True Story

 

 

 

IDBM

The Wolf of Wall Street is basically about the American Dream on steroids.  Director Martin Scorsese absolutely nailed the opportunity to share the successful and true story of Jordan "The Wolf" Belfort. Through determination, and any means to become rich, a young Belfort realizes stock manipulation of penny stocks  yields the greatest returns in the investment industry. Ultimately, Belfort built an empire based off the simple concept and attracts attention of everyone, including the F.B.I. . The genius that entailed this real world story didn't hault there. Martin knew a a film of this magnitude needed a more than average A-list actor.Someone who wouldn't just repeat lines to a camera. So, he did what any credible director would do and handed the leading roll over to, the very successful and talented, Leonardo DiCaprio. To this day, I have never been dissatisfied with any of DiCaprio's roles, so you could say he had slight hand in my initial decision to watch the film. Belfort's outrageous success demands respectsafter the successful growth of his Wall Street powerhouse though a golden idea and a simple, but uncommon, determination. Throughout the film, DiCaprio's portrayed motivational speeches command your attention with his body language and energy. Essentially, it's a remarkably true story Hollywood could not conjure up at a round table  with events that seem almost too ludicrous. From crimes committed to the carrier explosion, it was absolutely a true story.

DealBreaker

 

 

 

 

 

Success From the Begining

Untappedcities.com

Immediately, the young tycoon, Jordan Belfort exhibits the classic American Dream in its prime. The opening scene is perfectly constructed as it fully observes the success Belfort is enjoying through the lavish lifestyle he lives as the camera descends with him down a grand staircase. From the amount of caretakers and security he's employing, to the simple  way he  indifferently chunks an entire glass over his shoulder,  it's understood he is the definition of wealthy. However, it  isn't money handed down. It is truly success. The opening scene also serves as a compare and contrast method as director Scorsese takes the story from where he's at to where he was. Not only does it further entail all his tremendous success, but it also unveils the key principle that created it all. After his investment firm closed ,Belfort seeks employment at a small investment firm only to learn how beneficial pink sheet stocks were over blue chip stocks. The 50% cash  return compared to the 2% of blue chips are his way to the top. Brilliant idea, but his actions demonstrated are vital. His what-ever-it-takes attitude is one to be admired 


Arizona Foothills Magazine

. A young twenty year-old Jordan Belfort went from a complacent educated college graduated to a hungry, ambitious entrepreneur. He bought a small shop to start his business, he recruited employees to work for him, developed a marketing scheme to help them sell, and ultimately was no longer the young  seeking employment. He was not seeking some job, he was seeking a legacy because Jordan Belfort knew one thing: "There's no nobility in poverty".  His motivation is foundation of the storyline. It's the foundation for his success. His success makes this film. Director Scorsese simply showed Jordan Belfort in his prime and backtracked his story to only evaluate and appreciate his success in finer detail. Eventually the small mechanic shop turned business ,on some unknown side of town, is the start. The corporate business on Wall Street ,shown in the beginning scene, is where Belfort would land.



SPEECH! SPEECH! SPEECH!

Giphy.com

Jordan Belfort overwhelming success had a plethora of reactions which would vary from group to group.Despite rubbing the F.B.I. the wrong way, Belfort manages his empire on a positive sense of loyalty from all. Few people receive the amount of respect Belfort does, but to convey the reasoning behind it is similar to rebuilding the success in chronological order. Thankfully, Leonardo DiCaprio is the perfect actor. Initially his previous roles- notably in Titanic, Inception, and Romeo + Juliet- exhibit passion and leadership that this part required. His ability to bring energy and communicate effectively empower him to the same degree Belfort is at. Again, he's definitely a great reason to watch the film and observe his phenomenal performance. Leonardo as Belfort, spent years honing his skills to develop a sense of trust between his employees and audience. His speeches are powerful. Belfort's body language keeps his audience attentive while anxiously awaiting his next move. He frequently opens his arms to his audience, as if to embrace everyone in the room. His eye contact holds his targeted audience member, making sure he or she absorbs every bit of information Belfort can offer. He doesn't just meekly hold the microphone with one hand in his pocket either. Similar to his presence, he holds it with a sense of huge significance in order to communicate his verbal message  too. While his word choices may be controversial, there's no doubt when he stares right at you and drops an F-bomb, you're listening. Than in a split second, he can be so humbling as to praise and lift Steve Madden above himself. The genius part? His audience loves him more for doing so and Steve Madden feels comfortable enough to do business with his stock firm. That is the brilliance of Leonardo DiCaprio and how he conveys every bit of detail about his messages through his speeches.

 

moviesstillsdb.com

S.O.S

https://www.youtube.com/embed/nz0ihi29YnU

A key element that makes this film so much more superior to other films is how closely the story line follows the truth. The phase," Based on a True Story" can be vague and often times include one small part that barely enables the film to use the phrase. The Wolf of Wall Street does not abuse, falsify, or misconstrue this phrase at all. The events that occur in the film are beyond exciting that left me asking," What are the odds?". For instance, the yacht sinking in a tropical storm that caused 30-foot waves was not conjured up at a round table somewhere in Hollywood. It actually occurred. The 167-foot yacht, before being purchased by Belfort, actually belonged to Coco Chanel. The Nadine, named after Belfort's wife at the time, was set sail after orders by a very under-the-influence Belfort. Although it might have been easier to take his private jet it was being borrowed at the time. Anyways, a total of nine Quaaludes later, the tropical storm would overwhelm the yacht and eventually the Italian special forces had to rescue. The only discrepancy? The helicopter was pushed off instead of yanked off by the waves in order to make room for the Italians. That's it. If that's the farthest this movie went out of context it is still more truthful than a huge majority of movies these days. Finally when they got back to shore and ready to depart, Belfort's private plane sent to retrieve them actually went down. A seagull flew into the engine. If THE Jordan Belfort didn't tell me himself, I don't think I'd believe it either. Fortunately, he speaks about in an interview by The Room Live. So, the action sequence clearly real and documented, but what's more unfathomable is he dealt with these circumstances all while being chased by the government. Eventually he was caught and did serve time. Jordan Belfort did rat out his friends in actuality like he did in the film. He was convicted of laundering and fraud. He served twenty-two months of a four year sentence in 1998. Ironically, he serves as a motivational speaker, charging somewhere around $30,000 a speech (Belfort really was a great speaker which did help him gain loyalty as an employer). Today, he is still paying back money that was scammed in his infamous "Pump and Dump" schemes. All in all, the truth the most interesting part of the film, and was not in any way tainted. That's what a great director should do in any movie.

Couple of interesting facts:

1. Tommy Chong was Belfort's cellmate. He helped inspire him to write a memoir.
2. Steve Madden was also convicted in being a part of his schemes forcing him to step down C.E.O.. He created a position in order to keep himself in the company as a "Creative Consultant". He served 44 months in prison.

All in All

This film is one of the most entertaining films to date. It's use of creativity while following the true story of a man's success through his powerfully concise speeches and actual action pack turn events it carries throughout. I agree with movie critic Matt Zollar Seitz stating, "Scorsese and Winter never lose track of the bigger picture. In theory, the movie's subject is the Wall Street mentality, which is just a clean-scrubbed version of the gangster mentality...." It's an incredible film that does not let go of its audience's attention. This film is an honest truth behind actual success, while it may glimmer, it's sure to fade. Unless, you're Jordan Belfort, than you refuse to be denied success. That's the primary concept, and that's what makes this film so special and phenomenal. As great of a film as this, some may audiences may misinterpret the films ideas. It does contain some images not suitable  for younger audiences, which is apparent solely from  Martin Scorsese's previous movies directed. I would recommend this to the guys who ambitiously chase success, not solely financially, or those who simply enjoy performances by Jonah Hill and Leonardo DiCaprio.  Seitz said it best "people get a contact high from following the exploits of entrepreneurs, financiers, bankers, CEO and the like...." Great job Scorsese, you nailed it.


http://www.interviewmagazine.com/

Work Cited

 "APS Finds Itself on The Wrong Side of The [Wall] Street." Solar Style. Solar Style, 2013. Web. 2015.

Chevawala, Arshie Fatema. "Film Locations: "The Wolf of Wallstreet" in NYC." Untapped Cities RSS. N.p., 16 Jan. 2014. Web. 06 Nov. 2015.

 Levin, Bess. "Dealbreaker." Dealbreaker., 2013. Web. 06 Nov. 2012.                         

"The Wolf of Wall Street." IMDb. IMDb.com, 2013. Web. 06 Nov. 2015

"The Wolf Of Wall Street GIFs - Find & Share on GIPHY." GIPHY. N.p., 2013. Web. 06 Nov. 2015.

Wolf of Wall Street. Dir. Martin Scorsese. Leonardo Dicaprio. Jonah Hill. Paramount.2013.

"Wolf of Wall Street True Story - Real Jordan Belfort, Donnie Azoff." HistoryvsHollywood.com. CTF Media, 2013. Web. 06 Nov. 2015