"The Wolf of Wall Street" - review Film Pro. The amazing story of Jordan Belfort, the original "Wolf of Wall Street"

Movie "The wolf of Wall Street" lasts three hours, so be patient if you decide to watch it, although, as it seems to me, this film is watched in one sitting.

The film was released in 2013, its director is legendary Martin Scorsese- lover of gangster stories, greatest personality in the field of cinematography of our time, every actor dreams of starring in his films. Who is lucky enough to live a rich and bright life in this movie?

Actors who starred in the film "The Wolf of Wall Street"

Leonardo DiCaprio – Jordan Belfort, broker

This Oscar-winning guy doesn't need much introduction, I think this is his third film Scorsese, in which he starred Leonardo, the first two were "Aviator" And "Gangs of New York". Honestly, I would give for this role DiCaprio Oscar, and already in 2014 it would have been on his bedside table. At the time of filming the film "The Wolf of Wall Street" by Leonardo DiCaprio was 39 years old, and he played a 22-27 year old guy. Certainly, Leo no longer as fresh and rosy as in his thirties, but still handsome and attractive.

Jonah Hill - Donnie Azoff, merchant, financial partner Jordana.

For his role in the film "The Wolf of Wall Street" by John was nominated for an award Oscar, and this was his second nomination. But the actor agreed to a fee of only 60,000 USD For comparison, the fee DiCaprio made up 25,000,000 USD. Jonah Hill was ready to work for free for filming Martina Scorsese and even paired with Leonardo DiCaprio. He certainly succeeded in the role. Silly, vulgar, cheeky, but at the same time funny Donny performed Hilla won the hearts of the audience.

Margot Robbie - Naomi Lapaglia, second wife Jordana.

For Margot Robbie role Naomi in film "The wolf of Wall Street" became the first significant Hollywood, perhaps this film became a turning point in the acting fate of the actress. Naomi performed Margot Robbie she is simply magnificent, neither men nor women can take their eyes off her. She really looks like a beauty, at the sight of whom men lose their heads, conquer and shower her with gifts, marry and love for years. She plays temptation, love, rage, resentment, disappointment. Margot Robbie not easy Nice picture, she's a great actress.

Cristin Milioti - Teresa Petrillo, first wife Jordana.

A sweet, brown-eyed girl, but still this is not what the wife of a millionaire, a sexaholic drug addict, who takes from life everything he can carry on his not very strong shoulders, should be like.

Matthew McConaughey - Mark Hannah, broker.

Another Oscar-winning actor who took part in the filming of the film "The wolf of Wall Street". Role Matthew small, he plays the main character’s first mentor, it is he who advises him to get a thrill from life: drugs and jerking off are the key to the success of any broker.

And now about the film "The Wolf of Wall Street" itself.

Jordan Belfort- a former representative of the middle class, he grew up in a poor family of accountants, lived in a small apartment, and at the age of 22 was already married to Teresa, brown-eyed, curly brunette. But the thought of getting rich never left me Jordana, and so he went to Wall Street- New York's financial district. There he began his career as a connector - a person who must make at least 500 calls to clients a day.

At my first job Jordan meets Mark Hannah, who gets him hooked on drugs and whores. The fact is that Hannah believes that since a broker’s brain works 24 hours a day, it is necessary to periodically prevent his gray matter from stagnating. Jordan very quickly mastered the profession of a broker; a year later he already received a brokerage license, but on his first time going to work as a broker Jordan saw how financial world The USA failed. October 19, 1987 there was a day that entered into world history economics as "Black Monday", on this day the biggest drop occurred Dow Jones Industrial Average throughout its entire history. Thousands of brokers were left without work. Jordan began to fall into despair, but the trickster will always find somewhere to make money. The future millionaire gets a job in a small sharashka office that sells cheap shares for half a buck apiece, but with a huge commission of 50%. On the first day of work, in just five minutes George manages to earn two thousand dollars.

And so Jordan Belfort felt the taste of money, he was carried away, he sold shares with extraordinary ease, he did it masterfully, masterfully. One day when Jordan was sitting in a cafe, a strange guy approached him and began to wonder where Jordan works and how much he gets, they say we live in the same house - I see you have money, and I make ends meet, I want to work for you. After Jordan shows him the check that he received for this month - and the amount written there is rather large - 72 thousand bucks, new acquaintance - and call him Donnie Azoff, immediately calls his boss at the children's furniture store to inform him that he is quitting. Donny starts working with Jordan. They have a lot in common, both are drug addicts and want the sweet life. Donny married to his cousin and has such white teeth that he illuminates everything around with the light of his radiant smile.

Soon Jordan And Donny They understand that it’s time for them to go on a free voyage. They find office space, hire their comrades, teach them the art of selling cheap worthless shares and begin to rake in the money - not even with shovels, but with a dump truck! Jordan Belfort decides to rebrand his company, from now on it is called « Stratton Oakmont » , the employees put on a polish and lo and behold! $28 million per month net profit. Money is flowing like a river, the company is in complete debauchery: cocaine, whores are cheap for a hundred and expensive for 500, the drug frenzy is gaining momentum, and the feds are starting to take a closer look at the company Jordan Belfort.

At this time it is published in the magazine Forbes article about Jordana and it is in it that he is first called The Wolf of Wall Street, he is given an unflattering description - “takes from the rich and gives to himself and his merry gang of brokers.” Jordan furious, but as it turned out, this anti-advertising did the company good; the next day the office was full of brokers looking for work and striving for financial independence. The company has doubled in size. Debauchery and cocaine stirred up the ranks of employees of a successful company with renewed vigor.

At that time Jordan takes his father to work as a sheriff, he keeps order, keeps his ear to the ground and is the only person who was not blown away by the amount of money falling on his head. Jordan's dad noisy, but tactful, once he and his son were talking about Teresa-wives Jordana, And Jordan admitted that he has lost interest in his wife, she has bushes between her legs - and this does not turn him on, all the whores with whom he spends time - and there are many of them - are all clean-shaven.

New idea Jordan Belfort– attract clients directly – without intermediaries and place their shares yourself. Money flows like a river, but you want even more.

Jordan throws another crazy party at his house, and now she appears in his life for the first time! Naomi Lapaglia!

on her blue dress, the men are breaking their necks staring at her, and the main character’s friend is Donny, so he actually takes his dick out of his pants and starts masturbating on Naomi right in front of his stunned wife.

Margot Robbie in The Wolf of Wall Street as Naomi Lapaglia

Shouts are heard: “I would even get AIDS from her!”, “I would fool her even if she were my sister!”.

Margot Robbie in The Wolf of Wall Street as Naomi Lapaglia

Jordan captivated by beauty Naomi, he is speechless and talks nonsense, the party ends, but Jordana I have the girl’s treasured phone number; by the way, she was at the party with her boyfriend.

Margot Robbie in The Wolf of Wall Street as Naomi Lapaglia

And so these two go on their first date. Candlelight dinner, romance, Jordana jaw dropped and drooling, Naomi charming - he calls her Countess, after dinner they go to her, Jordan All he can do is think about how to stay with her for the night, but Naomi not so modest, she asks him to light the fireplace in the living room, and she retires to her room for a while.

Margot Robbie naked in The Wolf of Wall Street as Naomi Lapaglia

Jordan with grief she lights the fireplace across the floors, then the doors open and she comes in! The only clothes she wears are black stockings and high-heeled shoes.

Margot Robbie and Leonardo DiCaprio naked in The Wolf of Wall Street

Jordan took possession of her, but this happiness lasted only 11 seconds, but they did it again and again.Jordan And Naomi They started dating often, the guy was literally obsessed with her, and it wasn’t just about sex, they were on the same wavelength, the same interests plus cocaine. One day they were caught by their wifeJordana – Theresa . The wife was furious, but it was no longer possible to change the course of events,Jordan was head over heels in love and soon didNaomi proposal - to marry him.

Margot Robbie and Leonardo DiCaprio in the movie "The Wolf of Wall Street" marital sex scene

Bachelor party in Vegas got by Jordan two million dollars, the bacchanalia was such that after all this scum moved out of the hotel, the entire 28th floor had to be restored from ruins.

Margot Robbie and Leonardo DiCaprio in The Wolf of Wall Street

Bala chic wedding, wedding gift for Naomi became a yacht named after her, the couple bought a house on the island, they lived happily, but Jordan continued to have sex on the side, and once again, when he said the name of another woman at night, Naomi threw the usual scandal at him in the morning; by that time the couple already had a little daughter, and after Naomi splashed it in my face Jordana three glasses of cold water, she decides to take revenge on her unfaithful husband in a unique way, from now on she will not have any sex with the whoremonger, and she will only walk around the house in short dresses and no underwear. Naomi shows her husband all the beauty of her... spreading her legs, and not suspecting that there is a camera in the eye of the children's toy, and that two guards see everything that happens in the nursery.

One day Donny got into a fight with one of the money carriers in Switzerland, and because of this situation the entire financial pyramid that he built could collapse Jordan.Fearing for my own skin, Donny decides to appease Jordana awesome drug. Jordan still doesn’t know that Donny played a prank, together they are going to have a great evening, throwing drugs at the wheel. But 35 minutes pass - no effect, friends eat pills over and over again - but there is no effect. Jordan his father calls and asks to call him from the phone located in the nearest bar, which Jordan and does. There, in the bar, he begins to be injected with drugs, and he bypasses the stage of euphoria and immediately feels the stage of a motionless vegetable. At this time, he finds out that his home phone is tapped, and he needs to urgently go home - after all, there is a madman there Donny talking on the phone with a Swiss lawyer laundering millions Jordana. How the semi-paralyzed man got there Jordan to your home – it’s enchanting! This scene is worth watching the movie for "The Wolf of Wall Street".

On this crazy evening, Donny almost died by choking on a ham roll and Jordan I had to give him mouth-to-mouth artificial respiration. Perhaps already at this stage of married life the wife Jordana Naomi Nerves begin to set in, and she begins to seriously think about divorce. At the same time, my aunt dies Emma– a figurehead in whose name all accounts in a Swiss bank are registered. Jordan decides to urgently swim closer to Switzerland, the whole wonderful company ( Jordan, Naomi, Donny) find themselves in a terrible storm, and only miraculously survive; the waves reached a height of 6 meters. In general, after all this madhouse, Jordan decides to give up extreme sports, he stops using drugs and behaves like a good boy, but that was not the case, the mechanism of the punitive machine has already been launched, and it only took one small mistake of a Swiss lawyer, who was caught in the wrong Jordana for everything to go to waste. The lawyer ratted everyone out. Naomi leaves her husband Jordan He faces 20 years in prison, but if he turns everyone in, his sentence will be reduced. Jordan warns Donny about drying, but gives up the rest. The conditions in the prison were excellent - after all Jordan rich, which means he can afford a lot.

Some critics consider him one of the best films M. Scorsese, others are more restrained in their assessments, but both agree that The Wolf of Wall Street is an unusually juicy, talented and sharply satirical study of values ​​and vices modern world. Proof of their rightness are the numerous awards received by the film and the well-deserved audience success.

However, after the release of The Wolf of Wall Street, some viewers argued that it was unpleasant for them to watch the adventures of such a cynical hero, even in the brilliant performance of DiCaprio. However, Jordan Belfort, main character film is not a figment of the screenwriter’s imagination and not collective image: This a real man, who spent 22 months in prison for fraud and money laundering.

Belfort in life and in cinema

The film's script is based on the book of the same name by a once successful and unscrupulous broker, playboy and drug addict, then a convicted criminal, and now a motivational speaker. It is noteworthy that Belfort’s idol during the years of his turbulent youth was not a real person, but a movie character - Gordon Gekko from the movie “Wall Street”. It is unlikely that Belfort at that time suspected that he himself would become the hero of the film, but fame, even if dubious, does not bother him: as a true businessman, he managed to monetize even his imprisonment, earning money from interviews and lectures.

While filming was going on, DiCaprio constantly consulted with the prototype of his hero (the actor and the former financier continued to communicate after filming was completed). This thorough approach bore fruit: according to Belfort, the circumstances of his life in the film were reproduced quite accurately, especially the drinking scenes.

The most poignant and exciting scenes of the film, the most improbable events took place in reality, including the deception of the public, the fabulous enrichment and subsequent problems with the FBI. It is interesting that “The Wolf of Wall Street” is not the first film about the activities of the Stratton Oakmont company founded by Belfort: the first was the drama “Boiler Room” directed by B. Young (2000), but in scope and naturalism it is far from Scorsese’s film.

Why are there so many explicit scenes in the film?

The main character of the film is not only a libertine, a drug addict and a swearer: he organizes regular orgies for his subordinates, and these orgies are shown vividly and impressively on the screen. There are so many explicit scenes in the film that the question inevitably arises: what is their purpose? To highlight Belfort’s immorality, one or two episodes would be enough, especially since the repeated scenes of debauchery do not add anything new to the character of the hero.

The naturalism of the film can be viewed in two aspects: psychological and social. On the one hand, this is an illustration of the fact that the most powerful drug for people of a certain type is big money, which gives the illusion of omnipotence and permissiveness: after all, before the start of his scams, Belfort in morally not much different from those around him. An uncontrollable thirst for profit leads to personal degradation, but this obvious idea is not the only reason why the three-hour film at times resembles a tutorial on human vices.

“The Wolf of Wall Street” is not so much a biography of a specific businessman as a brilliant mockery of the notorious consumer society and its values ​​- the cult of pleasure and material values. At first, the unrestrained pursuit of pleasure seems not without some attraction - at least for immature souls, but the further it goes, the more obvious its meaninglessness becomes. Another woman, another dose, another orgy - and then what? Nothing further, everything goes in an endless circle, and it seems that the FBI almost did Belfort a favor by imprisoning him. Otherwise, sooner or later the brilliant swindler would have thrown away his skates from another overdose.

Why do Belfort and his entourage behave so ridiculously after communicating with the FBI?

What does a sane person do when he becomes convinced that the FBI is on his tail? Immediately stops having fun and begins to act quickly and carefully. Instead, Belfort continues to take drugs, acts rowdy on board a plane flying to Switzerland, pesters his wife’s aunt, drives a car while insane, goes out on a yacht at sea in a storm (by the way, a similar episode took place in reality), and his friends lead yourself no better.

Such behavior shows that the pursuit of pleasure inevitably comes into conflict with the basic instinct - the instinct of self-preservation. I can’t help but remember an experiment with rats in which an electrode was implanted into the brain, stimulating the pleasure center - and the rats continuously pressed the lever that activated this electrode until they died from exhaustion.

What is the point of selling a pen?

Since the film ends with an offer to sell a pen at Belfort's training, it is obvious that we're talking about not just about sales techniques. At one time, Jordan showed Brad how to sell a pen, creating the necessary motivation. A pen is a symbolic image, a sign of extraordinary opportunities that open up for people who know how to manipulate others and “milk” them financially. This is all that the main character can do, selling the public not only unhelpful actions, but also unhelpful trainings. However, judging by the number of people who gathered for the training, the desire to become a millionaire (and consume, consume!) still remains the main one driving force many people, and the cult of the dollar is not in danger in the foreseeable future.

What is the point of the film?

A society fixated on material things and devoid of higher goals is doomed: this idea, although embedded deeply in the plot of the film, can be traced quite obviously. Both financial and political empires collapse when they forget about morality, and it is no coincidence that DiCaprio, when building the image of his hero, remembered Caligula. The Roman Empire did not perish, of course, from the orgies of the emperors, but the decline of morals is always and everywhere the first bell warning of impending catastrophes.

But, having struck such a high note, Scorsese suddenly winks at the viewer, who was already tuned in to the drama. We're not in Ancient Rome: there will be no dramas, and the empire turned out to be an imaginary value.

In the postmodern world, everything is a little serious - crime, punishment, falls, and epiphanies. If the film had been set in the dramatic 1920s, Belfort's story, like Gatsby's, would have ended with the protagonist's corpse. If this were the turbulent 1960s, Belfort would have been in prison for a long and tedious time and would have left prison physically broken, but morally renewed. And so Belfort is alive and well, and vice is not so frighteningly punished, and instead of drama there is a black comedy. Is this good or not? Let the viewer judge.

Six bedrooms, five bathrooms, a spa, a solarium, a sauna and bulletproof glass, a garage-workshop, a 230-meter roof terrace and a small garden - in this “modest” house in Manhattan lives the prototype of one of the “not the most fortunate” minor characters Hollywood film "The Wolf of Wall Street" - Alan Wilzig. He has it in real life The main character of this black comedy - former New York broker Jordan Belfort - beat off the girl. Look how he lives real hero movie "The Wolf of Wall Street".

20 PHOTOS

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1. The 700-meter house, which is located on Hubert Street in Manhattan in New York, is “squeezed” between two high-rise buildings. The owner of the house, Alan Wilzig, put it up for sale for a considerable amount - $43.5 million. (Photo: zillow.com).
2. The house looks amazing at night. Colorful lighting creates the impression that this is not a two-story residential building, but night club. Even the garage lights up. (Photo: zillow.com).
3. A bright, spacious living room, with an aquarium, which immediately catches the eye with its neon colors, and of course, a motorcycle is the passion of the home owner. (Photo: zillow.com).
4. This is a garage that also has space for video games and a small workplace- a table with a computer. (Photo: zillow.com).
5. This is what the garage looks like when there is a car in it. (Photo: zillow.com).
6. And here is Alan Wilzig - the owner of the apartment. (Photo: zillow.com).
7. This is the master bedroom with a large double bed and a modest interior. (Photo: zillow.com).
8. This is the kitchen. To the left of the photo you will see a special wall on which you can take notes or take notes. The end of the era of sticky cards on the refrigerator. (Photo: zillow.com).
9. This is a very spacious dressing room that any lady would envy. (Photo: zillow.com).
10. These are two interconnected guest rooms. (Photo: zillow.com).
11. The corridor with the stairs that leads to the second floor, like the whole house, can be illuminated in the most different colors. (Photo: zillow.com).
12. 230-meter terrace on the roof of the house with a dining table for 10 people. (Photo: zillow.com).
13. Near the house in a small garden there is a SPA designed for 8 people. (Photo: zillow.com).
14. This is a living room with a fireplace, in which, like most rooms in this house, the walls are painted white. (Photo: zillow.com).
15. This is one of several bathrooms in the house. (Photo: zillow.com).
16. On the first floor of the house there is a media room where you can watch movies, TV shows or play video games on the big screen. (Photo: zillow.com).

But a good book alone is not enough to create a truly exciting picture. Of course, a huge role in incredible success The film was played by the directorial talent of Martin Scorsese. The viewer loves interesting stories, and Scorsese knows how to give the viewer what he needs. The three-hour comedy film is full of events that stun the common man. Some of them are real incidents from the life of the aforementioned Jordan Belfort, others were created only to add color and color to the film, highlight the storyline and ultimately capture the audience.

15. He's never worked on Wall Street.

Let's take for comparison one of the offices located on the most famous street in New York - Wall Street. A small company of about nine people earns approximately $5,000 a month. Staff " Stratton Oakmont“At the peak of its activity, it numbered about 1 thousand people. By simple calculations (1000/9*5000 minus inflation costs, employee bonuses, etc.) we get a monthly rent of approximately $400-500,000.

A drop in the ocean for such a giant company “ Stratton Oakmont" But Belfort also started small - the company did not immediately begin to rake in millions of dollars, and therefore it would be logical to locate the office geographically " Stratton Oakmont» on Long Island, an hour's drive from Wall Street.

What's the catch here, you ask? Belfort reportedly trained his team to tell investors they were calling from Wall Street. It seems like a very small trick, but the deal with brokers " Stratton Oakmont"immediately became much more seductive. But in reality, this guy was the Wolf of Long Island, or could have been, if not for one thing...

14. No one ever called him Wolf

Isn't it a little annoying to hear this? An excellent, succinct, telling nickname that fully corresponds to the plot of the film. And suddenly some article debunks another myth that you have long believed in. I apologize, but the only one who called Jordan Belfort the Wolf was Jordan Belfort himself, and he gave himself such a nickname for the first time only in 2007 in his memoirs.

Former vice president of the company Stratton Oakmont" (Jonah Hill played him in the film) once said: " Having worked with him for eight years, I have never heard anyone ever call him Wolf" I don't want to be a bore, but the only nicknames this guy probably heard in the boardroom were Geordie, Boss and Charlatan.

13. He did “it” with a ton of money.

It's funny, we criticize Jordan Belfort for being a slippery guy who robbed ordinary decent citizens of huge sums of money. And, meanwhile, it was precisely this fact that became the consequence of the fact that later they began to respectfully shake his hands. In his book, Belfort describes one case. When he arrived home, he placed $3 million in cash on the floor in front of his wife Nadine and then invited her to lie on top of the pile of money. The couple then made sweet sweet love on crisp banknotes, which later received the well-deserved name of dirty money.

Most of us have the opportunity to do the same with $5 or $15. But here it is appropriate to quote Margot Robbie, who played the role of Belfort's wife in the movie. She had a chance to recreate this love scene. Margot warns those who are inspired by this story: “ I got a million cuts on my back from all that money! It's actually not as glamorous as it looks. If any of you are planning to make love while sitting on a pile of banknotes, better not do it».

12. The scene that shocked many was actually just the director’s imagination.

Perhaps most viewers, after watching the film “ The wolf of Wall Street“There is a strong feeling that Martin Scorsese used maximum creativity in the story about Jordan Belfort. The dirty, vulgar, sometimes harsh scenes that are presented in abundance in the film seem so unreal. But in fact, most of them are absolutely true. However, the famous opening sequence where Leo and company begin using the dwarves as a kind of "slippers" to throw at a target is clean water artifice.

Belfort mentions in his memoirs that " toss"A dwarf would be funny. But, nevertheless, according to his recollections, there was only one party with a short participant. And no one threw him anywhere. Danny Porush (whose real name is Donny Azof and was played by Jonah Hill in the film) once commented on this scene: “We never insulted the dwarves, much less threw them anywhere. We were friendly towards them. There was no physical violence. Moreover, I wanted I would like to emphasize that we no longer use the term dwarf at all, so as not to offend people in any way vertically challenged and there were no abuses on this topic».

11. He didn't pay any of his victims.

Jordan Belfort can confidently be called an absolutely unscrupulous fraudster and scoundrel. According to available information, Belfort robbed his investors of more than $110 million. And most of his clients were not representatives blue bloods. These are simple hard workers, the kind you see every morning, rushing to their factory, the so-called blue collar workers, working from 9.00 to 17.00. Therefore they can be understood. When some sweet-voiced guy calls you and offers you the biggest investment deal of your life, it's hard not to be tempted to buy shares.

But, as we all understand, it is easier to catch a fairy-tale gnome than to wait for any of the investments in Belfort’s company to bring at least minimal income. When the FBI finally brought Belfort to trial, he was ordered to repay all the money he stole from his victims. But now 2 decades have passed, first a book was published, and then a film of the same name, and Belfort only reimbursed about $10 million out of the 110 ordered by the court. And even this money was obtained through the sale of Belfort's property in the early 2000s.

10. He was hot-tempered and abrupt

In 1991, Belfort married for the second time to former model Nadine Caridi (played by Margot Robbie). And as we saw in the film, their marriage can hardly be called cloudless. Belfort's love for drugs, drunkenness, partying, and girls of easy virtue is a bad recipe for a long, happy marriage. Nadine had the opportunity to remain the wife of a wealthy millionaire husband, but in the end she filed for divorce. The telling evidence of their complicated romance may be the time Belfort pushed Nadine so hard that she fell down the stairs.

At the same time, he rushed towards her, threatening to take away their daughter. And then he decided to carry out his threat. He grabbed his daughter, put her in the sports car (without wearing a seat belt) and drove in reverse through the garage door at breakneck speed. Belfort stopped only because he crashed into a pole on their property. It's sad when drugs kill, but it's even sadder when innocent people are killed. Of course, then no one died in this story, but there was such a possibility.

9. He betrayed everyone

« People call them rats because they will do everything possible and impossible to survive." is a quote from another infamous Scorsese film " Good guys" Scorsese's classic crime film and the collective image of a criminal who in the courtroom is ready to point at anyone just to shield himself and mitigate the punishment as much as possible. Of course, Jordan Belfort was no exception.

There is a scene in the film where Leo wears a tape recorder, but at the same time tries to pass notes to his friends, hinting that they are being monitored. This behavior certainly deserves respect. But unfortunately, this is just a fiction for the film. In reality, Belfort turned in everyone who was involved in his scheme just to mitigate his sentence as much as possible. Apparently " Wolf“I couldn’t come to terms with the thought of being in a cage and very quickly underwent a metamorphosis, turning into a rat.

8. He forced his secretary to buy drugs for him.

There is no secret that Belfort loved all sorts of drugs. This was the main story line both in the film and in the book of the same name. Also known for his famous quote, which became a catchphrase: “ I loaded myself with such a mountain of drugs that it would be enough to calm Guatemala" Belfort did not remember exactly when he became addicted to drugs, but subsequently his daily “ diet"consisted of marijuana, morphine, cocaine, Aderal, Xanax and alcohol.

But the most beloved " dish"was methaqualone. An influential politician made the drug illegal in the mid-1980s. Methaqualone was the infamous pill that Bill Coxby happily slipped into the drinks of unsuspecting ladies. Throughout the 90s, Belfort swallowed packs of these pills and loved them so much that when he arrived at his stash in London, he immediately turned to his secretary in New York with a request to help him out.

Belfort needed to recharge and made an urgent call to his assistant straight home at 4 am. She immediately sent him a package of drugs, mind you, across the ocean, by plane, which is reserved by the richest of the rich. While masses of innocent people are starving to death on the streets, this case is a disgraceful example of the abuse of money and power.

7. Is Belfort's prison term a difficult time for him?

Belford was sentenced to four years in prison on charges of fraud and money laundering. Like many other criminals of Belfort's caliber (Pablo Escabar, Enron officials, etc.), he did not have to go into the usual cramped prison cell and deal with excellent gangsters. Somehow it became a custom that people with a lot of money are sent to more comfortable and presentable prisons, and Belfort was no exception.

Moreover, thanks to a plea agreement, his sentence was reduced to 22 months. As a result, after spending a short time in solitary confinement, Belfort headed to a general regime forced labor camp, where he could enjoy tennis courts and libraries. So if you think these white-collar scammers have received the punishment they deserve, then I will disappoint you. For them, it was just a vacation paid for by conscientious taxpayers.

6. He didn't want to be a broker

Did any of us aspire to be a broker as a child? Show me one little kid who dreams of becoming a broker, not a superhero or a firefighter. If you do find such a baby, I would advise you to check him out. Perhaps this is just a small person masquerading as a child? The stock market is a pretty boring place, especially for young children.

It's essentially a group of adults screaming when they see numbers on a screen. Therefore, it is not surprising that little Belfort had no such aspirations. In fact, he chose another dismal professional field - dentistry. As a child, Belfort sold popsicles on the beach and saved up $20,000 for dental school (Whether through fraud or not, we don't know. But it's certainly impressive).

However, his dream of becoming a famous dentist collapsed in his first year of study. One day the dean of the faculty took him aside and said: “ The golden age of dentistry has come to an end. Huge money you won't make money in this field" For the money-hungry Belfort, this was enough to promptly quit college once and for all.

5. He is a good speaker

IN "The Wolf of Wall Street"» Belfort gives inspiring speeches to employees of his company. The goal is to raise the morale of your " troops”, calm the conscience of the staff and give the right attitude to conduct transactions. This fact is true and there is no exaggeration here. Jordan Belfort certainly has the gift of gab. And the main confirmation of this is the countless number of people whom he persuaded to invest money in outright trash.

But what can a guy do if the law forbids him to conduct such profitable business? Of course, he begins to teach others. Once Belfort was released from prison, he made a name for himself by giving lectures and motivational seminars to anyone looking to build a successful business. The cost of one training is about $400. And, you won’t believe it, people are willing to pay for the opportunity to hear well-known sales training techniques - “ sell me this pen" or " The only obstacle standing in front of you and your dreams is yourself and the boundaries you create in your head.».

4. He earns a lot more now

As previously mentioned, Belfort's debt to defrauded investors was about $110 million. At least this is the amount that law enforcement agencies were able to estimate. According to Belfort himself, his income was about $49 million a year, and once he earned even $12 million in 3 minutes. As soon as Belfort was released, he began to earn money as the author of a book, then as a trainer at various lectures and seminars, and, of course, he received his share of the copyright from the release of the film.

He later stated that in 2014 he intends to receive an income of more than $100 million. By simple calculation, it turns out that this is 2 times more than his income in the 90s. For each performance, Belfort is paid from $30 thousand to $80 thousand. A huge amount. Especially if you take into account that he gives about 45 such lectures a year. And it probably seems to you that now Belfort works strictly within the law and earns his living honestly. But I will still disappoint you. Every time he gives a speech or tells his life story, he is essentially profiting off the victims of his scam over and over again. Jordan Belfort is a rich man and he makes it clear that he wants to stay that way.

3. There has never been a chimpanzee in his office.

In film " The wolf of Wall Street“There are many interesting scenes, as in fact in any collaboration between Scorsese and DiCaprio. Here, for example, is one of them. Leo, playing the role of Belfort, walks around the office " Stratton Oakmont"with a chimpanzee on his shoulder. In fact, the role of this scene in the film is only figurative - it emphasizes how primitive and unceremoniously wild the atmosphere reigning in the company was. Stratton Oakmont».

But alas, in reality such an episode never happened during the entire existence of the company. Denny Porush (or Donnie, played by Jonah Hill) commented on the episode a few years ago: " There were never any chimpanzees in the office, nor any other animals. I would never allow rough or inappropriate treatment of animals." However, there is a reliable fact that Porush, proving his case to one of the employees "Stratton Oakmont", swallowed goldfish. From his memoirs: “I told one of our brokers that if he didn’t do the job right, I would eat his goldfish." Which is exactly what Porush did.

2. Belfort really sank his yacht

As has been mentioned many times, the film contains many impressive moments. But some events seem quite real and you are sure that they actually happened (such as the case with the chimpanzee). Other episodes are so fantastic that many of you will think they are just a creative director's idea. These circumstances are too extravagant. But in fact it turns out that these are exactly the events that actually happened.

For example, the case of Jordan Belfort's yacht. A 45-meter luxury vessel bearing the name ex-wife Belfort " Nadine", has been the setting for many a wild office party. And according to FBI reports, it actually sank off the coast of Italy. In 1996, while sailing through the choppy waters of the Mediterranean, Belfort, imagining himself taller than the Empire State Building (or whatever God only knows), ordered the captain to move at high speed through the storm. Although, it was probably his favorite methaqualone that was to blame.

But the fact remains a fact. The yacht capsized almost immediately after sailing. Fortunately, no one was hurt. Crew members and passengers were rescued by Italian navy. According to Belfort's comments regarding this episode, the only thing that surprised him in the film was the helicopter, which went under water along with the ship. In fact, they had to physically push the helicopter into the water so that the rescue helicopter could land.

1. Tommy Chong is the main reason for The Wolf of Wall Street.

Isn't it a strange phenomenon? But Tommy Chong and Jordan Belfort - best friends. I suppose this is also a surprise for you? A millionaire stockbroker from Long Island and a famous Mexican actor and drug addict, whose fame exploded in the 70s, were able to become friends. Luck loves Belfort. While serving his sentence, after deceiving millions of people, he ends up in the same cell with a man who was known throughout the world only as “ cute trembling old man».

Chong was serving time for illegally selling marijuana pipes (yes, this was illegal in 2000). It was he who pushed Belfort not only to lecture, but also to write memoirs. If it weren't for Tommy Chong, maybe " The wolf of Wall Street" would never have appeared, Leo and Scorsese would not have teamed up to create another film, and Belfort would not have raked in fabulous money after serving his sentence. Although no, I would probably still make money, but not from selling a book.

Do you want to know more? more information about one of the most famous financial tycoons and fraudsters? Then watch the video, which presents 10 other facts about the real Wolf of Wall Street - Jordan Belfort.

The history of fraudulent financiers mixes sex, drugs and money. The story is based on Jordan Belfort's memoir about his tumultuous career at brokerage firm Stratton Oakmont. And although Scorsese and DiCaprio are less interested in the details of securities fraud than in demonstrating shameless hedonism, the film faithfully depicts one of Belfort's first public revelations on the pages of Forbes. Author Rawla Khalaf, now the international editor of the Financial Times, did not coin the phrase “the wolf of Wall Street,” but called Belfort “a corrupt Robin Hood who takes from the rich and gives to himself and his merry gang of brokers.” This is what the described events looked like in 1991.

When Jordan Belfort was twenty-three years old, he went from door to door selling meat and seafood on Long Island, New York, and dreamed of becoming rich. Within a few months, he had his own freight transportation network, delivering 5,000 pounds of beef and fish a week. But Belfort expanded too quickly and simply ran out of capital. At twenty-five, he declared personal bankruptcy.
“I was quite talented,” shrugs the eloquent Belfort, now 29. “But the profit was small.”

He began to look for more liquid goods - and found shares. Steaks, shares - from the point of view of this assertive businessman there is not much difference. Today, Belfort has been the owner of Stratton Oakmont, a brokerage firm based in Lake Success, New York, for two years, which specializes in pushing dubious securities on gullible investors. And although this product can “go rotten” just like meat and fish, it seems to bring quite a profit. Stratton is expected to generate $30 million in commission income this year and boasts nearly 150 brokers. Belfort, who owns more than 50% of Stratton, only Last year earned $3 million.

However, he has not yet shared this wealth with his clients. A year ago, before customers began complaining, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) began investigating Stratton's sales and trading activities. Some of the firm's former brokers have received subpoenas. Belfort confirmed the investigation - according to him, Stratton is providing full assistance to law enforcement agencies. The future Wall Street tycoon was born in Queens into a family of accountants and received a degree in biology from American University. After it meat business collapsed, he studied brokerage in several companies: L. F. Rothshild, D. H. Blair and F. D. Roberts Securities. Belfort completed his graduate studies at Investors Center, a company with a staff of 850 people that worked with penny stocks (securities with a very low market price). He came to work there in 1988, and a year later the Investors Center was closed by decision of the SEC regulator.

In 1989, Belfort joined forces with twenty-three-year-old Kenneth Green, another Investors Center alumnus who once hauled truckloads of meat for Belfort from time to time. In early 1989, the aspiring entrepreneurs opened an office in a friend's auto dealership in Queens, and then created a franchise of Stratton Securities, a small firm that combined the functions of a broker and dealer. After five months, Belfort and Greene had earned enough from commissions that they were able to buy out all of Stratton's financial transactions for approximately $250,000. Greene, right hand Belfort, today owns 20% of Stratton.

To market his stock to customers, Belfort hired young salespeople as motivated as his refrigerated truck drivers. He taught them a proven cold calling technique under the code name "Kodak Advertising." This meant that, first of all, the client was offered not some unknown product pulled from under the counter, but first-class shares, often Eastman Kodak shares. Only after an investor has taken the bait of the blue chips do Belfort's brokers start selling him quick-profit junk. A former Stratton broker remembers Belfort's motto: "Grab them by the throat and don't let them hang up." For the brokers in this “gang of tomboys,” Jordan quickly became a real idol.

It is said about one twenty-eight-year-old Stratton employee that he used to lay carpets, but in the first month of work at the company he received $100,000, and in the first year - $800,000. Half of this money remained with the broker. On average, Belfort's employees earn about $85,000 a year. The Stratton founder, like a fledgling version of the great New Jersey penny stock salesman Robert Brennan, says he helps clients invest in America's future. “The most important thing for me is to be associated with stocks of fundamentally healthy companies, companies that generate income,” he assures. An excellent example of companies whose shares Stratton trades is Ventura Entertainment Group. Based in North Hollywood, California, Ventura produces content for television. Legally, the company arose after a partnership with limited liability issued shares to the stock exchange. Belfort began pushing Ventura's shares on everyone from day one and last year underwrote a second issue of shares. At the time of the offering, Ventura posted a loss of $455,000 on revenue of $3 million.

Ventura is owned by 52-year-old Harvey Bibikoff, who previously owned Discovery Associates, a retail sales electronic equipment. Under his leadership, the company, which today bears the name Leo's Industries, also suffered heavy losses.

Belfort does not just collect commissions and guarantee the placement of securities. Look at Ventura's second stock issue, for example. Last year, Stratton sold 400,000 Ventura lots (consisting of one share and one purchase certificate) for $12 each. The shares jumped to $15, and Belfort ordered brokers to quickly buy the certificates from happy investors at $1 each, while continuing to distribute the securities. A few months later, Belfort sold out most certificates to investors for $10, making a profit of 900%. Ventura's current stock price (after a 2-for-1 stock split) is 63 cents.
Belfort cynically admits that the Ventura stock operation was good, but “every story comes to an end.”

Then came Nova Capital (now called Visual Equities), an investment firm controlled by Alvin Abrams, the 56-year-old president of penny stock firm First Philadelphia Corp. Since the 1960s, this investor has been followed by a trail of numerous bans and fines imposed by the SEC and National Association stock dealers. In 1989, Belfort purchased a large batch of Nova certificates for $1 each. He used most of the certificates at prices ranging from $2.50 to $2.75 and sold them to investors for $5. Stratton brokers continued to promote the stock. The price has increased to $9. As the shares rose in price, Belfort used the remaining certificates and sold the securities. (They have since dropped to $3). According to one estimate, this and similar certificate transactions have brought Stratton up to $10 million over the past two years.

In recent months, many of Stratton's shares - including DVI Financial and Ropak Laboratories - have fallen sharply since word of the SEC investigation spread. But Belfort, who has made huge profits from the scrip transactions, seems completely unwilling to use the firm's capital to support the stock. He is like a corrupt Robin Hood who takes from the rich and gives it all to himself and his merry band of brokers, justifying it as follows: “We appeal to wealthy investors. I couldn't live with myself if I called people who make $50,000 a year and took away the money they need for their children's education."

It seems that by the age of thirty, Belfort had achieved success. He drives a $175,000 Ferrari Testarossa.
The broker says he handles adversity well and plans to diversify Stratton into other areas of the business. Recently, for example, it acquired a preemptive right to purchase 15% of Judicate, a Philadelphia-based publicly traded arbitration firm. Judicate, which had revenue of $1.9 million and a loss of $814,000 in 1990, gained national attention last summer when it entered into a contract with the National Association of Stock Dealers to resolve disputes between brokers and clients. As things stand now, Belfort will need all the help he can get to deal with long list Stratton's failed clients.