If his previous films weren't proof enough, The Wolf of Wall Street provides sufficient evidence of Martin Scorsese's cinematic prowess. It is shocking that he made three hours in a theater seat literally "fly by", and even more shocking the things this film manipulated my mind to feel.
The Wolf of Wall Street chronicles the life of Jordan Belfort, albeit to an exaggerated degree (I hope to God, anyhow), the real-life New York swindling stock broker millionaire. He earned those millions by taking advantage of unsuspecting players in the stock market game and swindled the bills on countless hookers, enough drugs to tranquilize a pack of overweight elephants, multiple houses, a yacht... you get the picture. Some critics feel that this film glorifies such a lifestyle but I think they are missing the subtleties that make up the point- it is simply, in my opinion, a portrayal of a macho, testosterone-driven, shallow lifestyle somehow made acceptable by our society.
By some miraculous film miracle, I actually found myself empathizing with Belfort despite his uncountable list of heinous deeds. His partner, played by Jonah Hill, was only slightly less monstrous, yet I found myself "touched" by their strangely deep friendship. As Belfort would say, it's some "f***ed up s***" (actually, he would have sprinkled the phrase with a "c word" or two) to feel that way. That's the magic of good screenwriting coupled with convincing acting.
The cast of this film was bizarre. Random actors and actresses from movies dominating my childhood (Uncle Vernon from Harry Potter, one of the weird aunts from James and the Giant Peach, the main guy from that show where he got the newspaper one day early and saved people who died in the articles, etc.) kept popping up in the film. Everyone played their part perfectly, most notably our dear Mr. DiCaprio. What a loathsome embodiment of testosterone not even attempting to hide his filthy core... I can't stand that Belfort is not a concoction of the imagination.
A sign on the ticket counter warned me that The Wolf of Wall Street well-earned its R rating what with the pervasive language, frequent full-frontal nudity, sex, drug-use, blah-dee-blah. Yes. True. This film is not for the faint of heart. If you don't want to watch Leonardo DiCaprio throw little people at a dart board, beat up his wife, and snort line after line of cocaine through 100 dollar bills (often off the body parts of naked prostitutes) sometimes will already under the influence of quaaludes all while screaming every profanity you can imagine, skip this movie. But if you think there is even the slightest chance you can handle it, it is WELL worthwhile. It gets off to a running start and never really pauses until it beautifully wraps up after, as I said, three full hours, and it never skips a beat. Plus, they teach you all about quaaludes- I can't imagine all the useful things I can do with that newfound knowledge.
The Wolf of Wall Street chronicles the life of Jordan Belfort, albeit to an exaggerated degree (I hope to God, anyhow), the real-life New York swindling stock broker millionaire. He earned those millions by taking advantage of unsuspecting players in the stock market game and swindled the bills on countless hookers, enough drugs to tranquilize a pack of overweight elephants, multiple houses, a yacht... you get the picture. Some critics feel that this film glorifies such a lifestyle but I think they are missing the subtleties that make up the point- it is simply, in my opinion, a portrayal of a macho, testosterone-driven, shallow lifestyle somehow made acceptable by our society.
By some miraculous film miracle, I actually found myself empathizing with Belfort despite his uncountable list of heinous deeds. His partner, played by Jonah Hill, was only slightly less monstrous, yet I found myself "touched" by their strangely deep friendship. As Belfort would say, it's some "f***ed up s***" (actually, he would have sprinkled the phrase with a "c word" or two) to feel that way. That's the magic of good screenwriting coupled with convincing acting.
The cast of this film was bizarre. Random actors and actresses from movies dominating my childhood (Uncle Vernon from Harry Potter, one of the weird aunts from James and the Giant Peach, the main guy from that show where he got the newspaper one day early and saved people who died in the articles, etc.) kept popping up in the film. Everyone played their part perfectly, most notably our dear Mr. DiCaprio. What a loathsome embodiment of testosterone not even attempting to hide his filthy core... I can't stand that Belfort is not a concoction of the imagination.
A sign on the ticket counter warned me that The Wolf of Wall Street well-earned its R rating what with the pervasive language, frequent full-frontal nudity, sex, drug-use, blah-dee-blah. Yes. True. This film is not for the faint of heart. If you don't want to watch Leonardo DiCaprio throw little people at a dart board, beat up his wife, and snort line after line of cocaine through 100 dollar bills (often off the body parts of naked prostitutes) sometimes will already under the influence of quaaludes all while screaming every profanity you can imagine, skip this movie. But if you think there is even the slightest chance you can handle it, it is WELL worthwhile. It gets off to a running start and never really pauses until it beautifully wraps up after, as I said, three full hours, and it never skips a beat. Plus, they teach you all about quaaludes- I can't imagine all the useful things I can do with that newfound knowledge.
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| See- he really throws a little person at a dartboard... |
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