Year: 2013
Director: Martin Scorsese
Country: US
Language: English
Scorsese’s raunchy film is based on the
true story of stockbroker/criminal Jordan Belfort (Leonardo DeCaprio),
from his rise to a wealthy stockbroker living the high life to his fall
involving crime, corruption and the federal government.
The opening shot of Martin Scorsese’s The Wolf of Wall Street involves Jordan Belfort snorting cocaine out of a prostitute’s ass. If you are shocked by this then you probably shouldn’t see the film, because the characters and situations get more sleazy and slimy as time goes on. The “F” word is used a record breaking 506 times, or three times per minute, and there is sex galore, including a brief 10+ person orgy. Wolf of Wall Street is a great departure from his last flick Hugo, a child-like tale about a boy living in the clock of a train station.
According to DeCaprio, the cast and crew were able to “push the envelope” with their depiction of over-the-top sexual acts and scenes in Wolf and “make the movie they wanted to” because they were financed independent and not limited by studio censorship.
Ever since Gangs of New York (2002), Scorsese displayed regrets of being involved with the studio system, so it’s great to see him finally be himself. Wolf will make you laugh, cringe and cry all without having to suspend your belief.
The main characters are truly gangster; unlike the mobsters in Goodfellas they are less violent, however they are also less pre-occupied with rules and traditions. Anything goes in Wolf because Scorsese injects it with a vital dose of id (Freudian term which describes the part of the psyche that is purely desire and instinct). Part of why this film is appealing is because the main character does things we could only fantasize about. We live vicariously through him throughout most of the running time.
Scorsese’s film is full of every cardinal sin short of murder, yet his camera is reluctant to step back and be an observer rather than a participant in Belfort’s gripping adventures. The Director does not make a defining judgement about the morality of the tale; if he were to do so then it would only dumb down his picture. He relies on the intelligence of his audience to get his message, because it’s not out in plain view.
It's difficult not to compare this flick to his 1990 classic Goodfellas as they are quite similar in content and characters. Both films are centered around drugs and immorality, they even have the cliche "hang guy over balcony" scene. However if you were to watch Goodfellas and Wolf of Wall Street back to back you would notice some glaring flaws in Wolf's screenplay.
In Wolf Scorsese did not spend much time establishing that Belfort hit rock bottom, and he certainly didn't ease into it. Sure he crashed his car, got divorced and was captured by the FBI but we didn't see the main character suffer. In Goodfellas we saw Henry Hill's miserable time in jail, we saw him frantically flushing pills down the toilet and becoming a wreck due to the mob life. Scorsese doesn't give us any sense at all that Belfort suffered from his criminal activities.
Even though Belfort and his pals are misogynistic assholes, that should not excuse Scorsese from his poorly written female characters. Margot Robbie, Belfort's love interest, has no personality whatsoever. She is not a threat to herself or to others; she's just around for the sake of being around. In comparison Karen Hill of Goodfellas was an incredibly intelligent woman who loved her family and would do anything to protect her children. Was she a threat to herself? Absolutely! She fell into addiction just like her husband and suffered as he did. Was she a threat to others? Hell yes. She pointed a gun at Henry while he was asleep and was moments away from killing him. All Margot did was tell Belfort that he couldn't have sex with her anymore. Why would Belfort care when he could have any woman he wants? He's a womanizer!
The opening shot of Martin Scorsese’s The Wolf of Wall Street involves Jordan Belfort snorting cocaine out of a prostitute’s ass. If you are shocked by this then you probably shouldn’t see the film, because the characters and situations get more sleazy and slimy as time goes on. The “F” word is used a record breaking 506 times, or three times per minute, and there is sex galore, including a brief 10+ person orgy. Wolf of Wall Street is a great departure from his last flick Hugo, a child-like tale about a boy living in the clock of a train station.
According to DeCaprio, the cast and crew were able to “push the envelope” with their depiction of over-the-top sexual acts and scenes in Wolf and “make the movie they wanted to” because they were financed independent and not limited by studio censorship.
Ever since Gangs of New York (2002), Scorsese displayed regrets of being involved with the studio system, so it’s great to see him finally be himself. Wolf will make you laugh, cringe and cry all without having to suspend your belief.
The main characters are truly gangster; unlike the mobsters in Goodfellas they are less violent, however they are also less pre-occupied with rules and traditions. Anything goes in Wolf because Scorsese injects it with a vital dose of id (Freudian term which describes the part of the psyche that is purely desire and instinct). Part of why this film is appealing is because the main character does things we could only fantasize about. We live vicariously through him throughout most of the running time.
Scorsese’s film is full of every cardinal sin short of murder, yet his camera is reluctant to step back and be an observer rather than a participant in Belfort’s gripping adventures. The Director does not make a defining judgement about the morality of the tale; if he were to do so then it would only dumb down his picture. He relies on the intelligence of his audience to get his message, because it’s not out in plain view.
It's difficult not to compare this flick to his 1990 classic Goodfellas as they are quite similar in content and characters. Both films are centered around drugs and immorality, they even have the cliche "hang guy over balcony" scene. However if you were to watch Goodfellas and Wolf of Wall Street back to back you would notice some glaring flaws in Wolf's screenplay.
In Wolf Scorsese did not spend much time establishing that Belfort hit rock bottom, and he certainly didn't ease into it. Sure he crashed his car, got divorced and was captured by the FBI but we didn't see the main character suffer. In Goodfellas we saw Henry Hill's miserable time in jail, we saw him frantically flushing pills down the toilet and becoming a wreck due to the mob life. Scorsese doesn't give us any sense at all that Belfort suffered from his criminal activities.
Even though Belfort and his pals are misogynistic assholes, that should not excuse Scorsese from his poorly written female characters. Margot Robbie, Belfort's love interest, has no personality whatsoever. She is not a threat to herself or to others; she's just around for the sake of being around. In comparison Karen Hill of Goodfellas was an incredibly intelligent woman who loved her family and would do anything to protect her children. Was she a threat to herself? Absolutely! She fell into addiction just like her husband and suffered as he did. Was she a threat to others? Hell yes. She pointed a gun at Henry while he was asleep and was moments away from killing him. All Margot did was tell Belfort that he couldn't have sex with her anymore. Why would Belfort care when he could have any woman he wants? He's a womanizer!
The sub-plot with the FBI agent and Belfort contributed very little to the story. I get that Scorsese wanted us to be on the side of the FBI agent but he comes in far too late into the story and rarely is mentioned again. We are so engrossed with Belfort as a character, that the FBI agent comes off as a complete dick. We don't want him to be competent at his job. Scorsese's screenplay also lacks the intensity we need from this FBI agent/Belfort relationship. When Henry Hill of Goodfellas was close to getting caught, we could see his fear and panic. We could see his paranoia and his intense desire to escape. Belfort had none of this, we don't sense any real danger from Belfort getting caught.
In conclusion, some audience members will condemn Wolf for celebrating debauchery; others will celebrate Wolf for its satire of the sex, drugs and rock and roll lifestyle. Scorsese has made an polarizing picture and will definitely incite conversation. It's a decent film, but a poor man's Goodfellas. 3.5/5
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