Even though the movie is two decades old, the Boiler Room is still one of the most spellbinding thrillers, and some would argue the first hardcore stock exchange film since Wall Street in 1988.
Seth (Giovanni Ribisi) has dropped out of college and started a casino complete with specialized house chips, porn magazines and foul language in his New York apartment. A revered judge, Seth's father (Ron Rifkin), is not entirely oblivious to his son's actions and eventually challenges him, throwing a rocky father-son relationship into sheer chaos.
Seth decides that the New York Stock Exchange (effectively the world's largest "legal" casino) is the place for him and takes a job at J. T. Marlin, a brokerage just outside the area in trying to please his dad. The business is full of 20-something millionaires, costly suits, fine chairs made of Italian leather and pure decadence. Since the stocks being pitched do not exist, the cash is so simple to produce. Yeah, J. T. Marlin is a stock chop-shop, and the FBI has its eyes set on this one and, more importantly, our protagonist, like all interesting scams.
The workaholic society depicted is not unlike many modern-day war-room companies; the empires of Steve Jobs and Bill Gates closely resemble J.T. Marlin, in their commitment to working more hours than there is in a typical day. When you suspect nothing more than hard work and determination have contributed to the abundance of riches at the beginning of the film, you somehow want to become part of this society. After all, within three years, Marlin's staff are promised their first million, the secretary makes $80,000, and the telephone bill last month was a tad under the nonchalant $400,000 mark. But as things progress, you learn more and more about the poor people who in this big scam lose their money, particularly a middle-class man named Harry Reynard (Taylor Nichols).
Jim Young's (Ben Affleck) over-elaborate speech is used to suck in recruits by portraying an overly attractive opportunity that beckons new hires. The so-called "group interview" with the help of some f-words and the re-assuring tagline "We don't hire brokers here" is nothing more than his ruthless sales strategies at their finest. Ultimately, when all the rosy images are brushed away, and Seth reflects on his casino, the reality is more evident than ever, "The only legitimate thing I had was the illegal business I was operating."