Human Depravity In Its Most Delightful Form

Rating: 9/10 (22 November 2014)

So many have been quick to label this movie as a glorification of reckless behavior. Critics claim that the movie has a moral ambiguity, and that it actually promotes the sex, drug abuse, and debauchery it shows on screen. And I can certainly see why one might say that: The Wolf Of Wall Street is a graphic movie. It has probably the most graphic depiction of drug abuse I've seen on screen, as well as sex scenes that are almost to a pornographic level and f-bombs which never seem to stop. However, watching The Wolf of Wall Street, I felt more like the movie was a commentary on people and how greedy and depraved we are. It's one of the reasons I love this movie, not to mention the fact that it's a well-written, well-directed, and well-acted film.
We all know how great of an actor Leonardo DiCaprio is, and he's definitely progressed more and more with each movie he is in. But with this movie he gives his absolute best performance to date, giving his 110% to every seen, whether he is calm and collective or he's spazzing out and screaming at the top of his lungs. You can feel how much he took over the character. Jonah Hill also takes a dramatic turn from what we're usually used to seeing him as. He's still his funny self, but man the guy really can act! Matthew McConaughey, while not in the movie much, makes a memorable appearance earlier on in the film.
All of the other actors do a really good job, and that largely has to do with the script by Terrence Winter ("Sopranos"). This is easily the best written movie of 2013, and while one could certainly detract it for its 500+ f-bombs, it has some of the best and most memorable lines to come out of a movie this year.
And of course we can't forget to give Martin Scorsese his due. We all know he's a talented director. He's made classics, and this could easily become of his classics. This could easily fit in with something like Goodfellas and Casino, and is very similar in content and in style. It fits perfectly with all of his filmography.
I also have to give props to the editing and the visual effects team. The editing and cinematography looks incredible, as it always is with Scorsese and how he puts his movies together. But I was really surprised when I found out how much of this movie was actually CGI. There are a lot of locations and sections that we see in the movie that are completely computer-generated, and you don't even realize it. So props to the team in charge of that.
In the end, The Wolf Of Wall Street may be graphic, sometimes almost to a fault, but ultimately does a great job at depicting this real life event as well being another welcome addition to the Scorsese catalog. My only complaint is that it may have run a little too long at times, but there's nothing in here that needs to be taken out in order to make a much better film, and it's already fantastic the way it is. So if you like Scorsese and don't mind a lot of sex, drugs, and swearing, pick this one up.