Coming in the wake of a Golden Globe, this might take a few readers by surprise. But this had to be written, if only for the sake of my own sanity.
The entire world is raving about The Wolf of Wall Street; people watching it a repeated number of times and recommending it to friends. As a recommendation, I too went to see the film. And here's what happened!
For starters, it is not a good idea to watch a three hour long movie alone. Although I love Leonardo DiCaprio, but three hours of him is a little too much to handle. The Wolf of Wall Street could definitely do with a little more editing. I understand that Jordan Belfort (the real-life scamster) held regular motivational talks at his office. But we really have to see all of them on screen? A little less talking wouldn't harm and I would still understand the enthusiasm of the man in robbing people.
The initial scenes of DiCaprio as a stockbroker and at his own firm, training his colleagues, are a great rush. You can almost feel the adrenaline rush that DiCaprio's character must be feeling in that moment. But after a point you stop feeling the rush and the lower half of your body.
Leonardo DiCaprio, Jonah Hill and Martin Scorsese make a formidable team. But even they can't make up for the glitches that are not expected from a Scorsese film. I end up watching a movie about a fraud who wanted to get rich at the cost of other's hard-earned money. Not to mention, he has to pay for his excesses. But we never really see him guilty or repentant of his actions. The worst that happens to him is a divorce and three years in prison. He amends his ways by becoming a motivational speaker. Isn't that getting off too easy? I am reminded of DiCaprio's Catch Me If You Can where we see him cornered. Frank Abagnale paid for his crimes whereas Jordan Belfort simply became famous.
After all the talking and addiction rides when you finally reach the end, you are left asking for more. You see Belfort addressing a room full of people in his new avatar of a motivational speaker. Two questions for Mr. Scorsese:
- Is Belfort already successful as a motivation guru? If yes, then I want to see how he pulled that off. Out of the prison and on to the stage feels just too easy and not much of a penalty for cheating people of their money.
- Is Belfort's success a continuation of his efforts before he got arrested? If yes, then I must confess that the world is full of really good people who are willing to trust the word and learn from a scamster. I know that I wouldn't.
Before I forget, there is a two-bit presence of Matthew McConaughey as Belfort's first mentor in the big, bad world of bulls & bears. But he disappears before you can bat an eyelid. Too less and too wasted for McConaughey's talents that deserves more than a loud-mouth, boom-boo-boom routine.
So yes, Mr. Scorsese and Mr. DiCaprio, even though I love you both and your previous collaborations, The Wolf of Wall Street sounded more like that fake wolf cry than an epic.
