Summary
Gekko takes Wildman, Wildman's associate, and Bud upstairs in his home and shows them his gun collection, including a Luger gun that is one of only six that were originally manufactured. Wildman accuses Gekko of being corrupt in having bought up his company, and informs him that he doesn't plan on selling the business but on revitalizing it, in order to bring back Anacott Steel and help its workers. The two men exchange many insults, with Wildman calling Gekko a pirate, before finally settling on a deal. Wildman agrees to pay more than the original selling price to Gekko in exchange for full control of the company. Gekko eventually agrees on a sum and Wildman leaves, angrily.
When Wildman leaves, Bud quotes the book on war that Gekko told him to read, all about how to handle business deals in the appropriately aggressive way. Gekko is pleased that Bud is taking his advice and smiles at him.
In the very early morning, Gekko calls Bud and tells him that $100,000 in Hong Kong gold has just been sent to him, and that he should "play with it" in order to make some more money. Gekko is walking on the beach and talking on his cellphone, advising Bud to keep working hard and to get some new info, by any means possible. He then reveals that he knows that Bud is going on a date with Darien and tells him to be careful.
Bud goes to visit his college friend Roger Barnes, and makes some pleasantries before trying to get some insider tips from him. Roger doesn't want to tell him anything, for fear of getting disbarred, and turns down an offer to grab a beer. On their way out of the office, however, he points out to Bud that most of the good secrets of the firm can be found in his uncle's office down the hall.
Outside, Bud makes conversation with a man from the maintenance company the cleans the office building and makes him a business offer. In the process, Bud steals a maintenance worker uniform and sneaks into the law firm later that night, looking for documents that might give him a tip. He uses the information to make some more deals with a friend and grow Gekko's capital.
We see Bud on a date with Darien, in which he tells her he wants to ride a motorcycle across China. She tells him she wants "to do for furniture what Laura Ashley did for fabrics." One night, he tries to get into the firm in the evening, posing as a maintenance worker, but runs into a lawyer who stops him.
Bud visits his father at Bluestar Airlines. Carl complains that management is about to lay off five of his workers and it's got him stressed out. After commiserating, Bud gives his father $5,000, a dividend for all the money Carl gave him over the years. When Carl doesn't want it, saying "Money is one giant pain in the ass if you ask me," Bud suggests he buy a new suit or a new bowling jacket.
At Gekko's Hamptons home, Bud, Darien and Gekko ride go-carts. Then, poolside, Bud is given partial power of attorney for Gekko's accounts, further folded into Gekko's business. An attorney warns Bud that if anything happens, he's on his own, and tells him to put some money in an offshore account. Gekko's toddler son comes out and Gekko brags about how smart he is, before the boy throws a berry at the attorney. Kate instructs a babysitter to put the baby to bed.
At a payphone, Bud calls Roger and makes a deal, promising him some "easy money." Roger reluctantly agrees, as the scene shifts to Harry Lynch laying off Dan at Bud's office. Bud walks past the office, noticing the firing, and greets Marvin, who tells him Dan's getting fired for not meeting his quota.
Immediately after firing Dan, Harry makes an announcement over the loudspeaker that Bud has brought in the most money of anyone, saying, "Shows cold calling does work, fellas." After Marvin sarcastically congratulates Bud, Lou tells him to enjoy it while it lasts, "because it never does." As he walks up to the front of the room, Bud pats Dan on the arm before following Harry into his new corner office.
A real estate agent shows Bud a penthouse apartment on the Upper East Side. He buys it and has Darien design the interior, complete with carpets, art on the wall, and gold leaf. She tells him she's having House & Garden come to photograph the apartment the next week.
One night, Darien and Bud make homemade pasta and sushi in his new kitchen. As opera music plays, they sit down to dinner together. "Isn't it perfect?" she says, and he tells her it's "too perfect." After dinner, they have sex.
Later, on the roof, Bud looks out over the city and says, "Who am I?" shaking his head, and Darien beckons him to bed.
An art auction. Gekko bids millions on a large painting, with Darien by his side. After the auction, he suggests they get a suite at the Carlyle, to "celebrate just like old times." Darien insists that their affair is over, before telling Gekko that she's falling in love with Bud. Gekko advises against it, as he feels kindred to her because neither of them have bought into the myth of love. She asks Gekko never to tell Bud that they had an affair, and he agrees.
One day at work, Marvin comes and bothers Bud while he's working, making fun of him for being so high strung. Out of nowhere, Bud becomes angry, yelling, "I am sick of playing wet nurse with you all the time, alright? Will you do your own homework, Marv?" Marvin leaves the room, scowling at his old friend, now changed.
Analysis
In this section, we see Bud Fox's desire for wealth and power overtake his ambivalence about his line of work. He decides to go all in with Gekko, working with him to make as much money as he can and living the high life. As the money begins to pour in, he has no doubts about what he is doing, and becomes ruthless in his pursuit of the good life, never having any second thoughts about the backwards, crooked ways he accumulates his wealth.
Part of what pulls Bud deeper into the business is not only the money that comes with it (though that is a huge perk), but also the approval of Gekko and the feeling of having an aggressive and powerful paternal figure. He memorizes a passage from Gekko's favorite book about warrior tactics by Sun-tzu: "If your enemy is superior, evade him. If angry, irritate him. If equally matched, fight, and if not split and reevaluate," and recites it to Gekko, much to Gekko's delight. Bud's ascendancy is not only related to his ambition, but also the fact that Gekko sees something of himself in the young stockbroker.
The irony of Bud's circumstance is such that while he is wheeling and dealing, using whatever means necessary to get the tip that will help him make some easy money, he is rewarded at work for being such a hard worker. When Harry announces that Bud has brought in a great deal of revenue, he says, "Shows cold calling does work," as if to make an example of Bud. In fact, Bud is cutting corners and working less hard than he had been, but he's aligned himself with the haves rather than the have-nots. In contrast to a figure like Dan, who has been loyal to the firm but gets fired unceremoniously after not making quota, Bud seeks to play the game of the stock market with a cutthroat will to win, which happens to mean cheating.
Director Oliver Stone aligns the viewer with Bud, yet consistently reminds us of the tenuousness of Bud's situation. Every time Bud enjoys a victory, he is followed by a ghost of his past, reminded that the highflying success he's enjoying has come at a price. When he visits his father, he is able to pay him for all the financial help he's given him over the years, but he also learns that coworkers of Carl's are being laid off, which is a direct consequence of his throwing the airlines under the bus to help Gekko. Then, when he is promoted to a corner office, he must pass his older coworker Dan in order to get to the office, and he looks at the dismayed face of his old friend with a look of thinly-masked dismay.
Bud's confusion about the course of his life catches up to him at odd moments, particularly when it all seems too good to be true. After he buys his idyllic Upper East Side penthouse and gets it furnished by his new beautiful mistress Darien, after they have made homemade gourmet food and had passionate sex, he goes on the roof and whispers to himself, "Who am I?" This question has an ambiguous meaning. On the one hand, it appears that Bud is awestruck at his luck, relishing in the fact that he has amassed so much wealth, but on the other, it appears that he has lost something of himself, that he does not recognize himself, that it has all become too disorienting.
