RESEARCH INTO A DRAMA OPENING TITLE: The Wolf of Wall Street

 Drama Opening Scene Analysis.

(Some shots have been removed from this version)

   The Wolf of Wall Street, starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Jonah Hill, Matthew McConaughey and Margot Robbie was directed by Martin Scorsese and released in 2013 by Paramount Pictures.

Immediately, the clip opens with a non-diegetic voiceover saying "The world of investing can be a jungle", paired with footage of the stock market and the signpost 'WALL ST', with diegetic sound effects of people yelling over each other and city noises. This establishes to the audience that the film's narrative will be revolved around that topic, and that the setting is in Wall Street. This is then, however, shifted tonally as relaxing piano music plays as a non-diegetic soundtrack, and the nature of the dialogue follows that of a commercial when he says "That's why we at Straton Oakmont pride ourselves on being the best". A lion is also shown walking through the office that is now the setting, yet the workers around it seem undisturbed; this confirms that the clip is a 'commercial' for a brokerage firm. This strongly captivates the audience as a commercial is a more unusual approach, and it intrigues them as to why this choice has been made.

After the firm's logo, a group of office workers in the same setting are shown, predominantly men indicating the 1980s time period, gathered around a large, velcro dart board as a person of short stature is flung at it. The use of editing allows for a heavily juxtaposed and comedic atmospheric shift between the two scenes, depicting the sly nature of these brokers and how their external image is feigned in order to push the product to the client.

The camera then focuses on a man amongst the crowd who waves a prop of a stack of money frantically, delivering the diegetic dialogue "25 grand to the first cocksucker to nail a bullseye!" followed by cheers. He then throws the money to the ground. This depicts to the audience that he is a well-liked man in the office, is quite reckless and is extremely wealthy. It can be assumed that he is the film's main character as he appears to be the only person with established dialogue. Additionally, the contrast between the brokers in their costume of suits and the dwarf in a red and blue velcro one implies that he is there for their entertainment, and shows a clear difference in status. 

This narrative is then continued as the scene goes into a freeze frame on him still with a frantic and over energised demeanour to him, perhaps in order to emphasise that he is intoxicated, and is a frequent user as he is using in his work environment. A non-diegetic voiceover is yet again used as he introduces himself and the story of his life to the audience, displaying a convention of drama as it seems realistic and is applicable to today's society. The dialogue also, even at one point, dictates the colour of his Ferrari as he corrects the scene by changing it from red to white in editing. This again implies how wealthy he is and his powerful status in this narrative, establishing his personality.

The audience are then quickly introduced to his "gorgeous" wife, Naomi, his "2 perfect kids", and his assets (to an extent his family can be considered as one). His description of his life portrays that he is somewhat narcissistic and shallow as he only acknowledges the external factors to his life, and seems as if he is attempting to prove something to the audience. Again, this establishes his personality, and perhaps even hints at the narrative as his life seems uncomfortably too 'flawless'; perhaps the film will explore how his hubris will lead to his inevitable downfall. 

Following this, the man is in a helicopter, visibly intoxicated due to his slurred speech, unstable physicality, and through the use of slow-motion. He crashes the helicopter, which again emphasises how reckless he is, and how perhaps his severe drug usage spills into the domestic aspect of his life. 

The characterisation created encourages the audience to view all characters as 'real', acting as a convention of drama - the opening also indicates that the film will be tackling the story of an individual with realistic tendencies, so that audience members can either observe or relate to him, yet again typical of that of drama.

I do believe that this is an extremely successful opening as it is highly stylised and is also clearly targeted for an older audience, which is portrayed through the use of more mature themes and vulgar language. It captures the audience's attention through this as it sets up the beginning of a path to self destruction through his greed, capturing the essence of the drama genre.

THE TRAILER