Debauched, depraved, delightful

Rating: 9/10 (26 April 2016)

1. I gave this movie 6/10 when I first watched it two years ago. What the hell was wrong with me?
2. I didn't want DiCaprio to win the Oscar in 2013 because I thought McConaughey was more deserving (and Ejiofor was more than both). But now that the Internet got him an Oscar for The Revenant, I think its a huge shame because this is where DiCaprio's strengths lie. Jordan Belfort is a loud, bombastic, debauched, deranged, hyperactive animal - and we love him every moment he's on screen. DiCaprio invests him with an animalistic energy that dips into humanity's id and just lets himself go crazy.
3. Without DiCaprio's performance, this three hour movie would feel its length. That's why The Revenant killed me - it was just painful waiting for something to happen. Here, there is ALWAYS something happening.
4. Props to Jonah Hill for his fantastic performance as well - likely the finest of his career. His big, gleaming fake smile and his equally depraved behaviour is a perfect compliment to DiCaprio. The best scenes in the film involve Jonah Hill, who gets an even stronger reaction out of you with his frustrating behaviour. But in the film's more serious moments, there is that Goodfellas camaraderie between Azoff and Belfort that makes the characters feel like real adults who lived.
5. The rest of the cast is also up for the challenge, with talented TV actors like Kenneth Choi, Jon Bernthal and Ethan Suplee appearing memorably amongst Belfort's chums, Oscar winners Matthew McConaughey and Jean Dujardin stealing the show in small roles, and directors like Jon Favreau, Spike Jonze and Rob Reiner stopping by an being generally excellent (Reiner is particularly memorable as "Mad Max" Belfort). McConaughey's scenes are hypnotic in their excellence. But the real standout is Margot Robbie, who I watched when she was on Neighbours and love seeing her breakout into the main stream.
6. Robbie is completely intoxicating, thanks in part to the film's makeup and costume team. The comparison with Cristin Milioti as Jordan's first wife is a subtle but clever one - despite Milioti being cute as a button, the film makes her look just a little bit too frumpy or standard compared to the luxurious Naomi.
7. A lot of the film was improvised, which pads the run time a bit but the fun that everyone is having is incredibly infectious. The things that are unforeseen, like a kitchen island during the Quayludes scene, contribute even more to the film. The continuous and excessive swearing is magnificent.
8. Scorsese and his cinematographer Rodrigo Prieto dart around the film with freeze frames, slow-motion, tracking shots and multiple lenses to show up the drug high scenes. It is really impressive filmmaking.
9. The use of music is great as well, especially with the McConaughey humming replicated into a musical score to play over key moments.
10. This is Scorsese's best movie since Casino, possibly even better. It is full of manic energy, the mood of each scene is unbelievable. DiCaprio is an actor to be treasured, and I hope Scorsese has one or two more of these still in him.