Scorsese stumbles with this misfire that wants us badly to have a good time, but just can't make it happen...

Rating: 5/10 (16 August 2014)

-THE WOLF OF WALL STREET
-2013 / R
-DIRECTED BY: Martin Scorsese
-STARRING: Leonardo DiCaprio; Jonah Hill
-DISTRIBUTED BY: Paramount
--- Don't buy into the hype; this is pretty much a bad film. I can obviously see why people are confused and thinking this is some piece of great filmmaking, but, in a couple of years, when people get around to re-watching it a time or two, it WILL hit them at some point that they never had to feel obliged to like this frighteningly-paced movie just because it's fine art mixed with cocaine and hookers.--- Of course, as usual, when it comes to Scorsese's legendary visual style and general aesthetic, he puts on the magic without effort...and, even twenty-five years after GOODFELLAS, he is still refining this little breathtaking world of his; fine-tweaking it as the years pass and his films become more and more relevant. But, his recent effort here is pretty much a wooden nickel coated with a thin, yet shiny candy shell. By this, I basically mean that the guy's stuff is ALWAYS worth a watch, but... what was he thinking exactly? Three hours of watching people laughing hysterically in a giant office just doesn't translate for me; the fun and games always kinda feel contrived. Basically, the first third or so feels like an invitation to dance; an invitation to dance that, at some point, abruptly turns into that situation where the way-too-drunk chick at the party suddenly turns up the music incredibly loud and begins yanking on your arm while spitting in your face at the same time. The critics didn't need to brown-nose this, and the Academy didn't have to either. Scorsese has the form down pact; no one argues this, but it may just have been normal, everyday bad judgment on his part to make a film that wants to get you to Woodstock, but with a quarter tank of gas. The sex, drugs and rock-n-roll combo is never one to come up empty-handed too often, but, man, next time go with something a little higher up from the bottom of Yahoo News. Gotta say though as well that Jonah Hill was very interesting...he definitely deserved the bit of praise he got for the part.
** out of ****
T.L.