Quickie Review: AMERICAN HUSTLE
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american-hustle

American Hustle (2013) –**½
Quickie Review

A con man and his equally talented mistress are forced to help an FBI agent entrap politicians and mobsters after being caught in a sting.

David O. Russell’s crime comedy pulls punch after punch as it tries to figure out if it wants to be a Martin Scorsese picture or a Coen brothers one. The overarching narrative is meandering at best, and like his previous efforts, you feel like you’re laughing at characters who are too caught up in themselves to recognize their being made fun of. It’s just mean, while the story’s innate darkness is ignored in order to con people into believing it’s got heart.

A period crime film like this one should barrel forward, but instead we only get moments of explosiveness, most notably Jennifer Lawrence’s outstanding performance as the flighty, manipulative wife of the con man, overacted once again by The Fighter‘s Christian Bale.

If only David O. Russell could make a movie where it didn’t feel like he was trying so hard to make something interesting. Nothing here feels effortless, and that the film has won over so many professional film writers, some of whom I greatly respect, is the biggest con of all.

5 Comments

  1. My Dear Miss Scarlet,My apologies for not re vtiising sooner.Your scribbling is spectacular! And I love the free flowing artworks you have lined up on that shelf And well as for your studio just ink me in a jealous hue.What a fabulous space to work in, lots of good light and a really airy feel.Just remember that tidiness is in the eye of the beholder. I work in organized chaos!You have seen the somewhat cramped conditions in which I create? A cat would be lucky to get in there let alone be slung!Congratulations and may the commissions continue to flow your way

  2. It’s a pleasure to find such rationality in an answer. Welcome to the debate.

  3. I’m really into it, thanks for this great stuff!

  4. Das geht scheinbar nur, wenn man sich zuvor die farbigen Seitenleisten-Icons zurückgeholt hat – richtig? Bei den einfarbigen Icons (ab 10.7) wird ein automatisch ein generisches Ordner-Icon verwendet.ps danke für dein schnelle Antwort!

  5. All the techniques are great, but I love the faux wax seal look the best. I received an initial metal seal when I was a teenager (an antique from when people used wax to seal letters), and it would be great for this technique. I am off to experiment in my studio! Thank you for the inspiration!

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