The Wolf of Wall Street: Sex, drugs and stockbrokers

If DiCaprio does not win an Academy Award for his performance it would come as a big surprise.

The director Martin Scorsese bombards the audience with three hours of sex, drugs and alcohol – and no, it is not a movie about a group of gangsters in the ‘hood; it’s a movie about white men in suits who work on Wall Street as stockbrokers.

DiCaprio plays Jordan Belfort, the real-life New York stockbroker who managed to establish the investment firm Stratton Oakmont in a garage, turning it into a money-making empire. Scorsese focuses on Belfort’s money-crazed, womanising, sex and drug addict persona; and how his over-the-top lifestyle resulted in his downfall. Scorsese also focuses on Belfort’s ability to motivate others to be great, a quality he only fully utilised after he was busted for fraud and money-laundering by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The story is creatively told with the use of dirty jokes and utter profanity.

In the movie, DiCaprio embraces Belfort’s multifaceted character and depicts it exceptionally well. He engulfs himself in the character, showing how Belfort’s American dream quickly switched to corporate greed. Throughout the movie, Belfort is both detestable and lovable, as DiCaprio brilliantly portrays Belfort’s desperation to maintain his crazy lifestyle and his defiance against the inevitable long arm of the law. Some critics may argue that the ending is not as impressive as the entire movie, nevertheless Scorsese gives audiences an on-screen experience of Belfort’s crazy lifestyle through the use of documentary-like cinematography.

The Wolf of Wall Street is deserving of its Oscar hype, and hopefully DiCaprio will take home the best actor statue of the night.