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American Hustle (2013)
I was extremely excited to see this film for months, but some people's reactions to it were downgrading my expectations a little bit, so I went in hoping it would be good and still expecting it to be good, but I didn't truly count on something truly exceptional anymore.
After seeing it on the silver screen a few hours ago, I can now say this: American Hustle is a PHENOMENAL film and it should have no problems becoming an American crime classic in the future.
The plot is probably the weakest thing about the film, although I still very much enjoyed it, but all the other aspects were brilliant! The fluent camera work, the AMAZING soundtrack, the characters, the script, the atmosphere, the performances, the sets, etc. It's all done in such a tasteful and skillful way, that I found myself constantly admiring everything that David O. Russell and his cast were showcasting me. Truly impressive work!
While the plot has a few flaws superficially and gets a little bit confusing sometimes, I found myself enjoying all the small elements in this film that show how people are getting conned by eachother all the time, even on the most basic levels. We all do it, because we want to survive in this modern society and sometimes telling a lie for your own good is just a necessity. The two main characters of American Hustle are taking this philosophy a little too far, though, and they get into trouble because of it. It seems like a very basic premise, but the film handles it in quite an interesting and intelligent way, in my opinion.
For a plot-driven film, American Hustle also contains a vast amount of very richly sketched characters, which is very rare these days. At the end of this film, I felt like I knew all the important characters quite well, while most of them still kept a certain intriguing mystery around them, which I appreciated immensely.
American Hustle is a wonderful '70s ride with a solid enough plot that is elevated to something truly remarkable, because it is portrayed in an exciting, beautiful and intriguing way. Some people say it looks very much like a Scorsese film and I definitely get the comparison. This film also has that same fluency and stylishness to it.
It's not my favorite film of the year (at this point), but it's definitely top 5 material. I had a blast!
+
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I was extremely excited to see this film for months, but some people's reactions to it were downgrading my expectations a little bit, so I went in hoping it would be good and still expecting it to be good, but I didn't truly count on something truly exceptional anymore.
After seeing it on the silver screen a few hours ago, I can now say this: American Hustle is a PHENOMENAL film and it should have no problems becoming an American crime classic in the future.
The plot is probably the weakest thing about the film, although I still very much enjoyed it, but all the other aspects were brilliant! The fluent camera work, the AMAZING soundtrack, the characters, the script, the atmosphere, the performances, the sets, etc. It's all done in such a tasteful and skillful way, that I found myself constantly admiring everything that David O. Russell and his cast were showcasting me. Truly impressive work!
While the plot has a few flaws superficially and gets a little bit confusing sometimes, I found myself enjoying all the small elements in this film that show how people are getting conned by eachother all the time, even on the most basic levels. We all do it, because we want to survive in this modern society and sometimes telling a lie for your own good is just a necessity. The two main characters of American Hustle are taking this philosophy a little too far, though, and they get into trouble because of it. It seems like a very basic premise, but the film handles it in quite an interesting and intelligent way, in my opinion.
For a plot-driven film, American Hustle also contains a vast amount of very richly sketched characters, which is very rare these days. At the end of this film, I felt like I knew all the important characters quite well, while most of them still kept a certain intriguing mystery around them, which I appreciated immensely.
American Hustle is a wonderful '70s ride with a solid enough plot that is elevated to something truly remarkable, because it is portrayed in an exciting, beautiful and intriguing way. Some people say it looks very much like a Scorsese film and I definitely get the comparison. This film also has that same fluency and stylishness to it.
It's not my favorite film of the year (at this point), but it's definitely top 5 material. I had a blast!
+
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