Boiler Room (DVD)

OPINIONATED OR WHAT? >>> What an 'odd' title for an 'exceedingly good' film. The phrase 'Boiler Room' for me, conjures up images of my secondary school days... ''...the mysterious silhoutte of the caretaker stalks the now vacant and accoustical corridors. He swiftly disappears into his cavern of refuge below the school hall to rekindle the boiler and drink hot tea from his thermos...'' But to believe that this movie compares in any way whatsoever to my bleak portrayal of 'boiler rooms' in general, then you would be sorely mistaken. This movie resides in the 'must see' category ...  Read the complete review

A cynical look at how illegal tock traders in the US operate, and how naive consumers wanting to make a quick buck on the stockmarket can be easily fleeced. Ben Affleck comes over all Glengarry Glen Ross, and Giovanni Ribisi (Phoebe's little brother in Friends) finds himself being sucked deeper and deeper in, in an attempt to please his martinet father. Giovanni's performance is pleasing, Affleck's starry and OTT - but then that fits with his character. Not a relaxing happy movie, but not a disaster either, and worthy of more note than it seems to get. ...  Read the complete review

Despite boasting a law degree and some fancy letters to my name, I departed from the hallowed halls of academia with no career waiting for me. Fortunately, University equipped me with discipline, eloquence and enhanced interpersonal skills, meaning I could be a good temp whilst I sought a training contract to be a solicitor. However, the law career never manifested as temping led me to find my niche as a sales person. A company that liked to recruit University graduates into well-paid sales recruitment roles snapped me up, trained me and put me through an intense objection handling 'boot camp'. I was stretched and challenged to come out of my comfort zone, and ...  Read the complete review

Seth Davis only wants two things in life, one is money and lots of it. The second and perhaps more important is the love and approval of his father. Having dropped of college Seth now runs an illegal casino from his home, a venture his father is less than pleased about. This is not helped by the fact that his father is a federal judge. Soon an opportunity arises that sees Seth join a small brokerage and what he hopes is the acceptance of his father. First time director and writer Ben Younger brings us this tale of the big city and the working environment dubbed the boiler room. With an interesting cast including Vin Diesel (Pitch Black) and Giovanni Ribishi ...  Read the complete review

Boiler Room is obviously a nineties rehash of the eighties high octane movies Wall Street and Glengarry Glen Ross, but it still works and is enjoyable and riviting. Giovanni Ribisi is well suited to the part of the likeable young Seth, and Vin Diesel shows he will be a future star with a great performance, as does Scott Caan and Ben Affleck (in a great homage to Alec Baldwin). The director tries to be flash and includes a hip hop soundtrack, and the ending is so lame that you wonder if it was changed. Watching the DVD tells you it was, and the original ending on the DVD is so much better it is untrue!! Buy the DVD, and enjoy the film. ...  Read the complete review