Oscar Watch: The Wolf of Wall Street Review

Martin Scorsese is a living legend among directors. His work has spanned decades and has garnered praise from critics and audiences alike. He will certainly go down in history as one of the great directors, sharing his company with the likes of Alfred Hitchcock, Howard Hawkes, Billy Wilder, Ernst Lubitsch etc. It is always a pleasure to go into a movie and know that you are witnessing the work of a living legend like Scorsese. The Wolf of Wall Street is a very entertaining film, feverishly directed with the energy that one would come to expect from the director of Goodfellas. Despite the artistry behind the camera the Wolff of Wall Street fails to completely overcome a script that doesn't quite earn its debauchery.

That script is by writer Terrence Winter who is famous as the head writer on the show Boardwalk Empire. Like that show there are many great scenes woven into this script about an extravagant stock broker but these scenes are only glimpses of brilliance in a script that fails to really do justice to the story. What I mean by this is that while the script shows many entertaining scenes of Jordan Belfort's excess it fails to show nearly any of the consequences of his actions. There is barely even a glimpse of the financial ruin that a man like Belfort caused. In fact while the script says that Belfort's actions as stock broker were illegal it never explains the reasoning behind this so the viewer is left feeling that Belfort was merely a guy who partied too hard and got caught. In many ways the film is the epitome of three hours of excess, entertaining excess at that, but still excess without much real substance. The one other positive about the script besides its entertainment value is the way that it manages to keep this long movie moving at a decent clip. So many outrageous things happen that we barely have time to internalize them and this is what makes the movie work reasonably well despite its flaws.

The reason I spent so much time on the script is that I feel like the script's lack of consequence was really the only thing burdening this movie. Mr. Scorsese is at the top of his game in terms of directing and several of the sequences feature incredible style. The acting is top notch because the cast is so meticulously chosen. DiCaprio deserves praise for his exuberance and believability in the role and Jonah Hill delivers another incredible supporting actor performance. Hill is one of the best comedic character actors in modern film when he is given the right character and here he shines just as he did in Moneyball. The soundtrack is well chosen as always and several of the sequences are laugh out loud funny. In fact I would say that Wolf was one of the funniest movies I saw this year and its a testament to the cast and director that this film was so entertaining. For some this movie will be too edgy but for others the lack of consequence in the script will not bother them in the least. Wolf could have been great but because of that one factor it fell to good and that's really more a testament to its legendary director that it wasn't any worse. 3.5/5

The Departed (2006)

This crime film was the one that finally gave Scorsese his academy award. based on a foreign film called Infernal affairs this story of mob informants, cops, and just plain mobsters is fantastic from start to finish, It keeps audiences glued to the edge of their seats without ever becoming unintelligent. This is how movies should be made.

I was too young to see the Departed when it first hit theaters back in 06 and finally this last week I got a chance to sit down and screen it for myself. I was truly hooked from the opening line to the conclusion. In a day and age where it seems we either sacrifice thrills in our movies for intelligence or vice versa this movie is a refreshing reminder that this doesn't necessarily have to be the case. This film never stops being both interesting and exciting. Offering up scenes of action as well as very compelling characters.

The performances in this film are spectacular. Nicholson's mob boss has to go down as one of the great criminals of the medium. DiCaprio's performance is also equally good. For the rest of the cast including especially Matt Damon, Scorsese's name seems to have attracted the best of the best.

The direction of this film is first rate and really shows a master's touch. From the music used to the action scenes it is quintessential Scorsese and what more could you ask for 5/5! 

The Great Gatsby Video Review

Here is my first video review! It's for The Great Gatsby, don't forget to subscribe to my youtube channel!

The Great Gatsby (2013)

Directed by Baz Luhrmann

Adapted from novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald

Starring Leonardo DiCaprio as Jay Gatsby with Carey Mulligan, Tobey Maguire, Joel Edgerton, and Elizabeth Debicki

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XkO6OH2htjY

Countdown to Gatsby: Seabiscuit (Toby Maguire) and Django Unchained (Leonardo Dicaprio)

This is going to be a short series of reviews that counts down to the Great Gatsby (May 10^th) by looking at the main actors in the film and their previous work. These roles will specifically focus on that actor’s role in the particular film

Seabiscuit (Toby Maguire) (2003)

Toby Maguire is best known for playing Spider Man in Sam Rami’s three films and like many superhero actors he has been in typecasting trouble. With Gatsby Maguire will hopefully get himself out of that trouble by proving he is in fact an actor as he did in this 2003 underdog story. The first third  of seabiscuit is quite muddled and struggles with the broadness of its themes. This story about a champion horse too small and a jockey too big stars out too broad nad unfocused. In many respects this sports film does not correct that but it does become far better as it goes along much like the horse it portrays. By the end of the film you are riveted to this entertaining story and that doesn’t achieve greatness but which does in many ways entertain. The film is lavishly produced and the period detail is really cool. Maguire’s performance is the best I’ve seen from him. He shows that he can play a truly dramatic and flawed character without being over the top ( a la Spider-Man 3). He plays the character he knows best the young gun and underdog and his role gets far better like the film. He seems real and genuine and helps hold the film together as well as he can. Seabiscuit does not quite ever make up the ground it loses in its first half but it definitely tries 3.5/5

Django Unchained (2012) (Leonardo DiCaprio)

Leonardo DiCaprio has been quite a popular and prolific actor recently. His latest outing Django Unchained gave him his first opportunity to play a true villain and he does not disappoint. Quentin Tarantino’s homage to the spaghetti western is a bloody good time with humor and tragedy mixed. DiCaprio’s villain is ruthless and unflinchingly evil beyond doubt and DiCaprio pulls it off with a menace that is frightening and believable. His great last monologue about his theory of slavery is truly and acting tour de force. His presence recharges the movie which starts the wane in the beginning of the second act. Django Unchained is a really solid outing for Tarantino and it is helped along greatly by DiCaprio’s Performance.

Blockbuster News: Iron Man 3 Clip and Gatsby Trailer!

                It’s almost that time of year again. In less than a month the 2013 summer blockbuster season will begin with the release of Iron Man 3. Because of the upcoming event many of these films are releasing new footage.

First up we have a trailer for the delayed and highly anticipated film the Great Gatsby. This new trailer focuses more on the romantic aspects of the films. To me it has the same strengths and weaknesses as everything else I’ve seen from the film. On the one hand it seems as though the story is being rendered well. That’s very good because Gatsby is one of the greatest works of American literature and one of my all time favorite books. The movie also sports a strong cast that seems well chosen for their roles. On the other hand I don’t like how much CGI ( computer Generated Imagery) there is, I like movies to be done for real and sometimes this trailer almost looks like a video game. I think we’ll have to wait and see when the film is released but I am apprehensively excited.

Here’s a link to the trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ozkOhXmijtk

Next up we have our first clip from Iron Man 3. Due to the power of the internet movie clips released by studios are becoming more and more popular and for us critics this is very helpful for making early predictions. I was disappointed with Iron Man 2 and am not really all that excited about the third installment but I have to admit that this role is definitely Downey Jr.’s defining one. From what I see it is his presence that allows this clip to work and it was also his presence that made the Avengers so good. I am, however, a little apprehensive about what I’m seeing because it seems like the same old same old. This time Stark is once again overconfident but this time by blind revenge. He will get beat up and realize his stupid, rash, ways and save the day in the end. If this is done well it will be formula but watchable. If not done perfectly it will just feel old and uninteresting, we shall see.

Here’s a link to the clip:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=edkcosdafcg