The Wolf of Wall Street

WARNING - WHILE THE MOVIE IS MAINSTREAM IT HAS A SIGNIFICANT AMOUNT OF SEXUAL CONTENT AND DRUG ABUSE AND FOUL LANGUAGE - THIS DESPITE THE CENSOR BOARD'S BEST EFFORTS TO CHOP AS MUCH AS THEY COULD.  DO NOT WATCH IF YOU HAVE RESERVATIONS ABOUT THESE ISSUES.

When you have 2 of the biggest names in Hollywood coming together for the fifth time in a decade, you usually wait with bated breath for the first sign from people who are more fortunate to have seen before you.  You wait to hear if this one is remotely as good as the previous ones – Gangs of New York, The Aviator, The Departed, Shutter Island and now The Wolf of Wall Street – the 5^th Time Leo DiCaprio and Scorcese have come together.

And this time it is an absolute blinder.  I say this because, for the first time, I have seen this combination giving us something that is so outlandish that you are forced to question it throughout the movie.  The debauchery shown over 3 hours is definitely not believable even for those who love the Scorcese DiCaprio combination to bits.

Its plain impossible to believe the amount of sex, drugs and money that Jordan Belfort (Leo DiCaprio) and his cronies indulged in.  Most men would say this out of jealousy (in all probability).  But then this TIME Magazine article says most of it is truer than true http://entertainment.time.com/2013/12/26/wolf-wall-street-true-story/.  Who are we to question? Ergo – B-L-I-N-D-E-R.

The Wolf of Wall Street is based on the autobiography of Jordan Belfort, a stock broker from the 1990s who started an organization by name Stratton Oakmont after being rendered jobless on Black Friday.  He was employed by L F Rothschild till then.  A chance meeting with a small agency dealing in “penny” stocks leads him on the way to being a billionaire and the high that comes along with it.

For those who were unaware TWoWS has little to do with Gordon Gecko except for a small reference half way down the movie.  It is an extremely hard hitting and powerful movie from one of the best directors of our time.  Needless to say, DiCaprio is superb with most of his scenes.  I for one thought that we are in line for yet another predictable performance but you have to see this one to believe it.

There is hardly anyone who puts a foot wrong in terms of acting.  Jonah Hill is outstanding and is in line for his 2^nd nomination and probably a 2^nd award (unless Daniel Bruhl gets nominated as a Supporting Actor which would be a travesty).  Hill has moved brilliantly from being a run of the mill slapstick comedy actor to one who can hold his own in front of huge names like Brad Pitt and now DiCaprio.

TWoWS is probably the boldest movie that Scorcese has ever made to date.  There are some sequences where you may land up having an embarrassing lump in your throat – especially if you have someone who is less than 18 years old next to you.  The heavily censored version releases in less than 24 hours.  I for one am definitely going to get my hands on the original Blue Ray.  8.5 on 10 – definitely in the top 10 for the year.

Watch the trailer on http://www.imdb.com/video/imdb/vi2312218649/?ref_=tt_ov_vi