Best movie in years

Rating: 10/10 (27 December 2013)

I haven't enjoyed a movie this much since "Inception." I've read the critics' reviews and the user reviews here - I encourage you to believe the professional critics on this one. I don't quite understand the negativity of the users, unless they just want to be contrarian.
What you have in this film begins with perfect performances by Christian Bale, Amy Adams, Bradley Cooper, and Jeremy Renner. Jennifer Lawrence is very good, but just a bit over the top. She's the only one where you ever "see" the acting. The others - as great as they are - disappear into their characters, especially Bale.
The overall direction of the plot is constrained by the fact that the movie is loosely based on the ABSCAM sting of the late 70s. However, if you remember the news from that time, it was a very controversial operation. Even many members of the law enforcement community believed that the FBI crossed the line into entrapment. As a result, it is very natural that this movie about con-men helping the FBI con public officials into taking bribes has a wonderfully calculated unevenness. The line between good guy and bad guy is a lot less clear than the line between legal and illegal.
A con is all about improv, and this movie feels like it. Great characters making it up as they go along. The classic con movie of all time, "The Sting", was beautiful for its ultimate sense of how well the plan was choreographed. The joy of American Hustle is that it doesn't feel choreographed at all - it feels natural, reactive. And that's brilliant filmmaking.