The Wolf of Wall Street

Welcome to another episode of Lights....Camera....Popcorn!

Today's review is The Wolf of Wall Street.

Directed by Martin Scorsese.

Written by Terence Winter.

Based on the book "The Wolf of Wall Street" written by Jordan Belfort.

Review #241

MPAA Rating: Rated R for sequences of strong sexual content, graphic nudity, drug use and language throughout, and for some violence.

Run Time: 180 min

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Cast

Leonardo DiCaprio...Jordan Belfort

Jonah Hill...Donnie Azoff

Margot Robbie...Naomi Lapaglia

Matthew McConaughey...Mark Hanna

Kyle Chandler...Agent Patrick Denham

Rob Reiner...Max Belfort

Jon Bernthal...Brad

Jon Favreau...Manny Riskin

Jean Dujardin...Jean Jacques Saurel

Joanna Lumley...Aunt Emma

P.J. Byrne...Nicky Koskoff ('Rugrat')

Kenneth Choi...Chester Ming

Brian Sacca...Robbie Feinberg ('Pinhead')

Henry Zebrowski...Alden Kupferberg ('Sea Otter')

Ethan Suplee...Toby Welch

Everybody's got a favorite Scorsese film and if you don't, I suggest you acquire one. Depending who you ask there's not a wrong choice. Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, Casino, The Departed, and of course Goodfellas. The list goes on but among the many classics this man has treated us to, there have been some stinkers. The Aviator and Shutter Island come to mind. What do the last two films I mentioned have in common? They both were headlined by Leonardo Dicaprio. I'm not suggesting that it was his fault those films underperformed but it can't be overlooked. This duo regained some of their mojo with The Departed (their 4th collaboration) but I think beyond a shadow of a doubt The Wolf of Wall Street has proven that the 5th times a charm.

Plot

Based on the true story of Jordan Belfort, from his rise to a wealthy stockbroker living the high life to his fall involving crime, corruption and the federal government.  

This film scores high marks on so many levels but the one area where it really hits home for me is how it felt like watching Goodfellas. There were many elements in this movie that remind you of Goodfellas. From Dicaprio narrating most of the film like Ray Liota. Scorsese uses this a lot in his films but in the middle of a scene he will freeze a shot and let the voice over play under the image. He uses this tactic here too but for some reason it felt more reminiscent of Goodfellas than any of his other films. The main point is if I'm comparing this film to Goodfellas then I'm paying this film a very high complement.

This movie deserves it.

The one thing this film does right off the bat is sensationalize the life Belfort made for himself and his company. A lot of it seemed like pure Hollywood fiction but according to interviews Belfort has done after the films release and people who read his book, a good portion of the hijinks and debauchery were accurate. Regardless of whether or not you believe what your eyes are seeing, it doesn't stop the reality that these people were scumbags that deserved to be executed with the rest of the Wall St. cronies responsible for the 2008 economic collapse.

What gives this film the ability to suppress pure unadulterated hatred for these characters is the tone it takes. The Wolf of Wall Street is a black comedy at it's roots. The recipe for a good black comedy is the capacity to inject humor in scenarios where laughter is an inappropriate response. The scene pictured above is self explanatory. What isn't is a moment later told in flashback showing Belfort and his crew planning the dwarf tossing extravaganza. The way they talk about these people is reprehensible. None of these men recognize that the dwarves are human beings. They refer to them as "things". It's an unapologetic racial, stereotypical round table filled with backhanded, derogatory  comments. You should be appalled by the lines flying out of these people's mouths but instead your laughing. Why? Because of the witty writing and the stellar performances of the cast. They force you to focus on the hilarious instead of the hideous.

That is the mark of something special. Dicaprio and company are spectacular in this film. Would you expect anything less from Leo. This guy has come a long way and his performances have become more sophisticated with the roles he takes. It doesn't hurt that he also aligns himself with some of the world's finest directors. Combine that with his natural talent and it's no surprise that he's getting the Oscar buzz and nomination for his performance in this film. That being said, he's not the only player that deserves kudos.

Jonah Hill has unquestionably shed his jack ass, comedy guy stereotype. You have to take him seriously as a ranged actor. By trade he's comedic so the majority of his roles and performances contain laughs but he's gone a different way recently and it's paying off. The man can act and he shows off big time here. I realize I just gave this guy huge props for steeping away from the clown characters he's known for playing. The massive irony here is that's exactly what he plays here and it was brilliant.

In all of it's over the top-ness.

If Dicaprio's Jordan is the calm before the storm then Hill's Donnie is the storm. Don't get me wrong, the film doesn't play favorites concerning these two and the morality of human beings. Both of these people are scumbags who are lucky to be still breathing without the use of machinery. Scorsese does what every great director does. He gives his people the freedom to go off the cuff and make magic. That requires a lot of trust and gravitas as a film maker to let the inmates run the asylum for a bit. However, when handled properly, the end result could be something like this movie. The Wolf of Wall Street is in no way, shape or form a study of improvisation. It's a shining example of what you can get when you let your talent display their capabilities.

It also shows you how superbly written Terence Winter's script is. If you don't know who this man is then it's time you did. He used to produce and write for The Sopranos and is the co creator and show runner of a little thing called Boardwalk Empire. He and Scorsese got BW off the ground and was the perfect choice to adapt this script. The man can write and this kind of story is right up his alley because it's full of debauchery, criminal behavior and finally the fall of the proud. He's found his footing with this kind of material and crossed boundaries from the fictitious to the factual. Like Leo and Hill, Winter being nominated for his screenplay was not surprising.

It was necessary. However, the film isn't perfect.

At a shade over 3 hours. The Wolf of Wall Street could have used a trim or ten in the edit room. It's not a deal breaker though because the film doesn't play like a 3 hour epic. That is once again a testament to the well paced script and tight direction. The film does a decent job moving around from moment to moment without being too stagnant in one particular area. That being said this movie (like it's characters) indulges itself too much with all of the fun everyone's having. The effect of that is a bit of overkill and a been there done that feel.
Overall, The Wolf of Wall Street is one of Marty's finest films in quite a while and if he keeps up this level of integrity and panache with his future projects. The man could be looking at more gold statues in his future.

On the 5 star scale. The Wolf of Wall Street gets 4 stars with a "Worth Every Penny!" recommendation.

That's a wrap for today.

Until next episode...."I'll Save You A Seat!"

"D"

American Hustle

Welcome to another episode of Lights....Camera....Popcorn!

Today's review is American Hustle.

Directed by David O. Russell.

Written by Eric Singer & David O. Russell.

Review #240

MPAA Rating: Rated R for pervasive language, some sexual content and brief violence.

Run Time: 138 min

Hulk Spoils Hollywood Podcast Page

Cast

Christian Bale...Irving Rosenfeld

Bradley Cooper...Richie DiMaso

Amy Adams...Sydney Prosser

Jeremy Renner...Mayor Carmine Polito

Jennifer Lawrence...Rosalyn Rosenfeld

Louis C.K....Stoddard Thorsen

Jack Huston...Pete Musane

Michael Peña...Paco Hernandez / Sheik Abdullah

Alessandro Nivola...Anthony Amado

Elisabeth Röhm...Dolly Polito

Robert De Niro...Victor Tellegio (uncredited)

If you didn't know already, David O. Russell is a pretty good film maker. His last two films, The Fighter and Silver Linings Playbook got some major notoriety and catapulted him among the heavy Oscar contenders. Now the world awaited his latest entry and the buzz surrounding this film was pretty strong. The trailers were descriptive and not at the same time. The all star cast also boosted the films place among some of the other awards contenders.

The problem is American Hustle is sold as a great movie and its just a good one.

Plot

A con man, Irving Rosenfeld, along with his seductive British partner, Sydney Prosser, is forced to work for a wild FBI agent, Richie DiMaso. DiMaso pushes them into a world of Jersey powerbrokers and mafia. 

The biggest issue to target here is obviously the story. For a film that involves con games and twists and turns, I appreciated the lack of complexity. Films of this genre tend to rely on confusing people instead of weaving a proper story together between beats. American Hustle doesn't do that. For the most part the film is easy to follow while juggling the big time names it boasts.

It's here where I feel the drag and I hate to say it revolves one player.

It kills me to write this because I'm such a big fan but Jennifer Lawrence's character feels out of place and unnecessary. This has nothing to do with her performance. She was terrific as always. The fact that she won the Golden Globe was no surprise. For me, I just felt that her character was more a nuisance than a need. I totally understood her importance to Irivng and how she constantly anchors him but the film would have survived and maybe thrived if the anchor was cut loose from the ship.

I really hate badmouthing my new celebrity crush so I'll move on.

As expected, the rest of the cast was great. With a roster sporting Christian Bale, Amy Adams and Bradley Cooper, how can you go wrong right? The film doesn't go wrong with these names but in my opinion there was one performance that stood out among the rest. 

The picture might be funny and this scene from the trailer may seem comical but don't be fooled. Bradley Cooper was phenomenal in this film. His performance was the driving force that made everything else move. There was a quiet craziness to him that made you wonder if he was actually a good, passionate FBI agent or just a lunatic looking to make a name for himself with a prime time bust. Cooper toes the line between both sides and it made him and his performance more compelling.

Unfortunately there was something missing. I can't quite place exactly what it is but American Hustle doesn't feel or play like the film that was sold to me in the trailers. Now I'm not saying that I was bait and switched but the tone didn't feel as strong or as serious as I was expecting. At first glance, American Hustle looked like a gritty late 1970's drama/thriller. Those elements were definitely there but Russell injects moments of levity and at times straight up laughs that question the severity of the story. I never doubted what I was watching.

I just wondered why the tone shifted at all.

The bottom line is American Hustle is a really good movie with a legit all star cast. A tweak or two with the story and we could be putting this film in the place with Silver Lining's Playbook. Right now in my opinion it falls a notch below. That's not a bad thing by any stretch of the imagination but seeing the potential this film projected. It's a little disappointing that the overall product didn't meet the hype.

On the 4 star scale. American Hustle gets 3.5 stars with a "Go See It!" recommendation.

That's a wrap for today.

Until Next Episode...."I'll Save You A Seat!"

"D"

47 Ronin

Welcome to another episode of Lights....Camera....Popcorn!

Today's review is 47 Ronin.

Directed by Carl Rinsch.

Written by Chris Morgan & Hossein Amini.

Screen Story by Chris Morgan & Walter Hamada.

Review #239

MPAA Rating: Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and action, some disturbing images, and thematic elements.

Run Time: 119 min

Hulk Spoils Hollywood Podcast Page

Cast

Keanu Reeves...Kai

Hiroyuki Sanada...Ôishi

Kô Shibasaki...Mika

Tadanobu Asano...Lord Kira

Min Tanaka...Lord Asano

Jin Akanishi...Chikara

Masayoshi Haneda...Yasuno

Hiroshi Sogabe...Hazama

Takato Yonemoto...Basho

Hiroshi Yamada...Hara

Shû Nakajima...Horibe

Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa...Shogun Tsunayoshi

Rinko Kikuchi...Witch

The tale of the 47 Ronin has been told. Over, over and over again. In book, comic and film form. So why not give us another interpretation of the popular legend. I for one am all for it. The story of the 47 Ronin if done right can be Japan's answer to Zack Snyder's 300. The only thing missing was the right people to come along at the right time to breathe some new life into the legend.

I'm afraid the wait continues.

Plot
A band of samurai set out to avenge the death and dishonor of their master at the hands of a ruthless shogun.  

I was on the fence about seeing this film for the simple reason that this version of the story had introduced a supernatural element to it. I still gave it a shot thinking that this could be a welcomed tweak. It was not. Not by a long shot. The biggest reason for the fall of the Ronin is simply the script. It is in a word....messy.

There were several issues with this film during production. Creative differences between the director Rinsch and the studio had bogged down the direction of the narrative. It's clear as day how disconnected the story is from the very beginning. Plot development is scarce at best. Character development is practically non existent. This film played like a collection of scenes cut together in the edit room. It's not uncommon for a film to actually be made in the edit room. That stems from major issues during production. The lack of direction forces the production to literally craft the story in post.

I defy anyone to tell me that 47 Ronin wasn't done this way.

The story or lack there of infects it's lead. Keanu Reeves' character is so out of place here that he can't get out of his own way. It's not his fault. Kai is so underdeveloped that when it comes time to care about his exploits it feels forced and synthetic. Reeves actually does a decent job with what he has to work with which is very very little. It was really frustrating to watch how his story was unfolding or not unfolding. There were so many missed opportunities to really give his character the gravitas that the hero requires. Instead he was tossed some scraps and expected to piece together a compelling protagonist. Tough challenge for the best actors to accomplish.

Impossible for someone of Reeves' limited range.

I don't mean to disrespect Reeves. I'm stating facts about his acting chops and how the lack of depth his character had really hurt him here. This goes double for his fellow Ronin. The leaderless samurai had even less beef behind them. They were as interchangeable as warriors could be. They might as well not have had any names. The script if you can call it that tries to establish some bonds between the Ronin and Kai and with each other. Those moments fall flat and insulted my intelligence as an audience member. I'm watching this movie knowing exactly what they're trying to do and I wasn't buying it for one second.

The only thing that I enjoyed was the performance of Rinko Kikuchi as The Witch. She chewed up the scenery in every moment she was on screen. I couldn't tell if she was just acting that way because she didn't care about the project or she was told to be over the top. Regardless, she was enjoying parading around casting her spells on everyone. It was the only performance that I respected, genuine or not because it fit the jumbled nature of the rest of the film. She also provided some moments that gave the film a taste of some pretty good CGI. Her magic was on full display during the film and it was not bad. The problem is that her character and the SFX that accompanied her are wasted in this film.

I'd talk about the fights but why bother. They like the rest of the movie was a missed opportunity for some spectacular moments. It's a waste of my time and yours.

I'm moving on.

If you're in the mood for a good samurai film. Look no further than Akria Kurosawa. If you must go American then The Last Samurai can fit the bill.

On the 5 star scale. 47 Ronin gets .5 stars with a "Save The Loot!" recommendation.

That's a wrap for today.

Until Next Episode...."I'll Save You A Seat!"

"D"

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug

Welcome to another episode of Lights....Camera....Popcorn!

Today's review is The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug.

Directed by Peter Jackson.

Written by Peter Jackson, Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens & Guillermo Del Toro.

Based on the novel "The Hobbit". Written by J.R.R. Tolkien.

Review #238

MPAA Rating: Rated PG-13 for extended sequences of intense fantasy action violence, and frightening images.

Run Time: 161 min

Hulk Spoils Hollywood Podcast Page

Cast

Ian McKellen...Gandalf

Martin Freeman...Bilbo

Richard Armitage...Thorin

Ken Stott...Balin

Graham McTavish...Dwalin

William Kircher...Bifur

James Nesbitt...Bofur

Stephen Hunter...Bombur

Dean O'Gorman...Fili

Aidan Turner...Kili

John Callen...Oin

Peter Hambleton...Gloin

Jed Brophy...Nori

Mark Hadlow...Dori

Adam Brown...Ori

Orlando Bloom...Legolas

Evangeline Lilly...Tauriel

Lee Pace...Thranduil

Cate Blanchett...Galadriel

Benedict Cumberbatch...Smaug / Necromancer

Mikael Persbrandt...Beorn

Sylvester McCoy...Radagast

Luke Evans...Bard / Girion

When the announcement of The Hobbit coming to theaters was made. My first thought was DUH! With the billions The Rings Trilogy made, I was surprised it took so long to adapt Tolkein's first adventure in Middle Earth. Then when it was announced that Guillermo Del Toro was taking the directing reigns from Peter Jackson for this adaptation, the geek world was aflutter. I for one was excited. I love Del Toro's work and thought he would do the material justice. Depending on what you believe, scheduling conflicts, budget concerns or conflicting visions, Del Toro stepped down and Jackson was "convinced" to take over and bring The Hobbit back to life.

What is the point of this back story you ask? Many felt that nobody but Peter Jackson could or should do a Tolkien adaptation after what he accomplished with The Rings Trilogy. That opinion would have been shared by me.

And then I saw this film.

Plot

The dwarves, along with Bilbo Baggins and Gandalf the Grey, continue their quest to reclaim Erebor, their homeland, from Smaug. Bilbo Baggins is in possession of a mysterious and magical ring.

Before I dive into this review. I'm going to lead by saying this. I really, really enjoyed this movie. It was leaps and bounds better than the first one. In almost every way, the story, expansion of characters and action were all ramped up and given the life the first film so sorely lacked. The problem this film has and it's a BIG one stems from two sources.

New Line Cinema and Peter Jackson.

Now I know you're wondering how can I bash the mastermind behind LOTR. I don't intend to bash him at all. I'm merely stating an obvious fact. Jackson is an admitted mega fan of Tolkein's work. His love and admiration for these books and their subsequent adaptations of them have become his strength and weakness. Del Toro's original plan was to make two Hobbit films. New Line clearly had a problem with that and with Jackson behind the scenes as a producer found a way to stretch The Hobbit into another trilogy.

Bad, Bad, BAD IDEA! 

The ill effects of expanding this very small book was felt immediately after watching An Unexpected Journey. It was over saturated with scenes that brought no merit to the core story or development of characters that no one knew about. The first film did an horrendous job introducing the dwarves. Only the core geeks would know exactly who they were. The film only focused on a couple of them and it wasn't enough. There was plenty of other issues with the first film that drag it down. The point of the dwarves rings especially important because as The Desloation of Smaug takes off there's no time to acclimate ourselves with our heroes. We're supposed to remember who they are. If you were able to remember them after seeing the first film in the first place.

So what does Jackson do to fix this problem? Nothing. He makes it worse by creating brand new characters to the story. Pictured above is Tauriel played by Evangeline Lilly. Who is Tauriel? NOBODY! She's not a Tolkien character. Why does Jackson and crew add her to the story line? Beats me. Was she fun to watch? Yes but once again it takes away from what this film and trilogy is really supposed to be about. Jackson makes an effort to give us some time to breathe from the dwarves by bringing Legolas into the fold and introducing this new elf. A valiant idea but poorly executed because while the first film dragged due to lack of depth. This one suffers from bloating. There's way too much going on within the core story that adding new characters and bringing back old ones should never have been thrown into the mix.

Source material inaccuracies aside. Jackson is still a fan and when he does tell the story from the text he gets it right. The Desolation of Smaug does do a good job of furthering the adventure towards it's inevitable conclusion. It also brings forth several characters that will play a MAJOR role in the battle with the dragon under the mountain.

Speaking of the dragon. Let's get into what was unquestionably the best part of this film.

After teasing us with glimpses of Smaug in the first film. We finally get to see him in all his glory and let me tell you, he looked GREAT! Smaug's design matched up with the stellar voice acting of Benedict Cumberbatch gave Hobbit and fantasy fans one of the best if not the best dragons ever seen on screen. The scene he has with Bilbo was just tremendous. The playful banter Smaug employs with the hobbit was so much fun to watch. I always found it funny why a dragon would be so cavalier with someone mulling around in his lair as I read the book. You could make the argument that in a fantasy book or film you can get away with anything. That to me is a cheap excuse. I prefer to think that since Smaug is a dragon and with exception to maybe Sauron there aren't any beings in Middle Earth able to match a dragon's power or ferocity.

So when Bilbo invaded Smaug's "home" he knew that a hobbit from the shire was no match for him. He chose to have his fun and the scene played just like that. Smaug spent most of the scene being satirical and methodical with Bilbo while maintaining his threatening manner. On the other side, Bilbo does a great job keeping his cool around the dragon. Never buckling under the immense pressure of potential certain death if the wrong word is said or move is made. Smaug knows his true enemies are the dwarves so he plays verbal tag with Bilbo and it plays so much better in this film than it ever did in the book. Then unfortunately Jackson goes too far and fabricates a ridiculous chase between Smaug and the dwarves which was supposed to lead the dragon's demise.

This by and large is the main problem with this film and it's predecessor. Jackson doesn't know when to quit. He adds more ingredients to an already scrumptious meal. This then leads to the actual climax of the film leading into the third and final chapter of this trilogy. I am going on record saying that I absolutely HATED the closure point of this film. I really wished I could say why but after seeing the film you'll know why and maybe agree with me. The choice made to end the film where it does just leaves a lot of questions that I look forward to seeing the answers to. And I don't mean that in a good way. It was reported prior to this film's release that Guillermo Del Toro had planned to kill Smaug at the end of the first film. I would have loved to have seen how that would have turned out. The one thing I know for sure is that there would have been no time for the meandering and overdone scenes that drag these films down to a crawl.

The overdrawn plot and addition of unnecessary characters have created a major divide with me and this series of films. On the whole they are both well done but there was way too much nothing just for the sake of having nothing. Which was obviously designed to increase the length thereby increasing the wallets of the powers that be. One can only hope that the final film paces better and does a good job seaming itself together with the Rings Trilogy. I have no doubt that part will be the case. I have many doubts that we will finally get a less bloated Hobbit film.

Only time will tell. Until then enjoy this one. It was well worth my time and will be for you if you enjoyed An Unexpected Journey.

On the 5 star scale. The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug gets 3.5 stars with a "Go See It!" recommendation.

That's a wrap for today.

Until Next Episode...."I'll Save You A Seat!"

"D"