See It Or Leave It

American Hustle (A)


SYNOPSIS:

"Good times, bad times, you know I had my share" are the words classically sung by Led Zeppelin from their song "Good Times Bad Times, most notably used in the trailer of the film. American Hustle encapsulates these words and dishes a slice of both to every character revealing the vulnerability of high profile hustling. American Hustle is based roughly around the true story of of the FBI Abscam operation in in the late 1970's that garnered much attention due to the high profile politicians that were involved. The story revolves around two con artists, the overweight and cunning Irving Rosenfeld (Christian Bale) and the alluring Sydney Prosser (Amy Adams) conning poor men with bad gambling habits out of thousand of dollars. Life is good for the two as they fall madly in love with one another and enjoy the spoils of a thieving life. That is until one of these poor men, Richie DiMaso (Bradley Cooper), turns out to be an undercover FBI agent who had been on their case for quite awhile. With their gig up, Irving and Sidney are given a choice, either face hard time or work for the FBI as undercover conmen in hopes of catching more criminals, like themselves. They accept and begin a slow starting investigation into the corruption that befalls local politicians up into the higher ranks of Washington D. C. The case soon surrounds the ambitious New Jersey Mayor Carmine Polito (Jeremy Renner) and his plans to re build Atlantic City. In the midst of the investigation a tangled love affair soon begins as Sydney becomes more and more attracted to Richie at the dismay of Irving. Not only is Irving struggling to successfully con high power figures but is risking the possibility of losing his one true love. Yet scandalously Sydney is not his only love. Irving is a married man, married to his childish and unpredictable wife Rosalyn (Jennifer Lawerence) who wants nothing more than to be rid of Sydney and interfere with the entirety of Irvings work. With his world much in chaos from the surrounding events Irving has no choice but to hustle those he knows to potentially escape to a life he wants. However he is not the only one with ulterior motives  throwing into question who really is hustling who and will the conman ever be caught in their high risk game with the FBI.


REVIEW:

David O Russell has done it again. The director of films such as the "Fighter" and "Silver Linings Playbook" has unveiled his best work yet in American Hustle. Now the content of the movie may not be as strong as some of his previous work but the acting he is able to invoke alongside the cinematography used, by far separates this film from his others. 

Honestly it's hard to go wrong when you have such great acting attached to a project. American Hustle shines so bright in this area that the movie takes on a persona of it's own. From the first scene where we witness Irving played by the subtly immersed Christian Bale, fixing his natty comb over to the first time we see Sydney Prosser played by the sultry Amy Adams we forget to realize we are watching actors on a screen. Bale and Adams deliver powerhouse performances that travel such an amazing character arc into the world of fraud, betrayal, and surprises of their own. With award season upon us, both may easily be up for nominations for acting trophies, with my hat off to Amy Adams who I feel captures the multiple characters she is forced to play along side a quiet british accent. With a supporting crew of Bradley Cooper who plays the over eager Richie DiMaso sporting more hair curlers than I thought possible along with Jennifer Lawrence who plays the jealous and attention deprived wife of Irving Rosenfeld, only adds to the stacked all star cast. And don't forget Jeremy Renner who plays the pompadour haired Carmine Polito who gets caught between the FBI and taking bribes. His moment to shine comes at the end of the movie in a heart wrenching conversation with Irving. On a side note I feel that Jennifer Lawrence may have been over hyped going into the film. Although she delivers accurately an over the top jealous wife who wants nothing more than to be involved in her husbands affairs she comes across almost as too childish. Now this may have been what the direction had called for and maybe she embodied the role perfectly and undoubtedly award nominations may be in her future but at times she felt out of place amongst the grown up acting happening around her.

With such great acting it can easily become a distraction to the beautiful and well executed Cinematography of Linus Sandgren. The camera moves around the characters in well timed out manner from scene to scene and the repeated closeups allow the actors their dues. The look of the film invokes the time period perfectly as the color pallet of yellow and brown mixed with gold is a reminder of the late 1970's. There is a muted and grainy look to the film that adds character to the seedy con artisty and old school FBI undercover work. It's the well executed camera movement that not only gives the actors their dues but reveals what we need to know when we need to know it. The entire film is filled with this mastery as even simple camera closeups or dolly shots play justice to what is happening on screen. It is here that I believe American Hustle should be up for a Best Cinematography nod. The use of a camera without the special effects is something that needs to be cherished and this movie does just that.

And finally let us not forget the wonderful and intuitive directing of David O Russell who over the past 4 years has become one of the premiere and elite directors in tinsel town. His ability to capture performances from his actors that are appropriate to the content of the film and from scene to scene easily seperate him from the current pack of directors. From the meticulously thought out camera work to the wardrobe that alone makes this movie iconic, David O Russell succeeds in every category. If you are looking to watch the mastery of a great film director, American Hustle has what you need. I believe the directing in American Hustle has been far superior than any other film in this years award season. There is nothing like good old fashion directing, without the special effects and CGI, but with calculated camera placement, impeccable acting, and the understanding of script to set this film apart.

American Hustle will leave you somewhat taken aback by the realness to the story and the idea that every man is out for himself. It's a reminder of human behavior and the longing for more in life and the lengths we are willing to go to achieve it. Every character of the film portrays these motives that mirror such thinking. And all are not immune to the good and bad times that accompany the lifestyle of crime and hustling. Overall, If you're looking for a throwback movie to get the sight and feel of the 70's then American Hustle will give you just that. If you are into exceptional acting on a higher level then look no farther. The film not only succeeds in its acting, story, directing, and cinematography but flourishes in the knowledge that in a cutthroat world you must watch your back or how easy it can be to get hustled.


OVERALL: (A)

Directing (A+)
David O Russell

Script (B)
Eric Singer, David O Russell

Acting (A)
Christian Bale, Amy Adams, Jennifer Lawrence, Bradley Cooper, Jeremy Renner

Cinematography (A+)
Linus Sandgren

Set Design (B+)


SCENE TO LOOK FOR:

Richie DiMaso and Irving Rosenfeld are walking side by side in an art gallery

They approach a forged but very real looking Rembrandt painting

Irving

"It's a fake"

Richie turns to Irving in disbelief 

Richie

 What are you talking about, 

that's impossible 

Irving

People believe what they want to 

believe, because the guy who made 

this was so good that it's real to 

everybody. Now who's the master, 

the painter or the forger?

This scene accurately depicts the mindset of the con artists in the film and what backs their motives. Like most con artists such as Irving Rosenfeld, they take pure pleasure in the ability to successfully con and trick people into believing what they want them too. Their mastery is in the deceit of the trick and not the gain that is made from such foolery. This is the undercutting theme of the film that David O Russell successfully inputs thru out the entire story.

SHOT TO LOOK FOR:

The opening scene of the film where Irving Rosenfeld (Christian Bale) is seen adjusting, stuffing, and attempting to style his comb over. This is a somewhat humorous scene to watch that serves two purposes for the film. First it reveals the character of Irving Rosenfeld, a true hustler at heart, who even with his hair attempts to fool your eye into thinking he has a full head of hair. And the second more fitting reason would be the look of the films characters. American Hustle is filled with the glamour hairstylings of the era it embodies and while all are relatively flamboyant, Irving Rosenfeld takes the cake. To be honest I'm not sure I have ever seen a hairstyle from the 1970's that would be accepted today by any standards ,especially the comb over but this specific look on Christian Bale is classic and not soon to be forgotten.