his voracious girlfriend that run over a lad and drives off without reporting it. A lurid reporter finds out and peeves up New Yorkers with his coverage of the case, ultimately making the couple to go on trial.

12. The Pursuit of Happyness

The Pursuit of HappynessGet your tissues in hand folks! This 2006 American biographical emotional film is a true story based on an entrepreneur. Directed by Gabriele Muccino, the biopic starred Will Smith and Jaden Smith. For the spectacular performance in this movie, Smith was nominated for a Golden Globe and an Academy Award for Best Actor.

The film portrays a stressed, destitute father become an amazingly victorious stockbroker on the Wall Street. While chasing his dreams, he struggles to make the ends meet. The great acting from the leads makes this flick a must-watch.

13. Arbitrage

ArbitrageAn American thriller movie directed by Nicholas Jarecki came in 2012. The movie featured the artistic Richard Gere, Tim Roth, Brit Marling, and Susan Sarandon. In this thriller, an evade fund tycoon wishes to sell his trading realm.

This amazing flick was a worldwide box-office success and is the premier grossing film of all time. To your surprise, this movie was nominated for seven awards and won four. Isn’t that great! Moreover, it was also one of the highest per-screen average films of the year.

14. The Big Short

The Big ShortNo one wishes to revive the vast financial crisis of 2007-2008, but this film is a must-watch. A great biographical drama-comedy flick directed by Adam McKay was based on the book – The Big Short: Inside the Doomsday Machine.

The story is all about the financial crisis of 2007–2008 that was elicited by the United States housing bubble.

Featuring the brilliant artists such as Christian Bale, Ryan Gosling, Steve Carell, Brad Pitt, and Hamish Linklater, the movie won one Oscar and thirty-seven other awards. Derisive humor, merry derision, and brilliant rowdiness are what made this film an incredible triumph.

15. Quants: The Alchemists of Wall Street

The Alchemists of Wall StreetDirected by Marije Meerman, this classic flick scrutinizes the world of the computer programmers and mathematical wizards of the global financial system. It inspects the deepest workings of the financial crisis, economy, and recession.

In its core, the film shows us how Wall Street existed in the timeless, lawless, and borderless world of the Internet. You’ll definitely love the whole concept of the movies. It’s a very interesting 45-minute documentary telling the inner-workings of quantitative analysts on the Wall Street.

16. Capitalism: A Love Story

Capitalism A Love StoryCapitalism is a documentary film written and directed by Michael Moore. It focuses on the late-2000s financial crisis and the recovery stimulus. It discovers the cause of the global economic meltdown and takes a droll look at the political and corporate mischief.

The story also features a spiritual part where the critic inspects whether Jesus is a capitalist and whether capitalism is a crime or not. A blend of humor and drama, it is one of the best movies of the Wall Street you’ll ever see.

17. Pi

PiEnter the mathematics world with this idealistic psychological thriller directed by Darren Aronofsky. To all the mathematics lovers out here, we bet you’ll definitely love this movie. As the title suggests, this flick is all about the mathematical constant pi. It covers an array of different themes including spirituality, religion, and relationship of the cosmos to mathematics.

The story describes a suspicious yet intellect mathematician that strives to use numbers to make sense of the world around him. In this classic, his mathematical expertise achieves the attention of Wall Street executives and others in the fiscal sector.

Nitty-Gritty

Well! These are the 17 best Wall Street movies you should never miss out. They will make you experience the awesome Wall Street like never before. A fusion of drama, adventure, humor, tragedy, ingenuity, redemption, action, adore, catastrophe – Every damn thing you’ll catch here.

“Wall Street is the only place that people ride to in a Rolls Royce to get advice from those who take the subway.” – Warren Buffet

So, kick back with a glass of your favorite drink and watch one of these Wall Street movies today. It’s a perfect way to relax and get a glimpse into the financial jungle.

 

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Hi I'm Paul Koger, an ex-Prop Trader now trading from the comfort of my own home. My area of expertise is swing trading US equities, Although I have a strong interest in anything that is trading related. In case you want to get in touch - try Twitter @paulkogr or traderpaulkoger@gmail.com

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