Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps parents guide

Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps Parent Guide

Though Director Oliver Stone puts the spotlight on the danger of speculative ventures, the film really fails to do more than say, "We have a problem."

Overall C+

Director Oliver Stone picks up the story he began in his 1987 film Wall Street. In this sequel, Gordon Gekko (played by Michael Douglas again) has just been released from prison. And it is not long before the disreputable stockbroker is back in the money game. Only this time he's bringing along his starry-eyed, future son-in-law (Shia LaBeouf), despite the objections of his estranged daughter (Carey Mulligan).

Release date September 24, 2010

Violence C+
Sexual Content B-
Profanity D
Substance Use D+

Why is Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps rated PG-13? The MPAA rated Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps PG-13 for brief strong language and thematic elements.

Run Time: 132 minutes

Official Movie Site

Parent Movie Review

I don’t even pretend to understand the slight-of-hand techniques behind hedge funds and leveraging, but I do know this: cotton candy is not a life sustaining food source. And as good as it looks, there is nothing financially sound about the sugary floss being tossed around as worthwhile investments in Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps. While the artificially inflated market might appear healthy from the outside, it only takes one bite to realize the sham.

Still many of the movers and shakers in this film see nothing wrong with actively procuring more money than they can ever possibly spend. Living a life studded with diamonds and other expensive excesses, they jeopardize their investors and ultimately the nation in their quest for more. Yet a monetary debacle for one person often turns into a windfall for another in this greedy game.

If anyone in this movie recognizes the fallibility of the marketplace, it is Gordon Gekko (Michael Douglas). Fresh out of prison after serving a sentence for insider trading, he is grayer and grizzlier—but repentant? Hardly! In fact, he sees himself as a kind of prophet when he predicts the fallout in the 2008 financial market. Setting himself up in a rented apartment, he, like many criminals before him, hits the speaker’s circuit and goes on book signing tours where he gets paid good cash to rehash the finer points of his fiscal wizardry.

At one of these events, he meets Jacob Moore (Shia LaBeouf), a young Wall Street trader who happens to be engaged to his daughter Winnie (Carey Mulligan). Despite Gordon’s disastrous experience as a father (caused in large part by his obsession with money instead of family), the disgraced stockbroker wants to rebuild his relationship with his only remaining child. Engaging in insider trading of a different sort, Gordon and Jacob begin secretly meeting behind Winnie’s back to make some mutually beneficial deals. In exchange for arranging a meeting for Gordon with his estranged daughter, Jacob gets help from his future father-in-law to bring down one of the biggest bankers on Wall Street.

Unfortunately putting his trust in a man known for lying is a dangerous trap. And regardless of his aggressively nervy business abilities, Jacob soon finds himself caught in a snare that threatens his whole future.

Some strong sexual expletives, combined with themes of dishonesty and lying, make this story a poor investment for most families’ entertainment funds. And though Director Oliver Stone puts the spotlight on the danger of speculative ventures, the film really fails to do more than say, "We have a problem." (That’s small solace for the thousands who lost their jobs in the aftermath of the real downturn.) Rather it seems that a few of the greedy get their hands slapped and then it is back to business until the next bubble bursts.

Directed by Oliver Stone. Starring Shia LaBeouf, Michael Douglas, Carey Mulligan. Running time: 132 minutes. Theatrical release September 24, 2010. Updated

Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps
Rating & Content Info

Why is Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps rated PG-13? Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps is rated PG-13 by the MPAA for brief strong language and thematic elements.

Violence: A scene of a man committing suicide by falling in front of a subway train is shown a number of times. Two people engage in a dangerous motorcycle race.

Sexual Content: An unmarried couple living together is shown cuddling in bed with their nightclothes on. A girl talks about her pregnancy. Some low cut evening gowns are seen at a social event.

Language: At least two explicit sexual expletives and some strong sexual slang terms are used in a nonsexual context, along with a couple of depictions of crude hand gestures. Nearly two-dozen profanities and terms of Deity are used, as well as scatological slang and a rude ethnic slur.

Alcohol / Drug Use: Individuals frequently drink at social events and at home. One man appears to be slightly inebriated during a party. Characters are often seen smoking cigars, while others use cigarettes. Discussions about illegal drug use are included. A man gulps pills from a small bottle during a stressful event at work.

Other: Characters involved in the financial market engage in unethical business practices, including lying and stealing, that cause serious financial fallout.

Page last updated

Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps Parents' Guide

The original Wall Street movie released in 1987 and follows an impetuous young trader who is eager to hit it big fast. How does that same attitude contribute to the characters actions in the sequel? Is greed still a motivation?

One of the characters in the movie accuses the media of selling fear. Do you agree with this assessment? Why do some news programmers adhere to the quip, “if it bleeds, it leads?” How do panic and rumors impact the market in this movie? What do the brokers tell their investors?

Jacob believes that everyone has a certain amount of money that, if acquired, would make them content to focus on their family, philanthropy and other good things in life rather than seeking more dollars. Does that seem to apply to any of the characters in this film? Do you have a number that would satisfy you? Why do needs and wants often seem to grow in proportion to a person’s income?

Home Video

The most recent home video release of Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps movie is December 21, 2010. Here are some details…

Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps releases to DVD and Blu-ray on Decmeber 21, 2010 with the following bonus extras:

Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps on DVD:

- Commentary by Director Oliver Stone

- A Conversation with Oliver Stone and the Cast of Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps

Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps on Blu-ray:

- Commentary by Director Oliver Stone

- A Conversation with Oliver Stone and the Cast of Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps

- Money, Money, Money: The Rise and Fall of Wall Street | Five-part look at the real Wall Street and the challenges and changes that have impacted our economic climate over the last two decades. (Includes: Unfinished Business, Gordon Gekko is Back, Lifestyles of the Wall Street Rich and Infamous, A Tour of the Streets of Wall Street and Trends, Schemes and Economic Collapse)

- Deleted and Extended Scenes

- Fox Movie Channel Presents—In Character With: Michael Douglas, Shia LaBeouf, Cary Mulligan, Josh Brolin and Frank Langella

- Digital Copy (disc two)

Related home video titles:

Jack Campbell is a Wall Street tycoon who exchanged a chance at love for a career, but he gets an opportunity to see what he missed out on in The Family Man. The financial district isn’t the only one to have a finger pointed at it in the movies. Big tobacco companies come under attack in the film adaptation of John Grisham’s novel Runaway Jury. A lawyer joins forces with a group of parents who have lost children as the result of contaminated water in A Civil Action.