David O’Russell’s period piece American Hustle depicts a fictional tale of greed, corruption, and the fine art of the con. Brilliant conman Irving Rosenfeld (Christian Bale) and his sexy partner Sydney Prosser (Amy Adams) enjoy a successful – and fraudulent – loan business until they are caught by FBI agent Richie DiMaso (Bradley Cooper). Forced to work for Richie as he schemes to bring down big-shot politicians and mob bosses, Irving and Sydney quickly find themselves in over their carefully coiffed heads as they become entangled in events much bigger than they ever intended. Sexual tension also abounds, and Irving’s unstable and unpredictable wife Rosalyn (Jennifer Lawrence) adds to the chaos on the screen and the fun for the audience.
The acting in American Hustle is undoubtedly strong, as is reflected by its nominations in all four acting categories: Christian Bale for Actor in a Leading Role, Amy Adams for Actress in a Leading Role, Bradley Cooper for Actor in a Supporting Role, and Jennifer Lawrence for Actress in a Supporting Role. This is the second time that an O’Russell film has received nominations in all acting categories, as last year’s Silver Linings Playbook achieved the same feat. In the history of the Academy Awards, only fifteen films have accomplished this achievement, and none have ever won all four. I cannot see this film being the first to sweep the acting categories, and have personal doubts as to the validity of all of the nominations; how Tom Hank’s stunning performance in Captain Phillips could go unacknowledged in favour of Bale’s is beyond my understanding, and neither actress impressed me as much as they evidently did the Academy. American Hustle also received both a Best Picture and Direction nomination, and appears to be one of a few front runners in these categories. It also has a much-deserved nomination for Costume Design and Production Design, as well as one for Film Editing and Original Screenplay.
Although American Hustle is definitely a solid movie, it is, in my opinion, one of the more over-hyped films of the year, and definitely not as strong as O’Russell’s contribution Silver Linings Playbook last year. It does, however, offer a very funny and very biting depiction of the seventies with accuracy and attention to detail. In any other year, an Original Screenplay win would be virtually guaranteed for this quick and witty script, but with Spike Jonze’s little powerhouse Her as competition, the outcome remains up in the air. Worth a watch but not worth the hype, this critic predicts that American Hustle may not receive as much recognition come Awards Night as expected.
