1.
The Aviator (2004): My favorite
DiCaprio film, and probably his best performance. He portrays Howard Hughes, the OCD inflicted
film mogul and aviation fanatic throughout the high and low points of his
career. Hughes was very particular about
everything in every aspect of his life, ranging from which steering wheel he
wanted to use in a plane to how many chocolate chips should be existent on his
cookie. OCD heavily affected Hughes, and
he spent four months in a viewing room not leaving to bathe, relieve himself,
or anything. DiCaprio accurately depicted
Hughes in his ruined state. In
preparation for his role, DiCaprio spoke with Jane Russell, Hughes’s starring
actress in his film The Outlaw to
further understand the stubborn man. He
also spent time with an OCD patient named Edward in order to understand the
mannerisms and habits that go along with the mental disorder. DiCaprio won the Golden Globe for this
performance and received a nomination from the Academy, as his thorough
homework and research paid off.
2.
Wolf of Wall Street (2013): His
latest film and Golden-Globe winning performance as Jordan Belfort is
dynamic. We love him as much as we hate
him, and want to be him as much as we wish him hell. DiCaprio’s performance is a memorable one,
especially the Lemmons scene. As he
inch-worms around a country club reenacting how Belfort responded to the
expired drugs is horrifying. Real-life
Jordan Belfort was on-set with DiCaprio, coaching him on how he should behave
to make it as accurate as possible. Ever
since he read the novel which the film is based on in 2007, DiCaprio obsessed
on making it into a film with him as Belfort.
He wanted to portray Belfort throughout his career’s highs and lows as
honestly as they could be onscreen.
DiCaprio has won a Golden Globe and received a nomination from the
Academy for his work in this film.
3.
What’s Eating Gilbert Grape? (1993):
DiCaprio’s first Oscar nomination came from this film as Best Supporting Actor,
and brought his existence to the attention of moviegoers worldwide. In this film, his role as Arnie Grape,
Gilbert’s (Johnny Depp) mentally retarded brother is moving. Upon learning that he was just a normal
teenaged kid acting in a role, many were shocked. In preparation for this role, DiCaprio spent
a few days in a home for mentally retarded teens, describing the experience as “refreshing.” His performance is moving, and we grow to
love Arnie irrevocably by the film’s conclusion. It’s pretty safe to say that the Oscar is
twenty years overdue.
4.
Django Unchained (2012): Tarantino
knew what he was doing when he cast the DiCaprio as unscrupulous plantation
owner, Calvin Candie. Though this
performance snubbed him from an Oscar nomination as the Academy favored his
co-star Christoph Waltz as Dr. Schulz, it is still a great one. His teeth are grimy, and his beard is
intimidating, but we love this villain as much as we hate him. Candie intrigues us with his incest-dripping
relationship and love for brutality. In Django Unchained, there is a scene where
he takes () Kerry Washington and threatens to kill her. Before, he bangs his fist on the table and
cuts it, credited by a piece of glass. Even
though he was in excruciating pain, DiCaprio worked his way through the
scene. Tarantino liked the take so much
that made it into the final product.
5.
Revolutionary Road (2008): Probably
the uncomfortable performance to sit through, as far as brutality of a
character goes. He plays Frank Wheeler,
a man caught up in the expectations of the American Dream and suburban
lifestyles of the 1950’s. Engrossed in
being the perfect patriarch to a perfect family, he and Alice (Kate Winslet)
struggle every second to fulfill their dreams. Mr. Wheeler is a brutish character, and unlike
Candie in Django, we are not
intrigued by him and wish the worst for him.
DiCaprio’s screaming matches and heartless nature truly brings Frank
Wheeler to life. The realization of
their personal problems only forms itself in instances of complete loss. Their performances together are far more
moving, as their characters are able to develop further than they did in Titanic.
It’s pretty clear why so many fanatics are lobbying for another
Winslet-DiCaprio film.
6.
Catch Me If You Can (2002): Despite
the real-life Frank Abagnale Jr.’s doubt, DiCaprio was an excellent choice to
portray him in the adaptation of the memoir of the same name. Here, DiCaprio plays the suave Frank Abagnale
Jr., a young man who charades as a pilot, laywer and a doctor and steals
millions-all before he turns 21. The
smooth-talking teenager made millions illegally, met many people and went under
several different names to accomplish his goals. DiCaprio has the capability of selling ice to
an eskimo in this film, and nobody is as simultaneously slick and
charming. His con-man nature and
emotional struggles that emerge from his relationship with his father give DiCaprio
the motive to do all this crazy scheming.
The best part of the film? Everything is accurate to what actually
happened to Abagnale Jr.
7.
Shutter Island (2010): Further
proving that whoever Leo portrays becomes damaged and undone, he stars in this
Scorsese film as US Marshal Teddy Daniels. Daniels suffers from PTSD after serving in the
Second World War, and is sent to Shutter Island on a wild goose chase to find
an escaped prisoner. Watching reality
become lies and vice versa for Daniels is ever-confusing. In fact, audiences are just as confused as
DiCaprio’s character is. However,
DiCaprio shows legitimate despair throughout the gloomy film. Scorsese and DiCaprio’s fourth collaboration
at that point seems to be working, as both are brilliantly talented.
8.
Romeo + Juliet (1996): As horrible as this film was, it is important to give
credit where credit is due. Aside from
being every teenage girl’s crush in the 1990’s, Leo is romantic as hell in this
film as the titular character, the ideal Romeo.
The soft look in his eyes and articulation of all things Shakespeare are
hard to ignore. Not many people who aren’t
Shakespearean trained actors can do Shakespeare well. DiCaprio’s version of Romeo’s speech outside
of Juliet’s window was so beautiful that Claire Danes (Juliet) cried, even though
she wasn’t meant to at the moment. It
will make any girl croon from their window, “Romeo, Romeo.”
9.
The Great Gatsby (2013): Another nightmarish film, but there are few actors who
could pull off Gatsby well. Leo is one
of them. His good looks and reassuring
smile are enough for him to carry us through Luhrmann’s adaptation of F. Scott
Fitzgerald’s classic. Caught up once
more in the American Dream gone haywire, DiCaprio plays a man who can be “interpreted
in so many ways: a hopeless romantic, a completely obsessed wacko or a
dangerous gangster, clinging to wealth."
Although DiCaprio is no Robert Redford, his charm brings Gatsby to life
in a tasteful way. The imaginative look
in DiCaprio’s eyes are enchanting, but also bring the mystery behind Gatsby’s
wealth to the forefront.
10.
The Departed (2006): this Oscar-worthy performance was once more overlooked by
the Academy, but the competition was stiff alone, as his co-stars included Matt
Damon, Mark Wahlberg and Jack Nicholson, and the film did get Best Picture in
its year. DiCaprio plays Billy Costigan here, a undercover
cop working to unfoil a mob scheme. Once
more, DiCaprio plays a character who is misunderstood and pretending to be
something he is not. It takes great
skill to play both ends of the spectrum as a character, as well as acting both
roles. DiCaprio takes on this ultimate
challenge in other films as well as The
Departed and his work paid in the film paid off, as one of the main
characters in an Oscar-winning film.
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