tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8785859730868628316.post6541281021987078871..comments2024-02-10T01:22:29.316-08:00Comments on Hugo Stiglitz Makes Movies: The Wolf of Wall StreetKevin J. Olsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17275402809912728035noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8785859730868628316.post-59424406046086756432014-01-12T15:29:29.582-08:002014-01-12T15:29:29.582-08:00Kevin J. Olson. I'm glad to see one of you guy...Kevin J. Olson. I'm glad to see one of you guys write about these big new movies (a lot of you guys skipped Django and The Master). Nod to Jason Bellamy for stopping by as well (maybe, just maybe this movie will bring back The Conversations with Ed).<br /><br />I've only seen Wolf once, but I can't stop thinking about it. A movie that gets me thinking this much has something worth taking note of imo. They style, the colors, the framings alone had me so seduced that I found myself forgiving those little annoyances that were popping up. Then there was the acting, the comedy, and most of all that energy. Scorsese being able to pull that off at his age is bonkers. <br /><br />I also need to see it again. I really liked this review, but I'm waiting to see some more writing after the secodn viewing. The pacing of the movie worked for me, perhaps it's just one of those things. Mikohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17641847479591486457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8785859730868628316.post-76298348090611369442014-01-10T13:53:53.981-08:002014-01-10T13:53:53.981-08:00I actually was kind of more concerned about the fi...I actually was kind of more concerned about the film's pacing at the beginning of the film -- specifically, McConaghey's chest-beating scene. It went on and on, and I kept waiting for it to end. It's not that I don't treasure McConaghey and DiCaprio being in the same scene together, because I do, it's just...<br /><br />It's the strangest thing. Ever since I came to film school, I've had this major issue with scenes/movies that are set in restaurants. I can't stand them. More to the point, I hate <i>filming</i> in restaurants. They're so un-cinematic to me... just people sitting down at tables, eating, talk, talk, talk. And of course when you're filming in a restaurant, you're worried about the management wanting you to hurry up with filming so that you can get out of there and they can go about their day and their business, because your filming in there is disrupting their business and annoying their costumers...<br /><br />Yeah, restaurant scenes get on my nerves nowadays. Haha.<br /><br />The other scene that bothered me because of its pacing was the scene with Kyle Chandler on the yacht. Well, it did at first, when Belfort just kept raving about how good he has it. But then there's that great brilliant pause -- nice suspense there -- before Chandler is like, "...Can you say that <i>again</i>?"<br /><br />From then on, the movie had me hooked.<br /><br />The film is maybe a little too long, and I can't comprehend the idea that a 4-hour cut exists somewhere, but overall, I found it one of the more fast-paced 3-hour films I've sat through, thanks to those hilarious sequences you mentioned. Looking on the bright side, I'm just grateful that the whole 3-hour movie wasn't set in that restaurant. <br /><br />Which reminds me: I still need to see <i>My Dinner with Andre</i>, because if even Louis Malle can't convince me that restaurants are cinematic, nobody can.Adam Zanziehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14524618281515322239noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8785859730868628316.post-52469492128822718652014-01-02T11:56:53.827-08:002014-01-02T11:56:53.827-08:00Jason, redundant is a great word. I love the final...Jason, redundant is a great word. I love the final shot (and the call back to the "sell me this pen" bit) because of the perepetual nature of these characters. So I get what Scorsese was going for, but you're so right about some of those scenes at the end. I think my problem is with what you're referring to: scenes at the end are delivered to the audience as if we hadn't seen them before. That--and not the quality of the work but in how it was presented--made me shift in my seat a bit...that's what made me feel the film's runtime. <br /><br />Also, it reminded me of my reaction to <i>The Master</i> as well. I get the effect the filmmaker is going for, but that doesn't mean I was engaged with it. Now, Anderson's film left me at arm's-length, and I just stopped caring about Freddie after awhile and began to admire the film's cold aesthetic from a distance. <br /><br />Scorsese's film, however, what's to immerse the viewer in this world, so I'm a little more willing to go along with its beats because we're never supposed to care about these characters. So I'm wondering if the effect Scorsese is going for is something that I'll be more forgiving of upon subsequent viewings (unlike my attempt to reconnect with <i>The Master</i>, which I still find to be one of the most frustrating film experiences I've ever had). <br /><br />As for the note thing, I'm with ya. When my wife and I were talking about the movie during the car ride home, she wondered what happened with that and how it all felt so random. My response was, "well I just assumed..." and like you say, that's fine, it comes easy to most people, but it also reeks of a sloppiness not often found in a film edited by Thelma Schoonmaker. At the very least, they could have provided a voice over to explain what happened...it's not like Scorsese is averse to such a device. <br /><br />Changed it to cerebral palsy. Thanks. <br /><br />Finally, yes, "rough edges." Great way of saying it. Like Tarantino, Scorsese can make films with plenty of warts, but, as you say, the filmmaking is so much more alive than most other films. <br /><br />Thanks for checking this out, Jason. Kevin J. Olsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17275402809912728035noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8785859730868628316.post-37347171449582105342014-01-02T11:41:57.673-08:002014-01-02T11:41:57.673-08:00Tim, I still have your review open in a tab, ready...Tim, I still have your review open in a tab, ready to read. I look forward to reading it. It's nice to know someone else out there that feels the film needs to be tinkered with. Unfortunately, Scorsese doesn't tinker. I remember when <i>Gangs of New York</i> was being released on DVD, and he was asked if he would release the longer version that supposedly existed. He kind of scoffed at the idea, indicating that the version released in theaters <i>is</i> the director's cut...what other reason would he have for approving its release? I don't know if he still feels this way, but everything since <i>Gangs</i> points towards us not getting our hopes up that we'll ever see a longer, more coherent version of the film. Oh well.<br /><br />It's odd, too, the more I think about the film's editing: I had the same problem with <i>Shutter Island</i>. I love that movie more than most, but I felt like it could have benefited so much from having the big "shock" reveal at the end (which is silly since the movie is never about the twist or shock or whatever...but I digress) placed at the beginning of the film. It would have made the characters psychological descent so much more powerful. <br /><br />Anyway, thanks for checking this out. I'll reserve more specific comments for your review. Kevin J. Olsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17275402809912728035noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8785859730868628316.post-78058351008082797742014-01-02T11:34:33.355-08:002014-01-02T11:34:33.355-08:00Thanks, Dan! I had a smile on my face for a lot of...Thanks, Dan! I had a smile on my face for a lot of the movie, too. But after awhile, I just couldn't ignore some of the editing problems. We'll see if a second viewing changes my opinion...Kevin J. Olsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17275402809912728035noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8785859730868628316.post-52801889275221139142014-01-02T11:08:15.949-08:002014-01-02T11:08:15.949-08:00I read this late last night. A few thoughts ...
*...I read this late last night. A few thoughts ...<br /><br />* "It wasn’t as bad as Return of the King, but it made me think of it." I didn't have the same feeling, but I love that line. I didn't feel the movie had multiple endings (although I can see that retrospectively). Rather, at some point it just became redundant. A certain amount of redundancy is appropriate for this movie: it's about addiction, and the behavior of addicts is redundant. But when we're sitting there during yet another fire-up-the-troops speech that acts like we haven't been there before twice already, well, it doesn't feel like too much of a good thing -- it's just too much, well done though it is.<br /><br />* For what it's worth: My take with the note under the napkin was that the feds thought it fishy that Hill's character didn't implicate himself and simply walked into the restaurant and found the note under the napkin. Thus, I further assumed that this wasn't the first time a guy wearing a wire had tried that trick. That's a lot of assuming, so maybe it proves your point. But it came pretty easily for me.<br /><br />* You used a word in here that's exactly right: pathetic. These characters are pathetic. I marvel that anyone could watch this movie and not see that ... unless they, too, are pathetic.<br /><br />* I'm pretty sure it's cerebral palsy.<br /><br />* This movie reminded me a lot of DJANGO UNCHAINED, too. Lots of rough edges. But the filmmaking is alive in a way that so few movies are. Jason Bellamyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18150199580478147196noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8785859730868628316.post-23864120574216959572014-01-02T10:45:59.178-08:002014-01-02T10:45:59.178-08:00This is the first review I've read - including...This is the first review I've read - including my own - that feels like it completely gets the "awesome/frustrating" push-pull I had watching the movie. I'm convinced that Scorsese would have been better off working on the movie till he was happy with it, and and aiming for a Christmas relase/early December critcs' screening window, because there's an astounding movie in this footage, bu it woudl take a lot of carving and resaping in the first and last hours needed to get us to it.Timhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09491952893581644049noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8785859730868628316.post-46019973032870860392014-01-01T20:37:09.760-08:002014-01-01T20:37:09.760-08:00The smile I had on my face rarely ever left when w...The smile I had on my face rarely ever left when watching this movie. Even in its darkest, most shocking moments. Good review.Dan O.http://www.dtmmr.comnoreply@blogger.com