Much more than a con-caper

Rating: 9/10 (2 March 2014)

Excellent movie. Ostensibly a con-caper, it is so much more than that. Clever, and, most of all, wickedly funny. In fact, it is the humour that tips this movie from being good to being great.
Writer-director David O Russell brings together the main cast from his last two movies, and they don't put a foot wrong.
Christian Bale, as always, throws his entire life into his role, putting on several kilograms and going out of his way to look sleazy. Amy Adams is superb, as always. Bradley Cooper is solid in his role as the FBI agent.
Stand-out performance, however, goes to Jennifer Lawrence. She gets the funniest lines and scenes and they seem to suit her perfectly. Her over-the-top, manic performance steals the show.
(Bale and Adams were both in Russell's "The Fighter", and Lawrence and Cooper were in his "Silver Linings Playbook).
Good support from Jeremy Renner, Louis CK, Jack Huston and Shea Whigham. Robert De Niro only appears for a few minutes but leaves lasting impression. Still as good as ever.
Add in a superb, rockin' soundtrack, by now a given for a David O Russell movie, and this movie is a must-see.