La gran estafa americana

Una farsa retro con un maravilloso vestuario que durante unas dos horas marcha a una velocidad bien baja, ahogándose en una acción actoral manierista. La gran estafa americana definitivamente no me parece una película magistralmente dirigida. Al contrario, es sorprendente cómo a un ritmo tan lento el foco de la ambiciosa trama se debilita en la mal manejada maraña de motivaciones de los personajes. Pero, ¿usted lo haría mejor con Amy Adams caminando semidesnuda ante la cámara? Sin embargo, las actuaciones son fantásticas. Bale se esfuerza, pero la mayor joya de la actuación aquí es Jennifer Lawrence. Amy Adams súper caliente (y sea sincero, ¿usted se quedaría tranquilo en la escena del baño?) y la nata en este pastel retro es el inesperado Sr. «XY» de Miami en el mejor papel mafioso en muchos años. Con él, sube la velocidad de la película. Las nominaciones a mejor película y dirección probablemente fueron aseguradas por el colgante de Bale. (27.01.2014)

“Some of this actually happened.” The exaggerated opening title well indicates the strengths and weaknesses of Russell’s American Hustle, which isn’t rooted in any particular genre. No, we will not familiarise you with the procedural details of the central swindle. Who knows what it was really like back then? And yes, like what you are about to see, Hollywood is one big game that plays fast and loose with the truth. So, we will set up a mirror and other reflective surfaces in front of ourselves and from the opening scene (preparation for the performance) we will draw attention to the performative dimension of the con artist’s “craft”. Which is to say that we will not focus on facts or provide enough of them that would create tension and expectations, but only self-reflexive wordplay that belongs entirely to the actors. Due to the sidelining of the course of the operation in favour of the relationships between the characters, who deny and rediscover their own identities, there is nothing that would hold the narrative structure together and keep the viewer in suspense. We can understand the herky-jerky rhythm of the narrative as an attempt to adapt the form to a large number of narrators with different natures and goals (and acting styles, because nearly every actor is attuned to a different genre), though I personally see it as evidence of Russell’s indiscipline as a director, which is caused by putting too much trust in the actors. Similarly, the manneristic use of certain stylistic techniques (rapid dolly shots) and gratuitous incorporation of contemporary music testify to the fact that Russel is adept at his craft and knows how to shoot a “cool” scene, but his directing is non-conceptual. The changes of identities, genres, rhythm and narrators are fun at first and give the film a certain flair. Due to the aimless directing and meaningless plot, however, the excess of images and words, which basically say the same thing again and again (and say it much more straightforwardly than, for example, Preston Sturges in the timeless The Lady Eve, becomes off-putting much sooner than, for example, in The Wolf of Wall Street, which seems to be a much shorter film thanks to its more concentrated and coherent narrative. As is becoming customary in the case of Russell, the actors save the film from being completely rejected and quickly forgotten. Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence, though entertaining, forgot to switch from the eccentric comedy mode employed in Silver Linings Playbook and the atrocious (s)exploitation of Amy Adams’s body needlessly flattens the Sydney character and detracts from her ambivalence, but at least Christian Bale hasn’t looked so bad and acted so well in a few years. 65% (21.01.2014)

We weren’t wrong about David O. Russel the first time. American Hustle wants to be a refreshing, engaging and vibrant gangster movie and manages it quite well. At times, it tries too hard, especially with the at times surprisingly and intentionally weird behaviour of some of the characters, but it never gets to the point of bothering me. The performances are superb without exception. It’s delivered as a comedy and I take it as such. This time Russel doesn’t try to unsuccessfully portray romantic relationships or social conflicts, which I take it as a plus. For me, good fun and satisfaction. (05.01.2014)

Well, spank my ass and call me Charlie. A movie made by a hell of a director with actors that could fill up a hall of fame, but still the movie turns out bad. I can’t remember the last time I felt so terribly disappointed. Sure, I did see the reviews here, but I kept telling myself that people simply didn’t like some aspect of the movie. But what I didn’t expect is that the aspect was the entire movie – literally all of it. I mean everything about the movie is bad. Let me start from the beginning. The screenplay is absolutely terrible. This must have been written by some lunatic who paid to have his screenplay made into a movie with A-list actors, or I don’t know what else to think. It’s a mixture of boredom, greyness and lack of interest… it’s absolutely terrible and it won’t keep you entertained even at the end. And that leads to the individual characters, the setting, the non-existent humor. All of it. Literally. The two stars are actually quite a good rating as this is a joke gone bad rather than any kind of a hustle. Compared to other movies in a similar vein, this is incredibly sub-par. (05.02.2014)

O. Russell annoys me immensely. His films are reminiscent of a showcase of clichés and conventions, and if all this worked well in Fighter, it changed from Silver Linings Playbook to empty glitz covered with an imitation of "something more". However, his mannerist preference for certain techniques and compositions is not even "nicely cheesy" and cool (exciting), but simply emptily self-serving. Completely in line with the never-ending "just enough so that you can't see much" show of Amy Adams's cleavage, which instead of excitement arouses, after a while, an inquisitive feeling about whether she is supposed to attract attention or distract the viewer. An absurdly rich selection of period hits, a showcase of idiotic hairstyles, dysfunctional parallel storylines and narrator voices, carried by Bale, who is already starting to forget that acting means more than periodically gaining and dropping 50 kilos. After The Wolf of Wall Street, this artificial attempt at an epic of deception and hypocrisy, folded into a would-be brazen and contemplative whole, feels even more unappealing. And the last Marty didn't get under my skin much. But at least I still have enough sense to recognize a hoax from the original. [50%] (22.01.2014)

Omniscient narrators, stylish slow moments, and a dancing Bradley Cooper as the director's good luck charm. The master David O. Russell has not only mastered the art of pushing actors to unforgettable performances, but has also been conquering the forms of more and more genres. In this cunning mess, he succeeds even better the more superficial and confusing the whole American Hustle seems to other viewers. A tour de force from Amy Adams is just the sweetest cherry on top. (30.01.2014)

A little bit too overcomplicated, definitely. But David O. Russell played with every little detail and chose great actors for the main roles. Bale is great in an untraditional (obese) role, but the fact that it’s good is thanks to the team work where everybody does they are meant to and the result speaks for itself. It’s not Oscar material, but it’s still a great fun without trying too much, jokes firing away throughout the whole movie. Incredible costumes. (02.03.2014)

The nominations are understandable, but I wouldn't feel like watching it again, and if I did, it would only be because of a few scenes that are worth it mainly thanks to the fantastic performances, the great aesthetics, the costumes, and the uplifting music hits from the 1970s. But it is finely tuned and woe to the viewer who pays attention to the sophisticated character motivations and the great psychology will be satisfied, though not amazed. It's too slow and uneven with countless dull and unnecessary moments, where all that's left is to indulge in the superb visuals, which is not quite okay in a dialogue-driven film. (27.06.2014)

Funny, I never noticed that Amy Adams and Jennifer Lawrence have such amazingly sexy breasts. And I had no idea that it was their image that must have been the most intrusive to the academics when putting together the Oscar nominations. How else can you explain that this is supposed to be the best film in a year that also gave us the privilege of seeing such cinematic gems as Gravity, Captain Phillips and Prisoners? Perhaps it's stylish in its attempt to mix pop culture dialogue and arthouse retro gangster, perhaps it's superbly acted by a group of stars who parody themselves so nicely with incredible verve (except for Cooper – he plays his standard), and maybe I don't even regret waiting patiently for the expected hectic conclusion, but neither of the aforementioned pluses (not even the boobs) can elevate American Hustle to the level of a film worthy of such Oscar attention. And paradoxically, everything here is visibly focused on material awards – it’s not for nothing that they say that less is sometimes more. 65% (28.02.2014)

El mayor sorpresa. Me avergüenzo de la condescendencia y los prejuicios con los que me acerqué a esta película. Según los adelantos y las críticas, me quedé desconcertado con tantas nominaciones al Oscar. Los primeros treinta minutos me absorbieron por completo, luego se enredó en ese engaño o truco que no entendí en absoluto durante toda la película. Pero eso no importa en absoluto, porque esta película me divirtió mucho. No puedo clasificarla en ningún género, ¿es una comedia, un thriller, un drama? Sobre todo, es un concierto actoral. En primer lugar, debo mencionar a Amy Adams, porque me sorprendió aún más después de "The Fighter". Quizás la había encasillado en la categoría de una chica normal, pero se liberó de ese papel gracias a este personaje. Cambia de vestuario una y otra vez y además actúa, baila y provoca a Bradley Cooper a la perfección. Sus dos escenas en el baño son inolvidables. Jennifer Lawrence puede tener mala suerte por haber recibido el Oscar el año pasado, porque en el papel de la esposa de Irving destaca literalmente. Y eso que nunca me había gustado especialmente. Por último, Christian Bale, con su peinado y ombligo, puede parecer discreto, pero al examinarlo más de cerca, no me queda más remedio que afirmar que es perfecto en su papel. Jeremy Renner con el cabello alborotado y Michael Peña como el jeque son agradables añadidos. El truco sucio puede dividir a los fanáticos, lo cual entiendo completamente, porque es una película muy singular y peculiar. Sin embargo, cada vez me gusta más y tal vez por eso le he dado una calificación de cinco estrellas sin crítica alguna. Sin embargo, hacía mucho tiempo que no me sucedía que, días después de ver la película, siguiera viendo algunas escenas una y otra vez. Además, no puedo sacarme a Jonesovu Delilah de la cabeza. (04.03.2014)

I feel cheated. The film lured me in by assembling some of my favorite actors. I watched more than two hours of a boring attempt at Ocean's Eleven from the 70s. The intention of the filmmakers fell completely flat, I was bored. Plus, it was obvious from the start how the whole spectacle would turn out. I’m giving two stars for Christian Bale's comb-over and Bradley Cooper's hair curlers. (01.01.2017)

Well-written screenplay, excellent acting performances, but at the same time incredibly boring film. Any other director would have done something similar, but in this presentation, you still watch two hours of boredom, just for all of this to come to light in the celebratory last 15 minutes, where you wait for that big finale that shakes your world. Yes, the entire time you realize that Russell gets the most out of his actors. Maybe you even notice how frightfully Jennifer can act with her eyes, but ultimately it's just a movie that pretends to be terribly artistic, but in terms of storytelling, it's painfully empty and cliché. Even the finale is ultimately weak, even though someone getting their comeuppance is expected. (12.01.2014)

It’s like going to the fanciest restaurant in town. It looks perfect from the outside, the staff look presentable and even the dinner that the chef brings to your table looks scrumptious. But after the first bite you realize that not all that glitters is gold. The food isn’t disgusting but neither is it delicious, it doesn’t smell good or bad. The band playing at your table is not disappointing, but it isn’t impressive either. The service is good, but the waiters look bored and there’s no way they’re getting a tip for their lousy performance. And yet, the restaurant owner expects you to fall in love with the place and be happy to return. Fat chance! The movie cast seems to be a guarantee of quality. Unfortunately, the actors are well aware of that and think they don’t need to make an effort. But they are sorely mistaken. The way Russell directed American Hustle is not just boring, it’s soporific, pointless and needlessly long, and eventually falls flat. Everything is kind of bland, run-of-the-mill, too aimed at experts and film awards, but absolutely indigestible for a regular audience, at least for the non-American one (same as last year's Lincoln). American Hustle is a dull movie with a chance to succeed with experts, but I don't want to see it again. I just don’t see the appeal and I won't even remember it in a week. (19.01.2014)

A great watch with a catchy plot. I wasn’t bored for an instant watching this and there were even a couple of funny moments, but more or less this is a well-made detective movie with a hint of drama. I should say that I found the four main protagonists engrossing and they gave a good acting performance. And of course the ending had me thrilled - I really liked it and it was a surprise. (01.08.2014)