With Sister Cigar back in town for the Christmas holiday from her abode in Arizona, the Missus and I took the opportunity to give her some alone time with The Cigarillo and snuck out of the house when he wasn't looking to go see our Christmas movie of choice, the wonderfully entertaining American Hustle.
To be honest, I wasn't sure what the expect. The second Hobbit film had been a pleasant surprise, but after the torments of the first Hobbit flick, the Missus had not been anxious to repeat the experience with a sequel. And with review of 47 Ronin being anywhere from mixed to out right panning it (I saw one that labelled it 'the second worst thing to happen to Japan this century') the Christmas movie scene was a little lacking this year.
Happily, American Hustle more than picked up the slack. Loosely based on the Abscam Scandals of the late 70s, where FBI stings netted about ten or so members of Congress, plus the Mayor of Camden, New Jersey on bribery/corruption charges. (When I say 'loosely' I mean loosely, the movie proclaims right up front: Some of this actually happened.)
Our story opens with small time businessman and con artist Irving Rosenfield (played by a wonderful rumpled, almost unrecognizable Christian Bale) meets stripper Sydney Prosser (an electric Amy Adams) at a party- they bond over Duke Ellington and become lovers, with Sydney posing as a British aristocrat named 'Lady Edith Greenlsey' in order to attract investors, whose money Irving then embezzles. Things go great for them for awhile (how, I don't know... Lady Edith's accent is all that great, but then again, I think that's the point) but eventually things get complicated: Irving won't divorce his unstable wife (Jennifer Lawrence, hitting it out of the park yet again) for fear that she'll take her son (whom Irving has adopted) away from him.
Things get even more complicated with the duo is caught in the act by undercover FBI Agent Richard DiMaso (Bradley Cooper). Sydney is arrested but Irving cuts a deal with the feds: help Richie get four more con artists and the two of them walk free. Irving agrees and soon plants rumors that a Sheikh is looking to make investments in America. This soon points them toward the mayor of Camden, Carmine Polito (an excellent Jeremy Renner showing his depth- seriously like him breaking out of his action star schtick.) Mayor Polito is looking to attract serious money to Atlantic City to revitalize the casinos and bring back jobs
Richie keeps wanting more and more and their operation threatens to spin out of control: soon enough, though, Carmine comes through for them and arranges a meeting between their faux Sheikh and the Casino running Mafia bosses, which includes a surprise visit from Mob Boss Victor Tellegio (Robert DeNiro.) Tellegio tells them that in order to secure Mafia backing for their investment, the Sheikh will need to be an American citizen and that they'd have to bribe members of Congress to do it.
This only urges Richie on further, convinced that he's got a major member of the mob in his sights and in order to survive, they have to out hustle good guys and bad guys alike.
Overall: I haven't seen every 70s period piece churned out by Hollywood but of the few I've seen, this one was probably my favorite because although it was set in the 1970s, it wasn't obnoxious about it- the story is what carries the movie and it could be transplanted into any other decade with relative ease I think. The acting is incredible (having a cast of all-stars helps) and the nice part is that it plays with multiple themes of corruption, lies and what people are willing to do to get by. (The Missus thought it played like an uber-realistic heist flick, but without the bells, whistles and other nonsense that goes along with them-- something I would agree with.) The director, David O. Russell also uses music to great effect here- the opening to Steely Dan's 'Dirty Work' is nicely done and the rest of the soundtrack is excellent. **** out of ****.
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