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BOILER ROOM Send This Review to a Friend
The boys in the "Boiler Room," an underhanded, ruthless Long Island brokerage steeped in illegalities and hawking stocks on the phone to investors who can be conned, are hell-bent in making the financial killing they've been promised by the chief recruiter (Ben Affleck). The action is riveting as we are swept into the nasty details of the operation, which stands as a symbol, not only for the greed involved in the specific situation, but for the skewered values that make money virtually the only goal in life worth pursuing, whether the methods are crooked or above board.
Director Ben Younger, who makes his feature debut with this story, which he wrote, skillfully provides the frenetic tone and atmosphere as he focuses on Seth, a college-dropout, played with convincing restlessness by Giovoani Ribisi. Seth suffers from rejection by his father, a noted judge, who has lost patience with is son. They barely have a relationship at all. One need only mention that Ron Rifkin plays the father to know that the character will be developed interestingly. Rifkin's portrayal goes a long way toward giving the film strength even though the father-son antagonism borders on cliche.
Seth sees salvation in becoming part of the brokerage. He has been running a gambling den at home, yet he is impressionable and naïve about the new set-up he is entering. He has some valuable lessons to learn, including the need for self-preservation. Younger piles on the complications almost to the point of melodrama as Seth is compelled to make a decision that will have bearing on his father, their relationship, his colleagues and his own life.
The rest of the cast is strong, too, including Vin Diesel, Nicky Katt, Tom Everett Scott, Scott Caan and Jamie Kennedy as other brokers, and Nia Long as Abby, a receptionist who has her own agenda. "Boiler Room," provocative and upsetting, augurs well for the writer-director's future as well as establishes itself early in 2000 as one of the year's important films. A New Line Cinema release.
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