Review: "Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps" Trades Sexy for Scary

NEW YORK (CBS) As far as sequels go, "Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps" is a safe bet.

Three-time Academy Award winner Oliver Stone mixes the old with the new, revisiting a culture he helped make sexy 23 years ago in "Wall Street."

Pictures: Wall Street" Sequel at Cannes
Pictures: The New York Premiere

More people understand the mechanics of the banking system and an elitist Wall Street today than they did in 1987. But the biggest difference between Stone's breakthrough film and his current introspective is that there is no longer anything alluring about the industry. Wall Street's near meltdown and the front-page news of the last two years have taken care of that.

Stone, the son of a stockbroker himself, hones in on this distaste for an unchecked banking system that got a colossal bailout to produce a fresher, crisper cinematic update.

The financial stakes are even higher and the roots of corporate greed go even deeper. Hedge fund managers and investment bankers today stand to make hundreds of millions, rather than the tens of millions that gained notoriety in the 1980s for the real-life versions of Stone's Gordon Gekko (Michael Douglas) .

The film opens with the legendary Gekko - grayer and a little more subdued - emerging from a federal prison in 2001, having served his time for securities fraud. No longer the kingpin he once was, he finds himself alone. His wife has long since left him and even his estranged daughter, Winnie, does not show up to greet him.

Fast forward to 2008. Jake Moore (Shia LaBeouf) is a young, smart and hungry trader working at Keller Zabel. When his company gets stuck with billions in toxic debt and the government refuses a bailout, a rival investment bank headed by the ruthless powerhouse Bretton James (Josh Brolin) arranges a takeover for a few cents on the dollar.

Keller Zabel's head, played superbly by Frank Langella, takes his life rather than face going under. Enraged by the loss of his mentor, Moore seeks revenge with the help of Gekko, whom he meets at the latter's book tour.

The twist is that all this happens unbeknownst to Jake's girlfriend - Winnie (Carey Mulligan), who also happens to be Gekko's daughter.

Michael Douglas has the extraordinary opportunity to revisit a character that won him an Oscar 23 years ago. Not only has his character had a chance to evolve with time, but Douglas also he gets a fresh canvas, thanks to a completely different financial climate.

Gekko may be older, but he's still a player. His mantra, "Greed, for lack of a better word, is good," still holds true, but he adds, "Now, it's legal as well," during a scene as compelling and charismatic as the iconic speech he made in "Wall Street."

However, this time, Gekko also realizes he's human and. Douglas deftly manages to showcase Gekko's vulnerabilities (yes, he does have them). He wants desperately to reconcile with his daughter and be a part of her life and he isn't completely heartless in his business dealings. He even has a sense of humor. It's this human side with all its flaws that drives this film.

Josh Brolin plays the absolute villain, despicable to the core . One can't help but wonder if Stone's casting of him, fresh from his turn in the titular role in Stone's "W," had anything to do with trying to advance Stone's view that politics led to the economic meltdown.

Shia LaBeouf gets to flex his acting muscles, and the result is a fine performance as the zealous underdog wanting to do the right thing. Inevitable comparisons will, of course, be drawn to his character and that of Charlie Sheen's Bud Fox in the original. LaBeouf holds his own.

Never subtle, Stone's "Wall Street : Money Never Sleeps" is frenetic at times, relying on computer graphics and split screens to capture the speed at which deals are made. Over-the-top scenes like one that takes place at a banquet reception, where socialites wear their husband's annual incomes on their sleeves, distract from the bigger picture and sometimes feel as if Stone is wielding a tsledgehammer to drive home his point about conspicuous consumption and corporate greed.

Still, the film is entertaining on many levels. For fans of the original, there are enough similarities and nuances carefully woven in that you feel as if you have some insider information of your own.

For those who missed "Wall Street," the sequel is strong enough to stand on its own, without making you feel as if you've missed something. If anything, it may even make you go out and rent the original film that became the bible for so many in the financial world.

Such is the power of Gordon Gekko.

/>

MORE ENTERTAINMENT NEWS