The Wolf of Wall Street

Yes, Scorsese has always entertained us so well with abberant types, from mobsters to street criminals to boiler room stock brokers, all dealing death or financial destruction 24/7. But, do any of them bear even a faint resemblance to what really happened, and did those people actually behave that way? Regarding this film, I worked on Wall Street during that time, and even though we had heard of Jordan Belfort's firm, it was totally discounted as a boiler room and had no Street cred at all, just a terrible rep as sleazebag junk. It was no more than a side story to the real Wall Street, as those boiler room types were the lowest level of that era's greed-is-good WS slicksters.

But, the movie.....could any human superman take the amount of drugs and unprotected sex shown in this story and even function, let alone at a high continuous level and not have a fatal heart attack? None that I have known or seen, and I have seen a lot. But, Dicaprio as Belfort was a marvelous choice for this outsized role, and he played it to the hilt as never before, with Jonah Hill as his sidekick comic relief, and Matthew Macconaughey a great choice for Belfort's oddball, probably whacked out(off?)mentor, and Bob DeNiro in a short mobster spot.

It was such fast action that the 3 hours went by quickly, with not a dull moment in it. I enjoyed the fantasy ride that Disney could not have done better, but I could never get past the fact that it was 99% dramatized fiction, done to sell tickets(greed is good!) but not to enlighten us at all about the real Wall Street of that era.

The Wolf of Wall Street (2013)

**** (out of 4)

Two word review: A Masterpice.

Martin Scorsese's latest film is yet another brilliant one with Leonard DiCaprio turning in the greatest performance of his career as stockbroker Jordan Belfort who takes some rather bland people and turn them into one of the biggest scams that the FBI ever saw. THE WOLF OF WALL STREET is going to make many people unhappy and there are many more who are probably going to be offended by it but the perfection that is Scorsese was right when he decided to turn this into a comedy instead of a drama. Yeah, it's GOODFELLAS on speed and ramped up sex but it's just so brilliantly and wickedly funny that you can't help but laugh at all the craziness going on. Yes, there are some moral police out there who are going to object to a movie being made about a man who ripped off poor people but I'm sorry, I like the fact that this film doesn't really care about those people and instead just gives us an in-your-face look at these wild people, their wild drugs and their wild sex lives. This film is certainly over-the-top in regards to the excess but so were the characters so I thought they just went hand and hand with each other. Scorsese was the perfect person for this project because of his ramped up speed but here is goes all out and really delivers an incredibly wicked little ride that will have you smiling and laughing at some very questionable things.

I've been a fan of DiCaprio long before he became famous and this here is without question the greatest performance he's given so far. I was curious to see how he would do playing someone crazy and wild like this but he does so perfectly and I'd say it was a flawless performance. No matter what was going on in this crazy life you believe that you're watching a real character and as his character says throughout the film, sell him something. Well, DiCaprio sells this performance and role like no one else could. The supporting players are just as wonderful with Jonah Hill, Margot Robbie, Rob Reiner, Jon Favreau, Matthew McConaughey and Jean Dujardin all delivering terrific performances. The cinematography, the music selections and everything else are just flawless here. THE WOLF OF WALL STREET could have been a complete disaster in so many ways but the strong screenplay and Scorsese's wicked direction makes it an incredibly entertaining film that works so well. It's hard to fully put into words what Scorsese and DiCaprio have pulled off but it's certainly one of the best and most memorable comedies in ages.

The last few Scorsese pics left me a little disappointed. I had begun to think Marty had become a 'gun for hire' and that his brilliance may have been spent (his earlier works were some of the best movies ever made). I attended a screening of The Wolf of Wall Street this evening, and was expecting to be unimpressed. I am happy to say I was completely blown away. This pic is Marty at his best. I laughed, I cringed, I related (with fond memories as well as a bit of guilt) and I TOTALLY believed every unbelievable moment. A good book, a great screenplay and a delightful cast were formed and molded into what I believe should get Scorsese a best director Oscar, and likely a Best Picture Award for the movie. Leo DiCaprio has grown into a versatile actor and his creation of this super hero dirtbag's roller coaster ride in this crazy (true) story is really honest and delightfully entertaining. Jonah Hill pulled out all the stops too and this is definitely his best work. Thank you Mr. Scorsese for delivering the goods so brilliantly!

The movie Leonardo DiCaprio should have gotten an Oscar for. His portrayal of the character is perfect. The movie is well-written, leaving no details out of the original story. Martin Scorsese never fails to impress. One of the only example where the movie is better than the book. The movie never gets boring, I could watch this anytime.

Brilliantly acted, superbly written and as one would expect from a picture by Martin Scorsese, it is a masterclass of directorial craft.

Showy when it needs to be, but also quiet and contemplative. "The Wolf of Wall Street" is the equivalent of something like "Good Fellas" or even more so "Casino" but set in the world of finance. The suits might be more expensive but the people who wear them are just as sick and violent as their street-mob counterparts. Sardonic in humor and unflinching in showing the depravity of its characters, it marks somewhat of a different approach to the world of stock-trading than Oliver Stone's "Wall Street".

Where Stone seems more in line with Bertold Brecht who considered theater (or in this case film) a moral institution, does Scorsese take the position of the omnipresent observer of the dark side of the American and in many cases the human dream.

Leonard DiCaprio gives another stellar performance of great intensity and even greater tragedy while this tale of corruption, greed and self-righteousness unfolds.

It's a vast panorama that shows how during the last twenty-five to thirty years gullibility as well as our innate greed make all of us accomplices in this never-ending pyramid scheme far away from any reality.

One could almost hear Scorsese's clerical background come to the fore again, according to which nobody is without sin, and therefore we are all susceptible to corruption.

It is our decision on which side we choose to live that makes the difference. For every individual but also society as a whole.