The Movies Every Investment Banking Leader Should Watch

As year-end approaches, the pace inside investment banking accelerates, not slows. Deals push toward signature. Clients want final updates. Teams run hard. And then finally there’s a pause.

Some leaders use that time to unplug completely. Others read, travel, or reflect. But there’s another way to reset, one many senior bankers surprisingly share:

Watching movies that reflect the realities, lessons, failures, and psychology of high-stakes finance.

These films aren’t just entertainment they’re mirrors.

They reveal:

• the ethics we defend

• the blind spots we ignore

• the cultures we shape

• and the leadership we choose to become

Based on feedback from Investment Banking Leaders Podcast and club guests and with inspiration from the Altrum list, here are the films every banker should watch (or rewatch) with intention.

1. Wall Street (1987)

Lesson: Power Without Principles Isn’t Leadership

For many leaders, Wall Street was the spark that first made finance look electrifying, fast-moving, influential, intellectually competitive.

One guest told us:

“Wall Street is the movie that first fascinated me and drew me toward financial markets.”

Another still quotes Gordon Gekko regularly but with a caveat:

“Some younger bankers need reminding: Gekko was the villain and not the role model.”

Even Michael Douglas himself shared with Kai Liekefett at a party that:

“Gordon Gekko was never meant to be admired.”

It remains a cautionary tale: Ambition without ethics leads to collapse, not legacy.

2. The Wolf of Wall Street (2013)

Lesson: Culture Outlives Strategy

This one is divisive. Some find it hilarious; others cringe. Tanya Van Biesen, CEO of VersaFi shared:

“The Wolf of Wall Street did the industry no favours.”

It immortalised the worst stereotype the industry still works to unwind: The “finance bro” culture. excess, ego, and chaos disguised as confidence.

Yet there’s value in watching it intentionally:

It shows what happens when:

• the bar isn’t set

• boundaries dissolve

• leadership evaporates

• and incentives distort behaviour

It isn’t a manual, It’s a warning.

3. Margin Call (2011)

Lesson: When Models Break. Judgment Must Take Over

Margin Call captures a moment every banker understands:

That instant when numbers stop being numbers and become consequences. It’s a story of risk, fear, responsibility, and the loneliness of decision-making at the top.

Watching it through a leadership lens reveals a truth:

In moments of crisis, clarity matters more than complexity.

It’s uncomfortable and that’s the point!

4. The Big Short (2015)

Lesson: Complexity Doesn’t Remove Accountability

This film turns structured finance into storytelling and the global financial crisis into a moral case study. It reminds leaders that:

• markets aren’t abstract

• models don’t absolve responsibility

• and systemic failure is rarely a surprise, just ignored signals

For analysts, it’s education. For senior leaders, it’s accountability.

5. Barbarians at the Gate (1993)

Lesson: Deals Aren’t Just Numbers. They’re Psychology

This film tracks the RJR Nabisco buyout and the egos, miscalculations, and power plays behind one of history’s most chaotic deal processes.

For bankers in M&A or private equity, it hits close to home. It's not polished. It’s human. And precisely because of that, it’s accurate.

Bonus Pick From Leaders (Non-Finance but Highly Relevant)

Any Given Sunday (1999)

Leadership Lesson: Excellence Is Earned One Inch at a Time

Multiple guests referenced Al Pacino’s halftime speech as one of the greatest motivational monologues ever recorded.

Monika Nickl, MD & Co-Head of Consumer Europe at Lincoln International, shared:

“I use it to fire up my team, because the fight for an inch is what differentiates good from exceptional.”

Banking is the same:

• Every inch matters

• Every detail compounds

• Every decision signals leadership

Great teams don’t win instantly, they win relentlessly.

Meru (2015)

Leadership Lesson: No One Summits Alone

This documentary follows three climbers attempting one of the most unforgiving routes in the Himalayas. It’s a masterclass in:

• resilience

• preparation

• humility

• partnership

• and shared risk

Turner Bredrup, MD at Harris Williams described it as:

“The best visualisation of teamwork I’ve ever seen.”

In banking, like in climbing, ego doesn’t get you to the summit. Trust and teamwork does.

Final Thoughts

With deals closing, teams catching their breath, and the industry pausing, even briefly, this is the moment to ask:

What kind of leader do I want to be next year?

These films won’t answer that for you. But they’ll help you reflect. And reflection is where leadership starts.

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