After going into some uncharted territory (a fun diversion into the history of cinema) with the family friendly Hugo, Martin Scorsese returns to familiar ground. Ground that is drenched with bodily fluids, where the air is blue and every scene is populated with grotesque yet compelling characters. In a follow up to both Goodfellas/Casino and his prior collaborations with DiCaprio this is another stylised, self narrated, non-fiction story about crime and corruption. At nearly three hours this is a monster just like it's central character; at times it's excessive and extreme. Luckily the proceedings are nearly always entertaining no matter how ridiculous and obscene things turn out. In a story about seedy financial dealings and crime it's also surprisingly funny even if most of the the humour is incredibly dark.
'I have to return some video tapes'
After some great turns in Inception and Django Unchained Leo goes one better as wannabe broker turned self made millionaire Jordan Belfort, who after a short lived entry level position in a Wall Street form begins his journey to build his own shady stocks and shares business - apparently through hard drugs and charisma alone. It's a mesmerising performance as the small time dealer becomes a narcotics addled money making machine. The idea this guy built up an entire personality cult within a few short years is easy to imagine when the acting seems so effortless.My major complaint is that unlike the rise and fall of Henry Hill, the character arc here isn't particularly strong despite the lengthy running time - early scenes where he is at the bottom level of this questionable game are rushed through, while his earlier life is skipped entirely, and his fall never feels like it's that much of a come down. Success comes too quickly, and when it all goes wrong the recovery at the end seems almost too simple. That being said the series of events are still very engrossing (emphasis on the gross) with a lot of great dialogue and some good supporting cast members. It's never dull even though none of them very sympathetic.
There has been some question on the subject of enjoying a film where the central characters are just so detestable But in this case it's never a problem and spending so much running time in their company never feels like a drag. Quite often it comes across as very natural, perhaps a credit to the screen writer and the actors involved; though a few moments feel perhaps too ad-libbed or allowed to run longer than intended. Of course restraint is not the subject of the story here.
There has been some question on the subject of enjoying a film where the central characters are just so detestable But in this case it's never a problem and spending so much running time in their company never feels like a drag. Quite often it comes across as very natural, perhaps a credit to the screen writer and the actors involved; though a few moments feel perhaps too ad-libbed or allowed to run longer than intended. Of course restraint is not the subject of the story here.
In terms of acting the main credit goes to Jonah Hill's Donnie who gets many of the best interactions with Belfort though there are a lot of good performances, Matthew McConaughey has only a few scenes but leaves an impression early on; and there are fun moments with Rob Reiner as Belfort's conservative but outspoken father. Sure this is no Goodfellas but as a journey into the limits of excess and unsavoury goings on, the trip is a lot of fun.
4/5
BONUS REVIEW
EVIL DEAD (2013)
So this is just Evil Dead, rather than The Evil Dead. Which is a appropriate, since it gets nasty enough in a few all-out blood spewing sequences but has none of the charm or personality found in the original films. In spite of all the skin peeling and limb slicing, it's too boring too often. The weak characters are all written for plot convenience, with a drug addict who won't be taken seriously, a brother to share her family issues, a nurse at hand to dismiss her behaviour, and a spectacle wearing bookworm ready to unleash the demonic spirits on cue.
4/5
BONUS REVIEW
EVIL DEAD (2013)
'Should we burn this or lock it away?' 'Ah no this bin bag and wire is fine.'
So this is just Evil Dead, rather than The Evil Dead. Which is a appropriate, since it gets nasty enough in a few all-out blood spewing sequences but has none of the charm or personality found in the original films. In spite of all the skin peeling and limb slicing, it's too boring too often. The weak characters are all written for plot convenience, with a drug addict who won't be taken seriously, a brother to share her family issues, a nurse at hand to dismiss her behaviour, and a spectacle wearing bookworm ready to unleash the demonic spirits on cue.
It has none of the humour and charm of Evil Dead II and Army of Darkness, and none of the low budget experimental vibes from the original where even the camera movements had crazy sound effects. Surprisingly the acting is at times worse than those old-school outings. Their attempts at adding more backstory to both the characters and more lore to the 'Evil' itself just fall flat and come across as lazy. There are too many A-to-B moments in the writing that just add clichés rather than any substance and only exist to move things along.
Yes the excessive violence and splatter effects are here, but it's hard to care since everything is so incredibly dull. Yes it's still about demons taking control of people, but the audience shouldn't have their eyes rolling like someone possessed. Maybe I am desensitised but it's not much more than the sum of these parts; after all the talk of gore it's just a disappointment. In the end it has no soul to swallow.
2/5
2/5
