Scorsese delivers yet another masterpiece.....

Rating: 10/10 (11 January 2014)

The Wolf Of Wall Street was my most anticipated movie of 2013. I was very familiar with its story, having read Jordan Belfort's book multiple times, reading two drafts of the movie script and watching countless interviews with Belfort himself. Martin Scorsese is my favourite director (his movie 'Goodfellas' is my favourite movie of all time) and Leonardo DiCaprio is my favourite actor. Add to that a supporting cast with the likes of Jonah Hill and Matthew McConaughey, and you get the idea of how excited I was for this movie. I'm very happy to say that it did not disappoint in the slightest.
Jordan Belfort's book has been adapted for the screen by Terrence Winter, and he does an excellent job of doing so. Having read the book, I noticed that there are quite a few differences in plot, specifically with things that happen towards the end of the movie. There were also some scenes in the book that were very hilarious, and I really wish had been put into the movie but sadly have not. This is my only minor gripe with the movie, but the content that has been included is so damn good that it pretty much cancels that negative out. Unlike other Scorsese films, The Wolf Of Wall Street is incredibly funny, there are some real hard laugh out loud moments. Not all of the comedy is dialogue between characters either, there's one particular piece of physical comedy that's easily one of the funniest I've ever seen. However, the story of The Wolf Of Wall Street isn't all fun and games, and there are some very dark and serious moments. Scorsese manages to perfectly shape a film that can meld the silly and the serious together flawlessly, with the silly being incessantly funny and the serious being incredibly heart- pounding.
The acting is absolutely phenomenal, everyone is performing to the top of their game. Now, I certainly don't think that the Oscars are the end all be all of movie recognition, but if DiCaprio doesn't get a nomination this year, then it's just proof of the Academy's grudge against him. He delivers yet another career topping performance after last year's 'Django Unchained', he just consistently gets better and better, never to failing to completely blow me away. Matthew McConaughey has a remarkably short amount of screen time considering he's fourth billing in the credits, but for every minute he's on screen he's utterly captivating, delivering one of the most memorable performances of the film. Jonah Hill is incredibly funny, say what you will about him but the guy can really act and here he just proves that yet again. There are very few female characters in the movie, and Margot Robbie plays the main one. After hearing about her casting I was sceptical as if to whether she would be able to pull off the character, but she does it perfectly. Some may complain about how little character development the females have, but bear in mind the story is told by Belfort, and he probably didn't see the women in his life as much more than objects of desire so he won't show them as any more than that. Supporting cast members like Jean Dujardin, Rob Reiner and especially Jon Bernthal all give outstanding performances as well.
Scorsese does a wonderful job directing, as he always does. Many people are saying that The Wolf Of Wall Street glamorises the criminal activities that Belfort gets up to, but if you think that then I seriously suggest you watch the movie again and take a long hard think about it. The film is three hours long, but Scorsese does the pacing so perfectly that it doesn't feel like it's that long, in fact I didn't want it to end. The cinematography and editing is great, and unlike many other Scorsese movies there is a very bright and vibrant colour scheme in contrast to the dark colours he very often uses, which was a very nice change. The soundtrack is flawless as Scorsese's soundtracks always are, and most things in this movie are flawless as well. It can easily be placed side by side with other Scorsese movies like 'Goodfellas', Casino', 'Taxi Driver' and 'The Departed'. Not only will The Wolf Of Wall Street go down as the best movie of 2013, it will be remembered as one of my favourites of all time.