Every now and again someone asks me for finance movie suggestions.
So I'll just make a list:
Margin Call - Possible the most realistic modern finance movie. Below is the infamous trading scene. This is finance porn:
Wall Street (but not WS2) - It's tacky, ugly and everything else that's bad about the 80s. That's why everybody loves it. The trailer is 80s goodness:
Glengarry Glen Ross - It's not really finance per se, but it is an epic. This could be the most quotable movie in the history of movies. "Put that coffee down. Coffee is for closers only". Of all great scenes in the movie, this might be best: (also... "The leads are weak? You're weak!")
Too big to fail - Based on the book by my very close and personal friend Andrew Ross Sorkin (just kidding, but he is my most famous Twitter follower #humblebrag), it's a rare and probably fairly accurate portrail of what went on in the fall of 2008. The best acting is the subtle way Paul Giamatti plays Ben Bernanke. A long clip from the movie:
Rollover - This 1981 movie is a real gem, and probably unknown to most young people. This scene shows the collapse of the economy, but some scumbag seems to have intercut the clip with some current news. Regardless, the movie is a great watch (if you can ignore the early 80s wibe in some of the scenes).
The smartest guys in the room - Technically this is a documentary, but it's a damned good one. The Enron story. Whole docu on Youtube:
Barbarians at the gate - This is the story about the Nabisco takeover. Actually I've never seen the movie, only read the book, so I'll be watching this shortly. You gotta love a leveraged buyout. Whole thing is on Youtube:
Client 9 - The movie about what is possible the best politician in the US and how he fell in an obvious conspiracy. (Hat tip to @PeterCWarren for the great tip). Trailer:
Trader - In 1987 Paul Tudor Jones let a TV crew follow him around while he traded. He correctly predicts the future crash in 1987 (albeit he misses on the date) and it's all just a great watch. The clip is elusive, but supposedly it is available via psudo legal channels. But not that I know. This is a clip: (thanks to @OlaMarvin for the great reminder. I can't believe I missed it)