An Innocent World

Rating: 8/10 (8 January 2014)

I happened to have watched American Hustle and Wolf of Wall Street in one weekend. They do have a lot in common. Both have long lines at the movie theaters. Both stories actually happened. Both involve swindles. Both protagonists rise from lowly pedigree. Both thriving professional lives are signed off by FBI. Both stories are about American reinvention, self-reinvention, deception, and self-deception. But there is one key difference: the self-consciousness about their make-believe persona. You always need that bit of a twist to make it tingle. Wolf of Wall Street lacks that twist.
American Hustle is not about a con, the techniques to make a con successful, but about a conman, who is fully aware of his own limitedness, from which he bootstraps his new persona, but don't whole-heartedly buy his own self-invention either, therefore ending up in an eternal survival mode. His confidence, his showmanship, and his hyperbolic style are not the cream on the top, but a crutch underneath. Christian Bale's acting so nicely captures this, especially the opening scene of him setting up his hair. The opening scene is actually my personal favorite. The close-up shot reveals the truth underneath: a toupee carefully put under his comb-over. The finish seems rather elaborate, or, exquisite, I would say. But you don't want to know what's underneath it. What an excellent metaphor that sums up the gist of a con! Bale's acting tops the exquisite finish with a necessary layer of irony. He is extremely careful when applying glue to attach the hair piece, tapping lightly to fixate it. The delicate hand gesture reminds me of a virtuoso pianist's fingers caressing the keyboard when playing Schubert's D960. With a toupee, like a talisman, safely tucked under his hair, Irving Rosenfeld has finished the transformation, more than ready to go on the battle field (or dance court) of con-art-marking.
But, all the ridicule aside, there is actually something laudable about Irvine. Everyone in the movie is somewhat delusional, except Irving. The FBI agent (Bradley Cooper) is desperate in striving to make a name for himself, to hold the whip in his office, stretching his actual capabilities so hard that barely cover the feet of the heroic man he imagines himself to be. But he at least shares one thing with Irvine: the desperate need for a transformation and self-reinvention. Irvine's wife (Jennifer Lawrence) is even more hilarious, whom the word "delusional" could hardly fit because she is beyond delusional. The scene where Irvine came back from almost being killed by the mafia guy she fell for precisely summarizes her state of beyond delusional. As Irvine was ranting about how her sweet love talk with the mafia guy almost cost his life, she cried: "why can't you be happy for me?" Sister, you really don't know what is going on.
Irvine's soul mate, Sydney Prosser (Amy Adam) is delusional too, but her delusion resonates with Irvine's. Everyone else's delusion is about a cause, something external to self, be it professional triumph (Bradley Cooper), domestic love (Jennifer Lawrence), or political or monetary success (other politicians and the mafia). But Sydney and Irvine's delusion is fundamentally about themselves. Both of them were born into a situation that they don't like, and both of them tried very hard to outgrow it: e.g. feeding and raising the new self upon Duke Ellington. Although the endeavor is precarious, they found each other.
Irvine, despite all the unexpected twists and turns, still tries to remain sane about something so fundamental to everyone: e.g. friendship, fathership, and manages to execute a con that eventually exculpates his lover and himself. Most of all, he is always vigilant about when he would exceed his limits. He is crystal clear about who he is, a conartist, no more, no less. The self-consciousness keeps everything under control, just like the small laundry shop he runs, not of luxury, but equipped with everything necessary. He is always unsure, and scared, deep down. If there is one thing he firmly believes in is that one day the whole thing will be busted. He is just unsure when the judgment day will come. So he hustles, hustling up just to make ends meet. If there is one thing I could recall after one year of seeing this movie, it will be Bale's depiction of Irvine's predicament, his fear, and the way he hustles to survive.
Last, but not least, American Hustle is a much more innocent world.
A dialogue from the scene where Irving Rosenfeld first met his soul mate Sydney Prosser: "Is that Duke Ellington on your bracelet?" Irving Rosenfeld asks. "As a matter of fact it is. He died this year, youknow?" Sydney Prosser responds. "I know. I doubt anyone else here knows or cares about it," he said "Well, I care about it. He's saved my life many times," she said. "Mine too. Which one? "Jeep's Blues," she said.