Cheap Boiler Room (DVD) (Giovanni Ribisi) (Ben Younger) Price

Related Products

Customer Reviews of Boiler Room

A Gem of a Film
It is very obvious to anyone who has seen "Wall Street" that this film borrows an awful lot from Oliver Stone's 1987 classic. Every stock broker in the film seems to be modelled on Michael Douglas' Gordon Gekko character with the exception of Giavanni Ribisi who unfortunately seems to be moulded on the Charlie Sheen part. The paralels between the two films are incredible but that doesn't mean that "The Boiler Room" is in anyway a lesser film because of it.

Giovanni Ribisi plays Seth, a 19 year old who drops out of college to start his own backdoor casino. He proves to be a genius running "the biz" and one night he is payed a visit by a long time friend who has now become a stock broker. With visions of becoming a millionaire within three years Seth eagerly takes a job at the firm.

Throughout the film Ribisi seems to have a strange attachment to his Father. (Much like the Sheen's in Wall Street) He wants to be constantly "doing good" so his Father can be proud of him. This is fine and everything but eventually it gets way out of control and the film starts to indulge in banal sentimentality. You start to wonder towards the end if Ribisi is suffering from some strange reverse Oedipus complex or something.

The best scenes are indeed the ones at the office. Ribisi quickly learns how to "close" and get anyone's money but gradually starts to feel hollow inside. In one scene he takes the life savings of an easily manipulated middle class Father. He consciously takes his money knowing it will be lost.

The stock brokers are a fitting image of Gordon Gekko. Ben Affleck especially who's only part in the movie is to come in the room and scream at the new guys. "Whoever says money is the root of all evil doesn't have any" is his character's memorable line. You get the impression though that his character is only there to amplify the cuthroat mentality of the wall street lifestyle. He's still real fun to listen to though. The rest of the brokers are all high on their own greed and are so over the top that it's actually just silly. For no reason there are three bar fights as rival broker's start trouble over who wears a nicer tie. I'm not sure who wrote their dialogue but apparently they have been watching too many mob movies. Each broker talks like a Maffioso and really in the end can't be taken seriously. "American Psycho" satirized stock broker's so well when they were seen arguing about who had the nicest font on their business card. "The Boiler Room's" broker's are basically a more extreme version of the same thing.

"The Boiler Rrom" really flows well and that is it's best asset. It is the perfect length and never goes too far in one direction to get boring. The killer instinct is played out perfectly and makes for an energetic, often times very funny movie. A gem.

---

There's no such thing as a no-sale call.
Giovanni Ribisi is Seth Davis, a 19-year-old who's secretly running a backdoor casino while his parents think he's in college. Desperate for a quick buck, he joins JT Marlin, a brokerage firm that has the look, feel, and energy of a Morgan Stanley or Smith Barney. But underneath the gloss, this is a firm that engages in shady dealings, selling fake stocks and ripping off investors cold. Seth learns the ropes of the trade and over time becomes ruthless and cocky. He alienates his no-nonsense dad, who happens to be a judge and is, to say the least, disappointed that his son is blowing off college.

On the surface, this sounds like a re-telling of "Wall Street," but don't dismiss this film so easily. "Boiler Room" soars on the strength of performances of Nicky Katt, Scott Caan (son of James), Nia Long, and the then-unknown Vin Diesel. The film moves at a brisk pace and, for the most part, avoids melodrama and other formulaic touches. Definitely worth a look.

---

Wall Street for Dummies is True
If you think this movie was intelligent and the best stock market film I feel sorry for you. I can name ten better than this and even though this movie tries to become Wall Street for the 90's it incredibly falls short. Why? More than one reason. First of all the actors don't compare to those in Wall Street. Martin Sheen and Michael Douglas stole the show in Wall Street with fine, veteran acting. I didn't care for Charlie Sheen but even he was better than Giovanni Ribisi. Boiler Room was just another film thrown up to target a young audience. It has no point, no plot and the best actors were the ones shown the least. Jamie Kennedy, Nicky Katt, Ron Ripkin, Nia Long ( and the guy that played Harry ) were the sparks of the film. Ben Affleck and Vin Diesel's presence wasn't needed. Neither of them did anything of importance. All the actors in the world and the casting director picked Ribisi to be the lead? Especially when he's standing beside actors who would have played Seth ten times better? I can't see that. He may be a likeable supporting character but he wasn't strong enough to carry the role of Seth. I love interracial relationships but there is no way in the world a woman as beautiful as Nia Long would look at a room full of young men and fall for Giovanni Ribisi, who played Seth like a mindless dork.. Sorry, but I couldn't believe that. Seth was supposed to be this hustler yet he is so stupid he can't see that J.T. is a chop shop? Please! Anyway this is nothing to get hot for unless you like lackluster films that will only amount to " wannabe " status. Yes this is a wannabe Wall Street that never is or never will be.

Don't be fooled by the great soundtrack. They used hip hop to lure you into thinking this film was hip and trendy. Once you start to watch it you see it's nothing to get excited about.