Excess vs. Access

Rating: 7/10 (29 December 2013)

The Wolf of Wall Street is funny, coming from the much respected Martin Scorsese, a director I appreciate more and more as I get older it comes as a bit of a surprise. It's never meant to be taken too seriously, so if you're in the mood for something heavy and dark in subject matter and mixed with equal parts laughs humour, I have 3 hours for you to spend at the cinema. It doesn't really deserve any Oscar consideration (not that it matters), but it is a very well made film that will continue to exist, so you might as well sit down and enjoy it before it gets shoved in your face by the end of awards season.
Leonardo DiCaprio gives a wonderfully physical performance that is a lot more over the top than anything he's done before, you still never forget you're watching DiCaprio, as is with Jonah Hill, but because their off- screen chemistry comes together on-screen there are no complaints in the acting category, though a nice bit of observation. In playing Jordan Belfort in his 24-36 year old period, it feels like the first time the baby-faced actor is playing too young. The Hollywood golden boy is finally showing physical signs of having grown up. This isn't something I'd dock the movie for, rather I see it as a positive indicator for DiCaprio's career arc.
The only major complaint I would have about the film overall is that in being 3 hours of self-indulgence, and Scorsese and company being very aware of the themes of excess running throughout Jordan Belfort's life, the film almost doesn't feel worth the time the audience spends involved. It's a filmmaking paradox, which means it achieves it own means sometimes at the audiences' expense. This in turn is a major crime, that like the whole of the film and point of it, doesn't prove to be a major consequence.
Rating: B/ +2