The 1980s marked an era of unprecedented self-indulgence. The baby boomers had grown into a status-driven population and the Forbes’ List of the wealthiest people in the world became wildly popular. As the dot.com businesses took a prominent spotlight, the stock market at Wall Street soared bringing with it the American penchant for speculative buying and the entrepreneur’s equally profound temptations towards corruption. The Oliver Stone move, “Wall Street” captures the predatory games of the 1980s businessman as well as the people who fall victim on the way.
As phrases such as “You can have it all!” and “Shop ‘til you drop” were coined, inflation rose exponentially, and consumers bought on credit with relentless zeal. This, many business-owners promoted, was the way to once again bolster the American economy. This sentiment was, perhaps, best expressed by Gordon Gekko (played by Michael Douglas) who, in response to the criticisms of Oliver Cromwell, delivered a rebuttal with this final remark: “The point is, ladies and gentlemen, that greed – for lack of a better word – is good. Greed is right. Greed works. Greed clarifies, cuts through, and captures the essence of evolutionary spirit. Greed in all of its forms – greed for life, for money, for love, knowledge – has marked the upward surge of mankind. And greed – you mark my words – will not only save Teldar Paper but that other malfunctioning corporation called the USA.” [1]
The 1980s was a time of great opportunies and profits – for the wealthy. “The top one percent commanded a greater share of the nation’s wealth (thirty-seven percent) than at any time since 1929.” [2] This meant, however, that gap between the wealthy and the working class was larger than it had been in decades. Gekko starts his response with Cromwell with a not-so-subtle reminder that he is the largest shareholder of Teldar Paper. Though he initially seems to be pleading his case to the assembly, it becomes quickly evident that he is in control. This demonstrates the incredible leverage the 1980s business tycoon had to manipulate corporations to suit their benefits.
Meanwhile, young professionals everywhere were trying desperately to grasp some of that wealth. “What counterculture hippies were to the 1960s, high-salaried “yuppies” (young, upwardly mobile professionals)were to the 1980s.”[3] Bud Fox’s goal was to “bag the elephant” – in this case, Gekko. Though he has some initial ethical concerns, the dreams of money and success draws him to Gekko’s side and he soon finds himself thinking only of the next big paycheck. Thus, was a younger generation of money-driven corruption bred.
It is notable that not only was “Wall Street” a movie set in the 1980s but that it was also produced in the 1980s. It is an unsentimental portrait of a corrupt corporate America and both its justifications and consequences. “Greed is good. Greed is right. Greed works.” Said enough times, it eventually sounds true.
[1] Wall Street. Dir. Oliver Stone. Perfs. Michael Douglas, Charlie Sheen, Daryl Hannah, Martin Sheen. DVD. Prod Oliver Stone; Twentieth Century Fox, 1987.
[2] Davidson, Heyrman, Lytle, Stoff, and Gienapp. Nation of Nations. 4th ed. New York: McGraw Hill, 2006. pg 950.
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