Wallstreet (1987) is a movie about a stock broker named Bud Fox that is struggling to make it in the industry. Bud is in a bad position because he owes a lot of money to banks and still has to borrow money from his father. Bud's persistence eventually gets him in touch with Gordon Gekko a multi-millionaire within the stock trading industry. This stock trading partnership begins with Bud using insider knowledge of the company blue star airlines to make a profit for Gordan. Gordon takes a liking to Bud and has him run an operation to steal stock from Harry lynch. After this interaction, Bud begins working for Gekko to make him an immense amount of wealth. The relationship goes steading and Bud are introduced into Gordan's circle of friends and finds a woman that he likes. Bud continues his working relationship with Gordon and is eventually given power of attorney over a large sum of money from Gordon. Bud then uses an old connection from college to get knowledge on a paper company. This transaction is successful and this provides even more capital. Bud then attempts to broker a deal for Gordan that would save Blue Star airline from going bankrupt. Gordon decides to liquidate the company and bud became distraught. Bud then crosses Gordon by manipulating the stock so Harry can take control of the company. Bud's paper trail catches up with him after crossing Gordan and he is arrested. The film ends with Bud ratting out Gordan and him arriving at the courthouse.
Wallstreet (1987) is a great example of people's perspective of value. Value is someone's perception of what a good or service costs to that individual. A good or service can be expensive to manufacture bud that number is irrelevant if people don't perceive that good to be more valuable than the cost. Value is subjective and is dependent on a bunch of factors. If someone does not believe that the product is worth the cost then they won't purchase it. The stock market relies on the perception of value. When people invest stock in a company they rate the perceived value of the company and it rates it against their peer's perceived value. This applies to more than just stock. When someone invests in property something they could look into are factors that could affect the value. This could mean that a window-side bathtub on top of a skyscraper is worth millions to the people who can afford it but may not be a priority to somebody who can barely afford food. Since value is subjective and rated by each and every individual it makes it hard for entrepreneurs to speculate what the general public can and will perceive as valuable. This perception of value is constantly changing with the environment. An old CRT TV may have been valuable to people way back when but are not desirable now because of the change in technology over the years, but could regain value because a big enough populace decides that it is valuable as a collector's item.
