12 Years A Slave (February 2014)

Official Australian release date: 30/1/14. Viewed: 1/2/14.

Director: Steve McQueen

Actors: Chiwetel Ejiofor, Michael Fassbender, Lupita Nyong'o   
Genre: Drama / True Story
Rating: MA

First up, a few warnings: this is not for the faint of heart. There is a lot of graphic torture and despicable things which the camera does not shy away from. This is obviously to hit home the ugly truth of the reality of slavery and America’s sorry past, but it’s very unpleasant to watch. It’s also quite slow and long – 2 hours 15min.

It could’ve used more of the support cast, since Giamatti, Dano, Cumberbatch and Pitt do a good job, but it’s a true story, so there’s only so much creative liberty they could’ve taken. Most of the film just makes you sad, angry and anguished for Solomon (Ejiofor), wishing you could do something or he and the other slaves would rebel, but that was their reality and it’s a harsh pill to swallow.

There’s no humour or light-hearted moments to lighten the mood – and arguably there shouldn’t be – but it’s definitely no ‘Django Unchained’ when you compare their entertainingness. That’s not really the directors fault, but I feel it could have been paced a little better – and there seemed to be lots of scenes with Solomon just staring wide-eyed (see above!).

Overall: Some great acting – including Fassbender’s lush red beard – and a harrowing tale, with a very touching finale, but something doesn’t quite click, leaving you feeling a little numb afterwards.

Gav's Rating: 3.5 stars. 

The Wolf Of Wall Street (January 2014)

Official Australian release date: 23/1/14. Viewed: 22/1/14.

Director: Martin Scorsese

Actors: Leonardo DiCaprio, Jonah Hill, Margot Robbie, Kyle Chandler
Genre: Drama / Comedy / True Story
Rating: R

OK, so I went into ‘The Wolf Of Wall Street’ with no expectations and it really impressed me! I guess I shouldn’t be too surprised – it is Scorsese! He’s definitely a master director, with the film paced perfectly and the three hour run-time actually flies by, with barely a minute wasted. I also liked how DiCaprio occasionally broke the fourth wall and spoke directly to the audience – works well here.

It’s a true story, but I assume some creative liberties have been taken, as usual. It’s basically a story of greed, ambition and ego, all played out on Wall St, New York in the late 80s and early 90s. There’s some great supporting actors as DiCaprio’s fellow stockbrokers/advisers, none more so than Hill, but it’s great to see McConaughey, Reiner, Favreau and Suplee helping out.

While a film about stockbrokers doesn’t sound too exciting, I can assure you this is – it has debauchery, drugs, alcohol, ridiculous chanting, sex – approximately a new pair of boobs to look at every 5min – life-or-death situations, a decent score, plenty of laughs (particularly the country club scene!) and a fitting conclusion.

Overall: DiCaprio really carries the film – it’s his charisma that has you cheering for him and his gang of stockbrokers, even when you realise they’re technically the bad guys, with all the corruption and fraud that has come to light in Wall St. DiCaprio definitely deserves an Oscar for this role and you owe it to yourself to see this film.

Gav's Rating: 4 stars.