Boiler Room

I'll sum this film up in 5 words, 'on par with fight club'.

This is a great film, every second of this film is worth 9/10. I'll start with the films flaws. Firstly, the main character is very weak, I'm not sure whether it's poor writing or bad acting but he just comes across as an idiot rather than the deep, flawed, entrepreneur that the film wanted to portray. Secondly, even in the year 2,000 floppy disks were an ageing technology, without giving much away there's a scene where an entire companies data is copied to a floppy disk. The film includes a lot of central characters and doesn't provide any back-story for any of them, this wouldn't be so much of a problem if the central character wasn't so weak but by the end of it you feel as though you haven't seen a single character develop or even begin to understood any of the characters but you have just seen a good film.

Praise: This film is amazing. The film really captures the desires of society and gives them a face. The characters really convey the shallow two facedness you come across every day where they're happy and pleasant until something happens that could even remotely damage their cash flow. Every person you've ever met that wanted to make a quick buck is in this film, the consumerism and lack of social conscience that constantly plagues society is so prevalent in this film. It also approaches the topic of share trading from a much more accessible angle, they don't put much effort into adding the right industry terms or showing scenes of the NY stock exchange - they show the consequences of share trading, the lack of understanding of the average consumer and give you a better understanding of where the money comes from. If you're anything like me then this film takes you on a ride where you are the main character every step of the way until finally you return to life with a much deeper understanding of the desires people succumb to in modern society. This film includes very young appearances by a lot of famous actors, Ben Affleck, Vin Diesel etc. who all pull their weight to give life to the film. I'm explaining the film in a very stale way but I can't help it, it's on par with 'fight club' - you can't explain why the film is good in a way that does it justice, just watch 2 hours of cinema that will improve your quality of life.

Great movie, I really enjoyed the most of it except the ending. The producer got it right until that last 30 minutes or so. It lost pace and drama, and I was definitely not expecting the movie to end like that.I would have liked to see the policeman coming and rocking the boiler room. I would have also liked to see just how far Nia Long would have gone with her complicated love life. Great movie but pathetic ending !!!!

I remember when i had a short stint working for this telemarketing company, my boss used to always say "A sale is made on every call. Either you sell them what you are selling or they sell you an excuse." This is the message that this film hammers through: the lure of fast money and the power of persuation; you can destroy someone's life with one phonecall. Now unlike the characters in Boiler Room, im not trying to scam you out of your life savings- so stop reading these reviews and see the movie. You won't regret it. 8/10

The plot in Boiler Room is true to reality. A friend of mine was telling me about an outfit he used to work for in the 80's. Worked just like JT Marlin. They switched name three times in two years. My friend called people who lived far away so he wouldn't have to run into them at the grocery store.

The way the company keeps their brokers hungry is by encouraging excessive spending, such as luxury cars, so they have to make even more money to keep up with the lifestyle.

Boiler Room has a group of young actors that all play their parts well. Giovanni Ribisi makes a good appearance, and Nia Long needs to be in more movies.

This film owes a credit to Glengarry Glenn Ross and Wall Street, but I actually liked this better. Why? Because it seemed more real to me (the script and acting probably did it) than the other films. I liked the Giovanni Ribisi character, who changes slightly through the film, but eventually we see the real side of him, which is great. Funny, thrilling and cool, this film may not be for the weak at heart, but it is for anyone who can afford the tickets. Ben Affleck appears (in one of his better performances) as Ribisi's showy and pushy boss at the stock place. One of the better films (top 20) of the new year. A+