BOILER ROOM ***1/2 (out of four stars) A review by Jamey Hughton
Starring-Giovanni Ribisi, Vin Diesel, Nia Long, Nicky Katt, Ron Rifkin, Jamie Kennedy and Ben Affleck Director-Ben Younger Canadian Rating-14A
MOVIE VIEWS by Jamey Hughton http://Welcome.to/MovieViews
Harry (Taylor Nichols), a dedicated family man about to invest in a new house, gets a call from a feisty stock broker one day. The broker, a new recruit at local firm J.T. Marlin, is 19-year old college dropout Seth Davis (Giovanni Ribisi). Seth is urging Harry to invest in a pharmaceutical drug designed to help premature babies develop, insisting that it will be approved within 3-months, whereupon the stock will skyrocket. Harry, who has a relatively well-paying job in the food business, is wary of investing on Wall Street for obvious reasons. But Seth is a skilled graduate of Marlin's strict `back-'em-into-a-corner, never-take-no-for-an-answer' policy of illegitimate money-making. This environment sets the stage for `Boiler Room', an engrossing tale of young potential millionaires who spend more time on the telephone than your 17-year old daughter.
Seth was not always a successful junior stock broker. After pushing aside the notion of a college degree after only one year, he is approached by a few past acquaintances (arriving in a luxurious Ferrari). As of now, Seth is running an illegal gambling convention out of his own living room - with personalized chips and all. This is an entrepreneurship that his father (Ron Rifkin), a respected judge, does not approve of. With dreams of once getting his own Ferrari, Seth is suckered into the business of stock brokerage. A lesser-known firm called J.T. Marlin is searching for hot young prospects that could evolve into junior brokers....and perhaps even further. Scenes in which Seth is lectured on proper brokerage methods are fascinating. He is taught to abide by the ABC rule stated in `Glengarry Glen Ross'(‘Always Be Closing'), and to always be poised and ready to reel in a `whale' (aka someone who puts complete trust in their broker and is willing to shell out cash at their disposal). Seth grows to enjoy the job, and makes some new friends at the office, including Chris (Vin Diesel), a hot-shot senior broker with a very persuasive manner.
Like a junior `Wall Street', this film offers a full package of sharp, cunning dialogue and a continually flowing plotline of absorbing high-stakes business. But it's the human stories that make `Boiler Room' so compelling. Seth's rough relationship with his father is rigid and believable, as is the painful downfall of poor Harry, the first-time client who could have made the worst financial move of his career. Above all, `Boiler Room' is an explosive catwalk for an incredible group of hot young stars to strut their acting abilities. Ribisi (the comic relief in `The Mod Squad') is in top form, although the character of Seth has its inconsistencies. Nia Long is excellent as a secretary (and possible romantic interest) at J.T. Marlin, and Ron Rifkin (`L.A. Confidential') adds a veteran sense of balance to his scenes. It's also nice to see Jamie Kennedy (the beloved Randy in the `Scream' films) as a fellow stock broker, even if the character is a drug-addicted weenie.
But the name you'll be hearing most about this week is Vin Diesel. Along with an impressive, villainous turn in the monster movie `Pitch Black', Diesel can now chalk up two robust screen performances in one week. Who is this guy, you ask? Before February 2000, Diesel was hardly making a whisper in Hollywood - he had appeared as one of the grunts in `Saving Private Ryan' and supplied the voice of `The Iron Giant' himself.... but that's it. Now, it appears as if Diesel is strapped in for a trip toward stardom. The actor certainly has the agile charisma (and the imposing physique) to do so. Although Diesel is thoroughly galvanizing, the most electrifying 10 minutes belong to Ben Affleck, who raises the roof as a motivational speaker who offers advice to a room full of new recruits.
The level of excitement and intensity reached in `Boiler Room' has not been matched by another film in 2000. Debut director Ben Younger's script is full of limber dialogue exchanges, and the momentum simply sweeps you off your feet. There are a few big cons, as well. The rap soundtrack gets annoying, and the ending is a bit anticlimactic and dissatisfying, as Younger opts to leave a few questions somewhat unanswered. But it's still one brisk, funny sequence after another. In one priceless example, Seth is called at home by an individual trying to sell a subscription to a local paper. Disgusted with his approach, Seth lectures the caller on the proper way to propose a sales pitch to the potential buyer. I'm no good at sales pitches, but I will say this: go see `Boiler Room'. It just makes good business sense.
(C) 2000, Jamey Hughton
MOVIE VIEWS by Jamey Hughton http://Welcome.to/MovieViews
Your Comments Appreciated! movieviews@hotmail.com
The review above was posted to the
rec.arts.movies.reviews newsgroup (de.rec.film.kritiken for German reviews).
The Internet Movie Database accepts no responsibility for the contents of the
review and has no editorial control. Unless stated otherwise, the copyright
belongs to the author.
Please direct comments/criticisms of the review to relevant newsgroups.
Broken URLs inthe reviews are the responsibility of the author.
The formatting of the review is likely to differ from the original due
to ASCII to HTML conversion.
Related links: index of all rec.arts.movies.reviews reviews