TheRetroCritic

This year, Martin Scorsese offered us a heavy, deadly dose of sex, drugs and money in The Wolf Of Wall Street , a film following the true story of dodgy stockbroker Jordan Belfort. It's the typical rise and fall tale except that the rise is ridiculously high and the fall is cushioned by a nice, big pillow filled with dough. Think Citizen Kane meets Scarface with a dash of Caligula . The film is fast-paced to say the least and drops you into this cocaine-infused spiral of debauchery and obscene wealth without mercy. Leonardo Di Caprio plays Belfort and, breaking the fourth wall every so often, tells us all about how he basically crooked his way into that lifestyle. The character is likeable yet also repulsive, not only because of his greedy, selfish and careless personality but because the idea of one douchebag was living it up thanks to some shady deals and phone-calls while so many were struggling to make ends meet is one that hits close to home these days. The reason why w

Based on true events, Catch Me If You Can would have made a compelling film regardless of who directed it. A compelling documentary, even. But with Steven Spielberg behind the camera, the film was a sure-fire hit and was a thrilling, fast-paced rollercoaster ride of creative conmanism. Set in the 1960's, the film follows teenager Frank Abagnale Jr. (Leonardo Di Caprio) who learns that not only is his father (Christopher Walken) ruined but his parents are getting a divorce. Looking to find a way to fix that somehow, financially at least, Frank sets out to assume various identities and con banks with the help of fake cheques. He becomes co-pilot for an airline, a doctor and a lawyer among other things. Along the way, he is pursued by Tom Hanks' FBI agent Carl Hanratty whom he manages to trick over and over, always leaving him one step behind. It's a relentless cat and mouse game right up until the movie's final shot and although the film takes time-outs here and the