Director: David O. Russell
Starring: Christian Bale, Amy Adams, Bradley Cooper, Jennifer Lawrence, Jeremy Renner
Running Time: 138 minutes
Certificate: 15
AMERICAN HUSTLE’s tone is set from the opening caption, citing the events of the film as ‘mostly true’. David O. Russell’s 70s-set caper – which is indeed loosely based on the FBI ABSCAM operation which saw a pair of con artists forced to set up a sting corruption in order to frame several politicians – is the follow-up to SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK, recasting both Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence in roles secondary to THE FIGHTER’s lead talent, Christian Bale and Amy Adams. With the zaniness amped up, they play the con artiste counterparts Irving Rosenfeld (complete with hilariously terrible toupee) and Sydney Prosser (complete with hilariously terrible English accent), with the Oscar-winning Lawrence in usual scene-stealing form (who’d have thought it..?) as the former’s erratic wife, and Cooper slipping into the shoes of undercover agent Richie DiMaso.
However, throughout the film’s unnecessarily bloated running time, O. Russell distractedly conveys the feel of a picture attempting to capture something akin to Scorsese movie magic, instead lacking the required punch that pushes that filmmaker’s features towards a modern classic status. The whole aesthetically-charged setting of the decade is realised impressively, with aid from a grin-raising soundtrack containing the likes of Elton John, Wings and Tom Jones (step forward, Mr. Renner). Each actor throws themselves into their assigned role with aplomb; as mentioned, Bale and Adams both typically impress, being dealt one hell of a script (co-written by Eric Warren Singer) that captures the essence of the screwball wit it so desperately attempts to. But it’s Cooper’s scenes with comedian Louis C.K. which reign most supreme in the membrane, the two stealing the film from under everybody’s wigs. As is the norm ever since her role as Ree Dolly in WINTER’S BONE, no review would be complete without talk going the way of Lawrence, proving as firecracker Rosalyn that comedy still remains no biggy.
Yet with every character untrustworthy up to their eyeballs, the film doesn’t prove teeth-sinking material, one questioning whether you would gladly decide to spend time in the company of these soulless creations for a re-watch once the screen has faded to black. The hard irony O. Russell befalls is that AMERICAN HUSTLE would probably benefit from such a re-watch, it’s sprawling tangential editing not as slick as all involved believe it to be. But with many a laugh-inducing moment, and a neatly played cameo (that all but adds to the earlier Scorsese theory), AMERICAN HUSTLE may well be too ahead of the curve for its own well-being, but still exists on a scale above most run-of-the-mill fodder – and I HEART HUCKABEES, thankfully.
[usr=3] AMERICAN HUSTLE is released on DVD and Blu-ray on 28th April .
