As if we needed another reason to distrust Wall Street, along comes "The Boiler Room."

Not that this foul-mouthed but well-meaning drama could possibly change someone's mind about anything substantial. After all, this is the same movie that can't really make up its own mind about what it wants to be.

In its first hour, the movie tries to examine the world of investing from the viewpoint of the broker — and in a fairly straightforward manner, no less. But then the plot takes a swerve toward Oliver Stone or John Grisham territory, ending with a weak conclusion that is not only contrived but incredible unsatisfying.

The result resembles what might happen if "Glengarry Glen Ross" met "In the Company of Men" at the corner of "Wall Street," although it's not nearly as powerful as that would imply.

Still, things could have been a whole lot worse. In fact, for a first effort, it's pretty impressive, considering writer/director Ben Younger only recently made a career switch from politics to filmmaking.

Of course, some of the headway made by this movie might also be attributed to its young, talented cast, which includes Giovanni Ribisi. He stars as Seth Davis, a college dropout running a mini-casino out of his apartment.

Seth's choice of careers doesn't exactly thrill his perfectionist father (Ron Rifkin), who also happens to be a judge. So, Seth joins J.T. Marlin, a Long Island brokerage firm that promises to make him even more money.

But to do so, Seth must work his way up through the firm, first as a $150-a-week "cold caller," then a junior associate, and finally, as a full-time associate. Fortunately, he's got a couple of senior brokers on his side, Greg (Nicky Katt) and fast-talking Chris (Vin Diesel), who agree to take him under their wing.

Things are going pretty smoothly for Seth — he even begins dating Abby (Nia Long), the pretty secretary at work. But maybe things are going a little too smoothly — at least judging by the suspicious actions taken by the company's reclusive head (Tom Everett Scott).

Younger has a good ear for dialogue, and his research into such so-called "boiler rooms" has yielded interesting material. It's his plotting that needs work, though some of his pacing leaves a bit to be desired as well.

He also coaxes good performances out of his cast — Ribisi and Diesel are the standouts, though Ben Affleck is good in a brief bit as a trainer — and his technical abilities at least give him a leg up on filmmaker Neil LaBute ("In the Company of Men"), who is surely one of his influences.

"The Boiler Room" is rated R for near-constant profanity, violence (a brutal beating), use of racial epithets, as well as crude slang terms and sexual talk, a brief scene of simulated drug use (cocaine) and glimpses of nude artwork.