The Wolf of Wall Street (UHD Blu-ray) review

[David Vaughn]

Studio: Paramount
Release Date: December 14, 2021
Rating: R
Film: 4/5
 
Plot
A young stockbroker hungry for fame and glory in New York City, where corruption is king and more is never enough. His name is Jordan Belfort, but soon the world will know him by a different name: The Wolf of Wall Street.
 
My Thoughts
Another based on a true story that garnered a number of Oscar nominations, including Best Picture, Adapted Screenplay (Terence Winter), Best Director (Martin Scorsese), Best Supporting Actor (Jonah Hill), and Best Actor (Leonardo DiCaprio), but didn’t win any golden statues. DiCaprio did win a Golden Globe for his performance.
 
This is a very good, but not great, movie. The first act really draws you into the picture, but the editing could have been much better. At three hours long it drags in a few scenes, especially depicting the characters on drugs, but given that the original cut of the film was four hours I guess cutting 25% out is an improvement. The performances are outstanding, especially DiCaprio and Hill, and the story is very captivating. According to the real-life Belfort, the wild scenes depicted in the film are tame compared to what really happened. If true, that man is lucky to be alive because the number of drugs and unprotected sex he has in the film would be a death sentence for any normal human being!
 
The uptick in picture quality over the already stellar looking Blu-ray is visible, but not necessarily remarkable. The film is shot with a mixture of 35mm and digital cameras and the detail is very good throughout but the longer shots are a tad soft. Nighttime scenes feature excellent shadow detail and inky blacks, but the flesh tones are all over the map—sometimes orange, red, or natural, depending on the scene.
 
The DTS-HD MA 5.1 track is just as impressive with strong dynamics and clear dialog. The LFE channel is rarely called upon and the surround speakers are there for ambient noise and rarely call attention to themselves
 
 
Video 9/10
 
Audio 9/10 (DTS-HD MA 5.1)
 
Special Features:
 
·        The WolfPack featurette
·        Digital Copy
 
 

 
 
Conclusion
This film has grown on me over the years due to many great scenes that are housed in an overlong 3-hour presentation. The story is larger than life and you get a firsthand look at how greed and excess leads to nothing but trouble. My biggest gripe is my wife won’t watch it with me given the nature of the film, so I can only sit through it when she’s gone for the day or on a trip to visit our daughter. If you already own the film you’ll have to decide if a slight uptick in video quality is worth a double-dip or not.
 
 
Reference Review System:
JVC DLA-RS2000 4K Ultra High-Definition Front Projector
(Calibrated with Portrait Displays CalMAN color calibration software & C6-HDR Meter from Portrait Displays)
Stewart Filmscreen - Firehawk 88” 16x9 Fixed Screen
Trinnov Altitude 16 Audio/Video Processor
ATI AT527NC Powering Bed Channels
ATI AT524NC Powering Atmos Speakers
Panasonic DP-UB820 Ultra HD Blu-ray Player
System Controller: URC MX-990
M&K S-150 THX Ultra (R-C-L Speakers)
M&K SS-150 x4 (Surround Speakers)
Atlantic Technology IC6-OBA x 4 Overhead Speakers
SVS PC-Ultra Cylinder Subwoofer
HSU VTF-15H MK2 Subwoofer
SVS SB-3000 Subwoofer
JL Audio Dominion F110 Subwoofer x 2
Mini DSP HD  controlling all subwoofers
Audioquest and Monoprice - Audio/Video/Speaker Cabling
PureAV PF60 Power Conditioner

[AVSCraig]

" If you already own the film you’ll have to decide if a slight uptick in video quality is worth a double-dip or not. " - I like this movie. But I haven't decided if I should order this or not. Maybe I'll wait for a sale.

[bmoney]

I don’t own it. So perfect time to grab it 

[David Vaughn]

" If you already own the film you’ll have to decide if a slight uptick in video quality is worth a double-dip or not. " - I like this movie. But I haven't decided if I should order this or not. Maybe I'll wait for a sale.

Craig,

There's so much to watch these days I never buy anything day-and-date anymore. I wait for the sale because a few months down the line it will be 50-75% cheaper.