Film review: 'The Wolf of Wall Street' is a good three hours spent at the theatre

Film: The Wolf of Wall Street
Cast: Cristin Milioti, Ethan Suplee, Jean Dujardin, Jon Bernthal, Jon Favreau, Jonah Hill, Kyle Chandler, Leonardo DiCaprio, Margot Robbie, Matthew McConaughey, Rob Reiner, Spike Jonze
Director: Martin Scorsese
Rating: ****


What's it about
Drugs, sex and money make up for most of the three hour running time of Martin Scorsese's latest offering The Wolf of Wall Street which is a departure from his classic style we've been familiar with.

Leo plays Jordan Bellfort a megalomaniac who plummets from the dizzying heights of super success after starting off as a modest stock broker from Long Island. There is so much colour and flavour to his character that everything else around him seems like a blur.

His rags to riches story is unlike anything you have seen so far. There is deceit, treachery in the form of money laundering, but there is also camaraderie, brotherhood and bonding between Jordan and his pack of wolves who stick to each other like bees in a hive.

What's hot
Despite the length, the first half is racy and fast enough to keep you hooked from the very first frame. The writing is smart and dialogues are laced with wit and sarcasm.

The humour is over the top with sexual innuendoes flung across the room at every given chance. With his non apologetic cut throat approach to make money off someone else's misery, Leonardo DiCaprio who collaborates with his director for a fifth time seems totally at easy playing Jordan. Clearly he's the alpha male of the wolf pack and it is his story that we are watching.

Despite an ensemble that boasts some solid acting heavy weights - Jonah Hill,  Matthew McConaughey and Jean Dujardin, the show belongs to the captain of the ship. The one scene that stands out in the film comes in the second half where an overdosed and paralysed Leo crawls his way on the ground in a four minute one take shot to get home. It is funny yet poignant at the same time.

Scorsese doesn't make Jordan a cliched Charlie who experiences remorse once the curtains fall down. Matthew McConaughey's lunch table act with Leo is surely one of the most entertaining scenes we have seen in recent times. The sound track and background score are superb paying an ode to the time of that decade.

What's not
There is a sense of repetitiveness that sets in the second half. The 'where do we go from here' syndrome sets in and the characters start playing out in a loop. Also there are multiple parallel tracks with Jordan and his relationship with his wife, his father, his friends, his lover, all on the surface none explored to their core. Not to be taken seriously the film has a lengthy climax that could have been wrapped much early on.

What to do
Watch it for the deadly Scorsese-Leonardo combination that creates magic each time these two team up. The Wolf of Wall Street is a good three hours spent at the theatre.

Watch the trailer: