Oscar Special: Movies & Money

Are you ready for tonight’s Academy Awards ceremony? I am.

I love movies and I love the Oscars. I credit, or blame when my personal picks don’t win or aren’t even nominated, my mother. She instilled a great love of film in me and one of my fondest childhood memories was how excited she was by Gregory Peck’s best actor win for "To Kill a Mockingbird."

A couple of years ago I convinced my then-employer,
Bankrate, that there is a legitimate connection between film and
finances. I’m not just talking about the millions it takes nowadays to
make a movie or the potential return of such cinematic endeavors or
even how much it costs you and me to get into a theater, not to mention
buy a Coke and popcorn!

I’m talking about what we can learn about money management from the movies, even films that don’t have a typical fiscal theme.

Well, I guess I made a pretty good argument or they were strapped for copy. Whatever, they let me run with my "Lights! Camera! Money!" idea. And it’s reposted today on Bankrate.

Remember, I wrote this a few years ago so you won’t see any of this year’s movies mentioned, but I think my choices back then are still worthwhile films with solid, and timeless, money messages.

So grab some snacks and settle into your favorite chair to see what financial lessons I gleaned from films like "Gone in 60 Seconds," "What’s Eating Gilbert Grape?" and "The Untouchables" by clicking here. There’s even an audio component — yep, that’s my mellifluous voice — as the last link (Flash version) in the right navigation bar.

I hope you enjoy my flick picks and associated money lessons. And I hope your favorites walk away with a statue this evening.