Even though I dislike most Oliver Stone films, Wall Street is one of my favourites, precisely because the “Greed is Good” speech is essentially correct even if the word “greed” is a bit misleading. Which is why I might just take a risk and watch this sequel when it hits the UK.
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Gekko is out of jail, and he’s angrySeptember 21st, 2009 |
 14 comments to Gekko is out of jail, and he’s angry |
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Andrew Medworth has written on this subject [greed] (Link)from an Objectivist perspective – and I agree with him.
Stone is a dissembling jackanapes. Not interested in spending any of my hard earned on anything he does.
“Stone is a dissembling jackanapes. Not interested in spending any of my hard earned on anything he does.”
Pirate the DVD? :o)
The “greed is good” speech is good, but the best of that genre I’ve ever seen is Larry the Liquidator’s (Danny deVito’s) speech from “Other People’s Money.” It’s worth watching, but then so is the entire movie, as it’s funny and intelligent and well-acted (except that I think the young corporate attorney is mis-cast). Watch the unedited version, though; when it’s on TV they edit out small bits which add a lot to the movie even if they’re not terribly important to the plotline.
The biggest problem I had with Wall Street is that Stone turned Gekko into a stereotype. What if he hadn’t been a jerk in a 3,000 dollar suit, but instead was a nice guy? What if instead of saying he wanted to wreck Blue Star Airlines because he could wreck it, he explained the airline couldn’t survive in the state it was in and the only two options were to kill the company outright and sell its assets or break the union? What if Bud Fox went down that slippery slope of excess and the 80s on his own in spite of Gekko? It would have been a far more interesting film in my opinion if it had been nothing but shades of gray instead of Gekko=Greedy=Evil, but then that wasn’t the point Oliver Stone wanted to make.
Perry, naturally I agree with your description of Oliver Stone as a person, but one has only to watch, for example, JFK as a piece of pure cinema to appreciate that he is a fine and talented film-maker, with a good proportion of his work well worth your hard-earned. And furthermore, the rather unsavoury practice of judging the worth of art by the political convictions of its creator seems to me to be the kind of thing best left to the moonbats and the fasicsts – they have decades of experience in that sort of thing. 🙂
I’m amazed at how openly the greed is being exposed this time round. It seems to be paving the way for the new global financial system.
Novus, performance arts, as well as literature and poetry (unlike visual arts and music) convey ideas. The process of conveying ideas is what these media are about, and the fact that an idea is conveyed artistically doesn’t change that. In fact, this makes artistically talented people like Stone even more dangerous than a mere run-of-the-mill propaganda drone: they wrap their vile ideas in a beautifully sophisticated package and sell them to the public, sneaking into our minds through senses and emotions rather then directly through rational discourse. Thanks, but I’m not buying.
I wonder what would have happened to Conan the Barbarian if Oliver Stone had not dropped out and handed over to John Milius!
I like Born on the Fourth of July.
Jonathan, remember that Gekko said: “… greed, for lack of a better word, is good.”
Oliver Stone is an open supporter of the Chevez regime – he went to see him (again) only a few weeks ago.
So instead of buing a ticket to see the film (thus involving yourself in the “cash nexus” of trade) why not just sent an e.mail of support to Commissar Mark Lloyd – “Diversity Officer” at the FCC.
When Commissar Lloyd is finished all television and radio stations in the United States, and all films, will faithfully reflect the ideology of Oliver Stone and Chevez.
It will be a country in which it will even be difficult to think anti Obama thoughts – as no anti Obama information or opinions will get to people.
As for Wall Street – they are happy, stocks up 50% over the last six months. And all thanks to the vast financial support the regime is giving them (the largest scale CORPORATE WELFARE in American history).
Farmer Obama is fattening up the “pigs” – and the pigs love him for it.
They can not see what the next stage is.
Paul, I think that by and large the “pigs” see what the next stage is; they just think the axe will fall on someone else.
As Orson Scott Card put it, “If pigs could vote, the man with the slop bucket would be elected swineherd every time, no matter how much slaughtering he did on the side.”
‘Enlightened self interest’ is the term, I believe.
However, not enlightened LONG TERM self interest.