Sex Drugs and Debauchery - The Wolf Of Wall Street

The Wolf of Wall Street was the nickname of Jordan Belfort, a stockbroker, trader and convicted criminal who worked in Manhattan during the 1980's as the founder of Straton Oakmont, a brokerage house. The Wolf of Wall Street is also an autobiography written by Belfort in 1999 recounting his escapades during the 80's. Finally The Wolf of Wall Street is also a 2013 film directed by legend Martin Scorsese and starring Leonardo DiCaprio. The screenplay of The Wolf of Wall Street was penned by Terrence Winter, writer of The Sopranos and Boardwalk Empire.

The film is essentially a satire of the hedonism of the eighties, while the events portrayed here are apparently accurate and mirror the events spoken of in the source materiel, events which are allegedly real, they are evidently exaggerations. I have no doubt that there really were raucous parties, sex and drugs in the office, and wild continuous drug use, the events shown here outshine anything humanly possible, events from throwing a dwarf at a target, to workers having sex in the office bathroom outside of the cubicle and Belfort pouring an entire vial of cocaine down his nose. Everything in this movie is larger than life, the parties are bigger the people are larger, the sex is wilder and the women are hotter. The Wolf of Wall Street uses satire to intensely criticize the debauchery of this era. Instead of Belmont's ship simply running into turbulent waters, the boat is seen as being flooded, hitting 20 foot waves and the helicopter and jet-skis falling into the water, with the ship finally sinking. Although some may see this film as simply a good ride, and many have criticized it for glamorizing the insane acts portrayed, the film uses hyperbole to show us how ridiculous and destructive this kind of behavior can be.

This is certainly not the kind of film you would want to watch with your parents. The first scene manages to accurately set the tone for the rest of the movie with Jordan Belfort seen snorting coke of a hookers buttocks. The drug use during this film is extensive, most of the main characters are seen relying heavily on drugs particularly quaaludes and cocaine.Characters are also seen drinking and smoking almost constantly and sex plays a huge role in this movie, sex is always being bought, sold or exchanged. In a sense the length of the film and sheer amount of graphic content is needed firstly to portray true events accurately, but also so that towards the end of the film, when we have finally become desensitized to all this, do we truly see how reprehensible and despicable these characters are. One must always remember that at it's heart, this film is still essentially a parody, and one wonders if perhaps we have become so alienated by films such as Scary Movie, that we no longer recognize an intelligent parody when we see one.

The film, in-keeping with its categorization as a black comedy, features numerous instances of faux commercials, and characters breaking the fourth wall, this is a clever way of using the first person, as it subtly reminds the audience that this is based on a memoir, and that it is a first person account, without using any heavy handed narration, there are also moments of Belfort correcting various facts, these feel like a nice touch, and add to the ambiance of the entire piece. The film features a fantastic cast, and DiCaprio shines in what is possibly his best performance yet, funny, charismatic and energetic. Leonardo DiCaprio cements his place as one of the most diverse, daring actors working in Hollywood today.

The supporting cast is also very strong, newcomer Margot Robbie shines in a breakout performance and the always electrifying Jonah Hill gives a fun performance as a truly reprehensible character. This film proves Scorsese's skill at directing actors, and the acting in this film is of a high standard. The direction is superb and the film is beautifully shot, i thank god that Scorsese didn't stoop to the lows of shaky-cam, and the film has a gorgeous smooth feel and look. I will admit that i don't really understand all of the criticisms of The Wolf of Wall Street, the film, although portraying some truly despicable behavior, the film satirizes this behaviour, and attempts to show us how ridiculous and desperate it is, just to be clear, this film is not a how to guide as some have misconstrued.

To be honest, i have very little bad things to say, it is energetic, fun and hedonistic. This satirical comedy is well acted, surely directed and features a strong screenplay. This film featuring one of the best performances seen by Leonardo DiCaprio in a motion picture, and a strong performance by newcomer Margot Robbie is a rambunctious infectious romp. But most of all, it's just really really good fun. Rating: A

"My name is Jordan Belfort. The year I turned 26, I made 49 million dollars, which really pissed me off because it was three shy of a million a week."