A Wolf In Sheep's Clothing

Rating: 8/10 (2 February 2014)

1987 bought us Oliver Stone's Wall Street, and in turn inspired thousands in wanting to become the next Gordon Gecko.
Michael Douglas' Oscar-winning portrayal of the film's villainous antagonist was brutal but honest, and the motto "Greed Is Good" was reflective of a decade of the "quick-buck" culture.
That being said, it is easy to see why Jordan Belfort, the man who's memoir has inspired The Wolf Of Wall Street, became so heavily embroiled in the world of stock brokerage, and eventually financial crime.
The Wolf Of Wall Street tracks the life of Jordan Belfort, an ambitious young salesman whose ambitions seem to far outweigh practicality and realism, in what is quite literally a twisted rags to riches tale of excess and corpulence.
Somewhat ironically we meet a fresh faced Belfort (Leonardo DiCaprio) in the same year as the release of Stone's picture, setting up the as vulnerable and naive yet driven and determined to succeed and provide for his family.
Throughout the course of the film we follow Belfort's evolution from "lower than pond scum"(as described by the first Wall Street stockbroker we are introduced to) to President and co-founder of Stratton Oakmont.
A combination of bad choices and bad luck (in addition to what may be described as karma) however soon begin to signal Belfort's life unraveling and the metaphorical waves literally begin to consume him.
The character of Jordan Belfort is fascinating, and it is near-on impossible not to feel some semblance of pity and sympathy during the harder times which are endured.
While demonstrating chauvinistic, selfish and sexist traits at times, DiCaprio maintains a sense of charisma and appeal which make Belfort relatable even when committing his most debaucherous acts.
It is easy to see why parallels to "Wall Street" have been drawn. Covering almost identical subject matter from a near identical time frame, even the character of Gordon Gecko is alluded to during a particular scene, demonstrating a clear awareness of the context and influences that evidently shaped Belfort into becoming the titular "Wolf".
The parallels to Stone's 1987 picture are evident throughout, however we see far more semblance and similarity with Scorcese's previous work such as Goodfellas than of Stone's fictitious tale of Bud Fox and Gordon Gecko, in particular with regards to the first person narrative and non- linear story arc.
Jonah Hill and Margot Robbie provide exemplary supporting performances as best friend Donnie and (2nd) wife Naomi respectively, but neither can take away from the mind-bending show DiCaprio gives as the titular "Wolf" spanning emotions from incredulous anger, to slapstick physicality and drug-addled stupor.
While admittedly overlong, there is argument to suggest the hefty three- hour run time is justified and reflective of the characters need for excess and corpulence - I don't particularly buy that argument as the film does feel baggy at times, however given the fantastical nature of Belfort's story it is understandable that Scorcese would want to include as much as humanly possible for such an ambitious biopic.
Other than length, my only other reservation with the film was believability. Based on the aforementioned memoir, some scenes show a level of self-referrentiality and awareness of the fact that the story is told form Belfort's first person perspective. Where the contrast is not actively shown on screen however, it does sometimes become difficult to sift fact from Belfort's clearly wild and unwavering imagination.
Critics of The Wolf Of Wall Street have lambasted it as indulgent and over-aught, and it is clear to see why this is the case. After all, Scorcese does not attempt to depict the victim's of Belfort's immoral and illegal activity and therefore provides no perspective by which to judge his questionable actions.
Without contextualizing Belfort in this way, it is easy to see why some have felt a lack of engagement and/or empathy with/for the films anti- heroic protagonist, however I would argue that one does not need to agree with or even necessarily like any given character in order to engage with, feel empathy for and/or learn from.
I would recommend this movie to any Scorcese fan or in fact anyone who enjoys black comedy and is not averse to the (not-so) occasional bout of sweariness, sex and illegal substances.
If for nothing else though, see this film for Leonardo DiCaprio giving the performance of a lifetime.