By: Jessily Jones
Released to cinemas on Christmas day of 2013, The Wolf of Wall Street was anything but harmonizing with the Christmas season. As simply from the trailer, we see Leonardo DiCaprio starring in the comedic biopic as an anti-hero surrounded by an immense plethora of wealth, carelessness, debauchery and so on. From taping money on women, to having chaotic parades in the office, The Wolf of Wall Street is an exciting rush of a film that would bring audience out to see on Christmas day.
The Wolf of Wall Street (TWOWS) begins in the late 1980’s with a young twenty-two year old Jordan Belfort freshly starting as a stockbroker, in hopes to leave his substandard past and strike it rich. With the sketchy yet alluring guidance of his boss Mark Hanna (Matthew McConaughey), Belfort sets off to create his own brokerage firm, “Stratton Oakmont” alongside his friends. Upon earning millions a year from scamming clients with penny stocks , Belfort becomes increasingly irresponsible, immersing himself and friends in greed, drugs, and sex. Within a few years, Belfort runs into trouble in all aspects of life regarding work, financials, and family life. Just shy of a decade of Belfort running Stratton Oakmont, he is exposed of his major frauds and is sent to prison, shutting down the company too.
With the film acquiring almost $400 million in worldwide box office sales, and being nominated for five Academy Awards, the success of the film was just as exciting as the film itself. The film also had plenty of notable stars aside from DiCaprio such as Jonah Hill (Superbad, 21 Jump Street), and Matthew Mcconaughey (Fool’s Gold, Magic Mike), compelling fans of the stars to see the film.
Probably the most enthralling fact, however, is that the movie is based on the autobiography of Jordan Belfort himself. While in prison in California, Belfort befriended American-Canadian actor Tommy Chong, who encouraged Belfort to write about his experiences while running Stratton Oakmont. As shown through Dicaprio in TWOWS, audiences can get a glimpse on how money can build and destroy lives. While the most straightforward concept is a successful rags to riches story, TWOWS also shows themes of decreasing character morality, and an anti-hero getting the reprimandation he deserves.
Not just any other ‘Rags to Riches’ Story
Like any other ‘rags to riches’ story, the protagonist enters the film with a humble background and is looking for more in their life, whether glory, love or money – in Belfort’s case it was money. Originating from the child of accountants in Long Island and living in a small apartment with his wife Teresa, Belfort had first seemed intimidated by fellow workers on Wall Street until employer Mark Hanna advises Belfort with the strategy to “moving the money from the client’s pocket to [his] pocket.” Remembering this delusional yet tempting advice, Belfort shifts to a small penny-stock firm after being laid off by the Wall Street company. Although the chances of success seem bleak, Belfort uses his golden talent of a silver tongue to complete his first and largest deal of the small firm, impressed by coworkers. Believing he can achieve more, Belfort sets to open his own firm in an abandoned car garage, enlisting Donnie Azoff (Jonah Hill) as his second hand man, and not before long, the pair begin to build their brokerage empire, hiring friends along the way. Way beyond recognition at this point, Belfort, cheating people in money and relationships, further shows to us that he has become an anti-hero, forgetting any past morality and constantly hungry for continuous money and power to only more abuse.
Considered the modern day film to Goodfellas (1990), director Martin Scorsese conveys parallelism styles to both WOWS and Goodfellas, from the ambitious unruly character, to the narrations, and even the messages. Although WOWS isn’t a mobster film like Goodfellas, Scorsese proves through WOWS that even white collar men can be just as corrupt as mafia men. Though these two films have almost two decades between them and share similar qualities, the success of these illegal organized crime movies will always be of interest in audience. Although WOWS and Goodfellas are based on true stories, these drastic lives aren’t for the many. While many like the director himself might be enticed by the hard ass attitudes, and the materialistic lives, Scorsese never fails to show the beginnings, the rise, and eventual downfall of his characters. From beginning Goodfella’s character Hill and WOWS Belfort as young men full of dreams, Scorsese is able to bring out the worst in these men, unapologetically.
Growing to Hate the Underdog
Enduring many risks to seek pleasure, Belfort’s wild highs of success and debauchery were quick to fall as they were to rise. With (second) wife Naomi Lapaglia (Margot Robbie) starting off Belfort’s morning by accusing him of infidelity, just further shows a “dream girl” isn’t enough for Belfort. Furthering on the morning, in highly active spirits for securing $22 million in IPOs from Steve Madden’s shoe company, Azoff fires a coworker for being distracted and eats their live goldfish (an iconic scene). By this time roughly halfway through the three hour long film, the FBI is starting to investigate Stratton Oakmont and prosecute asshole Belfort and his friends.
In an attempt to hide his millions, Belfort hides his money with Swiss banker Jean-Jacques Saurel (Jean Dujardin) and uses friend Brad Bodnick’s (Brad Bernthal) in laws to smuggle the cash. After building tension between Azoff and Bodnick, a fight broke out between them results in Bodnick getting arrested, with police furthering in on Belfort.
The concern of the interference with police intensifies when Belfort discovers his home phones are being tapped into. Belfort, who overindulged in drugs to the point of lack of mobility, somehow manages to drive home and stop Azoff from giving away private information. Following this incident, as Belfort’s lawyer advises to leave Stratton Oakmont and avoid jail time, or stay and risk it, his addictive personality gets the best of him and chooses to continue ruling his empire.
While on vacation in Italy, Belfort finds a distressed Lapaglia and discover her aunt has died. Belfort finds this immediately concerning, as he used his aunt’s name to hold his $20 million at Saurel’s bank. Careless to Lapaglia’s grief and to his yacht captain’s advice on sailing to Monaco, Belfort forces a mission to retrieve the money before it’s gone.
Possibly a scene alluding to DiCaprio’s role in James Cameron’s Titanic (1997), yet actually happened to the real Jordan Belfort, Belfort, Azoff, and their spouses are caught in a giant ocean storm, almost certain of death. Refusing to die sober, Belfort and Azoff unsurprisingly pop more quaaludes. Unlike DiCaprio’s character Jack in the Titanic, Belfort survives, and realizes he must become sober.
Though this may seem like the turning point for Belfort, who decided to turn into a television personality and star in infomercials, the real downfall of Jordan Belfort began two years later in 1998, where Belfort went from being disliked to despised.
“Beni-Fucking-Hana!” – The Downfall of Jordan Belfort
It all came crumbling down when an arrested Saurel confessed to Belfort’s laundering – bringing down Belfort’s whole empire. With the Saurel ratting out Belfort, they tell him he must wear a wire to work in exchange for leniency. That night, Lapaglia, bitter-sweetly tells Belfort she plans to divorce him and take their children. The couple fight, and Belfort relapses with cocaine, and crashes his car with his daughter present.
The next day, Belfort is strapped with a wire and returns to the office, where he is faced with Azoff. Belfort secretly informs Azoff of his wire in an attempt to help extricate Azoff, but Azoff snitches to the FBI about Belfort’s actions and Belfort is sent to three years in prison in California, is fined $110 million, and Stratton Oakmont is terminated.
From once being partners in crime, to sacrificing one another to avoid prison, this can also be in comparison to Lorene Scafaria’s Hustlers (2019). The main characters, Destiny (Constance Wu) and Ramona (Jennifer Lopez) along with their entourage also commit fraud like Belfort and Azoff, yet instead of committing fraud through inflating stocks on Wall Street, they steal the credit cards of men who work on Wall Street. But like all scammers and friends, Destiny also snitches on Ramona and others to avoid jail time. However unlike Destiny, Belfort serves jail time and does not reconnect with their partner in crime. After spending only twenty-two months in prison, Belfort spends his remaining years remarrying, and hosting sales seminars (alongside the real Jordan Belfort), ending the move with the iconic line, “Sell me this pen.”
The End of a Anti-Hero’s Journey
Jordan Belfort came to Wall Street young and very impressionable. Starting out with the right morals, he soon realized that having morals wasn’t going to make him rich, therefore throwing those out. He evolved into a scumbag addict, one who kept taking extreme measures without slowing down. If Belfort wasn’t stopped by the FBI, he would’ve kept scamming, snorting and having sex to solve his problems that were created by his “solutions.” Leo DiCaprio in The Wolf of Wall Street showed us a biopic of a man who knew no limits and endured a hero’s journey of a problem, the trials, and the resolution, without really possessing heroic qualities – perhaps the only qualities Belfort possessed were that of a wolf: hungry. In conclusion, DiCaprio magnificently delivered to audience what it’s like to be a wolf on Wall Street.
Sources
- “The Wolf Of Wall Street (2013) – Financial Information”. The Numbers, 2019, https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Wolf-of-Wall-Street-The#tab=summary.
- Haninkeh, Jacqueline. “10 Unknown Facts About ‘Wolf Of Wall Street'”. Trader, 2017, https://vocal.media/trader/10-unknown-facts-about-wolf-of-wall-street.
- Scott, Hugh. “The Wolf Of Wall Street: How Accurate Was The Film’s Depiction Of Jordan Belfort’s Life?”. CINEMABLEND, 2019, https://www.cinemablend.com/news/2475773/the-wolf-of-wall-street-how-accurate-was-the-films-depiction-of-jordan-belforts-life.
- “Quotes From “The Wolf Of Wall Street””. Imdb, 2013, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0993846/quotes/?tab=qt&ref_=tt_trv_qu.
- Brody, Richard. “The Wild, Brilliant “Wolf Of Wall Street””. The New Yorker, https://www.newyorker.com/culture/richard-brody/the-wild-brilliant-wolf-of-wall-street.
- Rullo, Sam. “Comparing ‘Wolf of Wall Street’ & ‘Goodfellas’.” Bustle, January 3, 2014. https://www.bustle.com/articles/11773-wolf-of-wall-street-goodfellas-have-a-lot-in-common-but-theres-one-very-important.
- Linfield, Susan. “’Goodfellas’ Looks at the Banality of Mob Life.” The New York Times. The New York Times, September 16, 1990. https://www.nytimes.com/1990/09/16/movies/film-goodfellas-looks-at-the-banality-of-mob-life.html.
Jessily's Film Assessment 