Short Attention Span Review - American Hustle (2013)

I finally had a chance to see American Hustle.  I had, of course, been exposed to all the lavish praise heaped on the movie by critics over the last few months.  While I enjoyed it, I wonder if I watched the same movie those people saw.

There isn't much to say about the plot.  It is 1978.  Irving Rosenfeld (Christian Bale) and Sydney Prosser (the beautiful and talented Amy Adams) are con artists who are arrested by FBI Agent Richard DiMaso (Bradley Cooper).  DiMaso decides to use their talents and connections to bring down corrupt politicians and a Mafia family (a heavily fictionalized version of Abscam).  Rosenfeld, in addition to sleeping with Prosser, is married to the unstable Rosalyn (Jennifer Lawrence).  Stuff happens, classic songs are played, Christian Bale shows off his pot belly and insane comb-over and the movie ends with everyone kind of getting what they deserve.

Is it a good movie?  Yes, it is.  The film is engaging. The cinematography is serviceable; nothing spectacular, but everything looks good...or, at least as good as late-70s fashion and design will allow things to look.  The soundtrack works well to enhance the visuals. 

Amy Adams, the best thing about the film.

The cast is uneven with Bale and Adams giving the best performances.  Lawrence isn't bad, although it is hard to judge her ability to convey a fully-rounded character, since Rosalyn is just a collection of quirks.  Cooper doesn't seem to be in the movie as everyone else.  His interpretation of the FBI Agent is to make him a shrill, violent, mercurial a-hole.  This could work, but Cooper chews the scenery with such gusto it becomes farcical. Of the supporting cast, only Jeremy Renner, as the good-hearted but corruptible mayor of Camden, makes much of an impact.  The other cast members are basically one-note. 

The main weakness of the movie is that, as a narrative, it is a series of tenuously connected scenes, not a coherent whole.  While most of the individual scenes are good, there are so many tonal shifts that impression is of watching four different movies.  Movie 1 is a compelling character/relationship study with Bale and Adams.  Movie 2 is a dark take on sitcom families with Bale and Lawrence.   Movie 3 is every cliche of mob movies you can think of, including a distracting cameo by Robert Di Nero. Movie 4 is Bradley Cooper and whatever the hell he is doing.

To be clear, this is still a good, entertaining film.  It just has a number of weaknesses that seem to indicate an overall lack of director control over the actors and the story.  David O. Russel has delivered some great movies, including one of my favorite films, The Fighter.   With tighter control over the performances and a stronger story, American Hustle could have been a great film.  Instead, it is an entertaining showcase for a couple of really good actors.  Check it out; but don't buy into the hype.