5 Finance Movies Every Trader Should See

By Day Trade the World Staff

28 February 2017

Finance Movies – 5 That Every Trader Should See

I love movies. I have made it a habit of watching at least two movies every week between trades. I love movies and documentaries that tell a story. Like the classic Titanic. I also like watching interviews by top finance guys like Bill Ackman and Steve Shwarzman. Watching helps me understand the finance and investment world better. In the last decades, a number of Wall-Street themed movies have been released. Some such as The Big Short have won major awards. In this article, I will highlight my all-time Finance Movies that you should watch.

#1 – Inside Job (2010)

Inside job is a documentary that I recommend any person interested in finance to watch. The documentary, which has won a number of awards, details the events that led to the 2007/8 collapse in the financial market. The documentary interviews many top leaders in the financial market. Some of the experts who were interviewed for the documentary are: William Ackman (Pershing Square Capital Management), Christine Lagarde (then the minister of finance for France and now head of IMF), Dominic Strauss Khan (then head of IMF), and Raymond Dalio (Bridgewater Associates) among others. Past the crisis, a lot of documentaries have been made and books written. I however believe that the producers of Inside Job did a fantastic job by conducting an in-depth research.

#2 – The Big Short (2015)

I watched this movie with a good friend who has no interest in the financial market. He slept. This movie was clearly not made for people who didn’t love the financial market. Again, The Big Short is a follow-up to the financial market crash in 2007/8. The movie follows the life of a hedge fund manager called Michael Burry who before the crash had sent letters about the problems with Mortgage Backed Securities (MBS). His investors rushed to withdraw the money at a loss because they didn’t believe his thesis. A few months later, the market collapsed and Burry made money because he had large shorts.

#3 – Rogue Trader (1999)

I have written about Nick Leeson for this website before. Nick was a trader who at the age of 28 brought down a major bank called Barings Bank. This was one of the largest bank in the world after a £800 million loss. Nick was one of the highest ranked trader in the institution because of his perceived correct calls. However, he was not as exceptional as he made people believe. Following the huge losses and subsequent lies, Nick was sent to prison for a number of years. Traders should watch this movie to gain a good understanding of the derivatives and futures market.

#4 – Million Dollar Traders (2009).

Most people are fascinated with the fancy lifestyles of hedge fund managers. What many of them don’t know is that only a tiny percentage of hedge fund managers live a fancy lifestyle. Many hedge funds are liquidated on an annual basis. Million Dollar Traders was a three-episode reality TV show which gave normal people an opportunity to become hedge fund managers. British investor Lord Sugar provided the traders with all the cash they needed. He would then eliminate the most underperforming managers. This show will give you an opportunity to understand a few things about trading and also a number of mistakes that you should avoid.

#5 – The Wolf of Wall Street (2013)

This movie was banned in a number of countries because of the prolonged sexual scenes. The movie was a true story of once famous stockbroker known as Jordan Belforte. Leonardo De Caprio who was the lead actor. The movie went ahead to win a number of awards. Leonardo acts as the stockbroker who only cares about money. As a result, he ends up doing fraudulent deals which leads him to prison. This movie will help you as a trader remain grounded no matter the level of success you achieve.