January I, 2014
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Jennifer Lawrence (left) stars as Rosalyn Rosenfeld, and Amy Adams as Sydney Prosser in American Hustle.
Exactly Right
O pinionated
J udge
‘American Hustle’ delivers on laughs, characters and fashions
by
D arleen O rtega
ways watchable, but his last two de­ destined for my list of the best films of including themselves.
Director David O. Russell has, in railed a bit; "The Fighter" set up a very 2013.
No one understands this better than
previous films, shown a talent for cap­ perceptive story about persistent and
The story is built out of the elements of Irving Rosenfeld (Christian Bale, pack­
turing scenes o f interpersonal chaos; he destructive family dynamics and then "Abscam," a famously outlandish FBI
ing an additional 50 pounds for the role).
clearly finds people endlessly fascinat­ solved them too easily, and "Silver Lin­ sting operation from the 1970s, in which
As portrayed here, Irving is a successful
ing and knows how to capture explo­ ings Playbook" exploited its insights about a small-time con man helped the feds
con man because he has made a study of
sions of a kind more com monly experi­ mental illness by devolving into a roman­ take down a cadre of corrupt politicians
dissembling and can see it happening all
enced than those you'd see in a typical tic story that suggested that crazy can be with an elaborate scheme involving a
around him. He works every angle with
war or violent crime movie.
downright cute.
fake Arab sheik.
the care and confidence of a profes­
It is, to my mind, a problematic gift; the
Finally, though, Russell has found ex­
"Some of this actually happened," the sional, and he understands the impor­
opportunity to watch someone display actly the right balance. "A m erican film asserts early on - but Russell and
tance of noticing what people want to
mad acting skills may not feel like enough Hustle" is a positively rollicking blend of his co-writer are not aiming for a strictly
believe, and of keeping his operation
reason to subject audiences to family comedy, outrageous characters and fash­ historical account. For them, the guts of
small.
dysfunction or mental illness, especially ions, an entertaining sort-of-true crime that story serve as a vehicle for explor­
Irving has achieved modest success
for those of us whose families already story, and some very astute observa­ ing the idea of the con as a ubiquitous
with this method, assisted by his girl-
give us access to more than we can tions about what motivates human be­ aspect of American society. In this story,
tolerate for free. Russell's films are al­ havior and about American society. It's everyone is scamming everyone else,
continued
on page 16