REVIEW: THE WOLF OF WALL STREET
If James Franco's Alien from "Spring Breakers" had Leonardo DiCaprio's Gatsby's millions and Christian Bale's foul mouth from "American Hustle"...they still wouldn't come close to the living extremity of a man that is Jordan Belfort. The cocaine-devouring, hooker-purchasing, finance exploiting stockbroker with a rags-to-riches past is the latest examination of Martin Scorsese in this explicit, bonkers 80's-set epic.
Like the aforementioned Gatsby, DiCaprio shows us with his third consecutive thrilling performance (also as a conniving slave owner in "Django Unchained") why he's one of Hollywood's greatest, currently or otherwise. "WOWS" begins, as movies typically do, with a number of stockbrokers hurling a helmet-clad dwarf against a large target bathed in money signs, and here's the thing: it sets the tone for the next three hours.
That's right: 180 minutes. It is single-handedly the movie's vital strength and flaw. While a life as worthy of silver screen adaptation as Belfort surely warrants a generous running time, there is no denying the movie chugs along at times slowly, and Scorsese and his editors surely could have trimmed the fat of any number of his character's profane tirades. But the sheer reveling in Belfort and his cohort's sinful ways is what leads to the movie's primal enjoyment. For the sake of brevity and not spoiling the movie, I won't go into their many exploits. The fun is seeing what they'll do next!
I'll be honest, I was confused by Jonah Hill's Oscar nod for "Moneyball." He was fine as a quiet statistician, but he excels here as Belfort's second-in-command, nailing a New York accent and pulling off a fake pair of teeth. He deserves hardware alone for the conversation he has with Leo about marrying his cousin, it's the film's second funniest moment.
To see the first, and a load of other debauchery (haven't used that word since the "Gatsby" review!) about how wrong the American dream can go, I strongly recommend "The Wolf of Wall Street" for the wildest movie-going experience you'll have this holiday season, if not the year.
Rating: 3.5/4 stars
Like the aforementioned Gatsby, DiCaprio shows us with his third consecutive thrilling performance (also as a conniving slave owner in "Django Unchained") why he's one of Hollywood's greatest, currently or otherwise. "WOWS" begins, as movies typically do, with a number of stockbrokers hurling a helmet-clad dwarf against a large target bathed in money signs, and here's the thing: it sets the tone for the next three hours.
That's right: 180 minutes. It is single-handedly the movie's vital strength and flaw. While a life as worthy of silver screen adaptation as Belfort surely warrants a generous running time, there is no denying the movie chugs along at times slowly, and Scorsese and his editors surely could have trimmed the fat of any number of his character's profane tirades. But the sheer reveling in Belfort and his cohort's sinful ways is what leads to the movie's primal enjoyment. For the sake of brevity and not spoiling the movie, I won't go into their many exploits. The fun is seeing what they'll do next!I'll be honest, I was confused by Jonah Hill's Oscar nod for "Moneyball." He was fine as a quiet statistician, but he excels here as Belfort's second-in-command, nailing a New York accent and pulling off a fake pair of teeth. He deserves hardware alone for the conversation he has with Leo about marrying his cousin, it's the film's second funniest moment.
To see the first, and a load of other debauchery (haven't used that word since the "Gatsby" review!) about how wrong the American dream can go, I strongly recommend "The Wolf of Wall Street" for the wildest movie-going experience you'll have this holiday season, if not the year.
Rating: 3.5/4 stars
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