It was recently announced that Martin Scorsese would be following up the success of ‘The Wolf of Wall Street’ with new Oscar hopeful, 'Silence'. Based on an adaptation, the director described 'Silence' as a "suspenseful film, with elements of a thriller."
So, it seems fitting to look back at 'The Wolf of Wall Street'. It was a fascinating commentary on the world of finance. The film starred Leonardo DiCaprio and depicted the life of Jordan Belfort, who managed to cheat investors out of £120 million. The film was both captivating and controversial.
Belfort who is now a motivational speaker, was sentenced to prison in 1999 where he met Tommy Chong who encouraged him to write his memoirs. These memoirs turned into 2 books, The Wolf of Wall Street and Catching the Wolf of Wall Street which is what The Wolf Of Wall Street is based on.
The world of finance has been rocked by intense scrutiny for the past decade or so with constant stream of accusations regarding the dilapidated infrastructure of the system. At the time, DiCaprio gave his views on the significance of the film. Telling BBC News, he said "We know the ramifications of these actions, we know the people that are going to suffer on the other end of the line. What we're more interested in, is the very nature of who these people are."
The actor also spoke about the reasons behind Belfort's crime.
DiCaprio had this to say, "This is an accurate reflection of their lives. This is who these people were and they didn't care about the consequences of their actions. They cared about becoming more rich and more powerful and living the sort of corrupted American dream."
Finance affects everyone, so the film was highly significance as it served as an important interpretation of social commentary.
Today, many are of the belief that the financial world is in need of an urgent revival where there needs to a clear code of transparency. However, the fact remains, from Wall Street to the activities of the financial institutions of Canary Wharf, the world of finance is steeped with many complex layers that will need much time and dedication to get right.
Although the film caused controversy at the time in its depiction of indulgence and greed, DiCaprio made it clear that it was not an accusatory film. Instead he reflected that it was about a shadowy covert system where there was a lack of responsibility. He said, "What we're more interested in, is the very nature of who these people are. This [film] is an accurate reflection of their lives. These people didn't care about the consequences of their actions.”
He added, "These weren't the people that ultimately bankrupted our country, these are guys from the underworld that were trying to emulate the guys that were simultaneously dismantling our economy. What happened in reality? Most of the people who dismantled our economy got bonuses, they didn't serve proper time."
