Most Films represent our repressed desires, and the fantasies that reflect those repressed desires. Some films in particular do so for men by emphasizing the male gaze and the objectification of women. The viewer identifies with the main character by virtue of the mirror stage, as theorized by Lacan. "Thus the mirror stage involves both identification with an image, and alienation from it: both recognition and misrecognition." (Rose, 163) In the "Wolf of Wall Street" the main character "occupies a space of depth (compared to the surficiality of women), in which he actually looks." (Rose, 163). He even addresses the audience, which invites the audience to both see themselves in the mirror, while feeling alienated from it, especially when he is expressing his opinions of women and power, the two main themes in the movie. "We take on identities, just as we take on body images." (Lacan, 1973, pp. 206-11) He sees himself as whole, so we do the same. By this method, and the male gaze, "The Wolf of Wall Street" represents both the excesses of the era it represents, and the cultural use of women as window dressing through fetishistic scopophilia, to draw the male gaze into the frames of the film so the viewer can experience vicariously the repressed desire to "look" as well as to dominate and to possess and misuse power and women. The movie uses fantasies which articulate the repressed desires for wealth, power, and domination of women. The emphasis on drugs is a metaphor for the addiction to power. Having Leonardo Dicaprio as the main character also creates a previous bond with the audience. "Much of the continued power of the movies as a social institution derives from the remarkably resilient status of movie stars in our entertainment firmament." (Linton,76) With his prestige and past accomplishments, the audience has past recollections/bonds with him. (Cowie 1990) suggests that through fantasy, "men and women in the audience may be positioned while watching a film in ways that correspond to the dynamics of their own fantasies." So, while "The Wolf of Wall Street" uses the male gaze and the mirror stage with men as the active agents, the repressed desires of many humans, both male and female, to have power and wealth even by illegal means, draws both genders into the film. Our habitus, and the technique of having Jordan address the audience, allows the viewers to empathize and enter into his original innocence. Then as repressed desires draw the viewers into the adrenaline rush and general excitement, the audience also follows him down the inevitable road to destruction. Along the way the audience may be drawn into the "high" and the addiction to over-the-top power. As he starts his downward spiral, the audience also witnesses the reality of the downfall, and understands the consequences almost as if they are experiencing it themselves. Our habitus takes us into his world and the addictions, and our morals after the downfall bring us back to our cultural norms and our ideology of morality. The audience is invited to both recognize themselves in the character, and to feel alienated from him as he first acts out and then suffers the consequences of repressed desires. While fantasies usually do not have consequences, the mirror allows for both identification and alienation. Plot Summary "The Wolf of Wall Street" opens by showing Jordan Belford navigating through his immense success. He has a job that he has built from the ground up. Everyone wants to be a part of his success. He is shown with an amazing home that the viewer could only fantasize having, including a wildly expensive sports car. If that wasn't enough, he has a wife who is a former model. It seems as if she is only there for his pleasure as indicated by him receiving oral sex from her as he is driving home in the opening sequence. Once you get this flash of his dream life, the film goes back to where it all began. Jordan, at this point, is married to a different woman and is trying to find a way to make a living. After losing his first job as a stockbroker due to the firm's bankruptcy he had little self-confidence and was feeling desperate to take any job. Jordan eventually begins to sell penny stocks because his wife convinced him to continue in the stock market field. Eventually, he realizes how easy it is to mislead people and sell these cheap stocks for higher prices than they are actually worth. This leads him to begin his own firm with a new friend and some previous drug dealing friends. After beginning this company, he was living the American dream. The way he created this business, which was not completely legal, allowed him to go from struggling to pay his bills to being able to afford whatever he wanted and to have any woman he wanted, which changed his entire personality completely. He became confident and a leader. As the story progresses, he becomes addicted to cocaine, hookers, and Quaaludes. He leaves his wife and then marries a gorgeous former supermodel. The FBI and federal exchange commission become suspicious of his activities and interested in investigating Jordan's company. Jordan has only one option and that is to put his money in offshore accounts. But this leads to his corporate and personal demise. Once one of his people is arrested for another issue, the investigation intensifies. Jordan is eventually caught and is arrested for all of the illegal things that he has done to gain his fortune. He is offered the opportunity to go undercover with a wire to lessen his sentence. He attempts to do so but slips a note telling his friend that he is wired. The FBI receives the note, quite possibly by being given it by Jordan's friend and partner, and apprehends Jordan. The FBI eventually shuts down his company and jordan is sentenced to 36 months in a minimum security prison. When he is released, he tries to rebuild his life by teaching sales techniques and doing seminars. Next     This Webpage was produced in COM 784: Visual Communication, a class taught by Bob Bednar in the Communication Studies Department at Southwestern University