The Wolf of Wall Street: a wild critic of materialism

The Wolf of Wall Street, based on Belfort's book written in jail, could have been literally a complete disaster or a total success. How come? The topic is sensitive and tricky to approach.

How do you relate someone's life when most of what he did either illegal or completely out of decency? Should the hero be dreadful or should the audience feel empathic for him?

SYNOPSIS: Based on the true story of Jordan Belfort, it tells us about a wealthy stockbroker who later falls in crime, corruption and the federal government.

The director Martin Scorsese (Shutter Island, The Departed, Casino) teamed up with Leonardo DiCaprio to produce and create a 3 hour-long movie that will captivate you.

The screenplay is not the most interesting part. It is literally Belfort's life, so, for the viewer who already read the book, it won't hold any secret. There is no additional fictional fact.

The fascinating part is how Scorsese tells us the story.

The easy choice would be to create a dreadful hero. Someone that the viewer will hate with all of his heart. Someone that we will be happy to see. Or dead. But then again, it would be easy, and less interesting for the audience.

When you meet Jordan Belfort for the first time, you feel him. He is poor, ambitious but completely inefficient and lost in the financial world. We can relate to him. His first day at work is a disaster partially because he doesn't know how to dial numbers and how to talk on the phone with the companies.

But soon, he will understand the wheel of Wall Street and rise from the bottom to the top.

You can see at the beginning of the movie the moment where he switched from being honest to being shady. Those two lines below are going to completely change his perspective of the world.

"Mark Hanna: The name of the game, move the money from your client’s pocket into your pocket.

Jordan Belfort: But if you can make your clients money at the same time it’s advantageous to everyone, current?

Mark Hanna: No"

The strength of the character is that even if he is a complete jerk, you don't hate him. You can see that he is stuck in an infernal spiral. He is a drug addict, money is the most valuable thing for him and the pressure on his shoulders is unbearable.

Leonardo DiCaprio is absolutely perfect in this role. He usually plays dramatic serious characters but this one is a jester. Comical in a dark way. You watch him drown slowly into hell.

The other actors are really good, even if their parts are more a one-way personality and don't have as many shades as Belfort does.

I very much appreciate the fact that Scorsese criticizes this aspect of society (the world of money, the cupidity and the traders) through a comical way that leaves us knocked-out and shocked. However, nothing is stated clearly and the director never preaches anything. It's not a lesson, it's a story.

Using every single shot to show the American greed, crazy ambition and how money can guide your life, Scorsese is painting the canvas of a satire about Wall Street.

Is the movie about the American dream? Some parts definitely are. The main idea of Belfort is to become rich. Starting from the bottom, he wants reach the top. That's the way he convinces all of his employees: selling a life-style that everyone wants (a yacht, a nice watch and a big house).

He is excessive. Materialistic. The movie show the massive fall of this attractive man, a golden wreck.

The movie has a an extraordinary energy, punctuated by a loud music. It is certainly a must-see movie if you are interested in this side of society.