An inconsistent tone doesn't make it any less enjoyable

Rating: 9/10 (20 January 2014)

I bought my ticket thinking this was going to be a "spoof of superhero movies"; perhaps my friend was wondering what else Louis CK and Christian Bale would be doing starring in the same film. Perhaps it was these wildly inaccurate expectations, perhaps it was the fact I've grown cynical about the general quality of mainstream Hollywood releases, but when all was said and done I really, really liked this movie.
The film starts off with a small cast of characters but quickly widens into a complicated (but never too complicated) "caper story" about an ego-motivated FBI agent trying to entrap a group of politicians and mobsters for his own personal glory. A group of interesting and mostly sympathetic characters gets brought into the mix, who (aware or unawares) find themselves in more and more danger as his plan grows more elaborate.
It addresses interesting themes like overconfidence, greed, cowardice, how one can pursue admirable goals outside the law, how seeking justice for its own sake can sometimes harm, how a normally worthy cause can be pursued for all the wrong reasons, and the difficulty of pulling yourself out of a morally problematic position when it has spiraled into something far worse than what you had originally imagined.
None of this is to imply that this is somehow an intellectual movie. Other stories have explored these themes in more profound ways, and at times it feels as if the film is using its moments of levity as an excuse not to dive as deeply into the aforementioned issues (both intellectually and emotionally) as they could have. ("But...it's just a comedy!") Then again, maybe this was deliberate, as treating this kind of material too seriously can often backfire. Sometimes it is good to know your limits, in which case a decision like this is not cowardice - but in any case, the writers have still woven an interesting, entertaining story out of the material (brought to life expertly by the director and actors).
The movie is still not perfect. It only barely manages to keep all the characters and their relationships in the forefront, making me wonder how many scenes had been dropped along the way. This may sound like a serious criticism, and sometimes it really did feel as if the film was ignoring an important player or dynamic for a little too long. But none of it got to the point that it ruined the story, or made me stop being interested in the characters. Impressively for a film made in modern Hollywood, no major character is left underdeveloped. And in spite of cuts (?) for the sake of pace, relationships are at least fleshed out well enough for us understand what is playing out, and to feel invested in them.
More importantly, it strikes me that this may only be a consequence of so many characters playing an important role in the story (though never to the point where it gets convoluted or confusing). Ordinarily I do not see this as a virtue, but when it is done in a convincing way, and when their personalities and dilemmas are interesting, it makes their occasional "leaves of absence" more forgivable. It is a strange way of complimenting how interesting and/or well developed so many of the "secondary characters" were – we feel as if they are getting short shrift, that they are being ignored for too long, but only because in many other movies their counterparts would be so poorly developed we would not really care! Our attentions would be focused on the few interesting characters in the movie (if we could find any at all).
One other point the film has in its favour is the skill of its ensemble cast - which, for the most part, was very well chosen and has great chemistry. Many people I know in my personal life have mentioned how convincingly Jennifer Lawrence played a woman many years her senior; I did not even recognize her at first. (Perhaps this should not be surprising; she is an actress after all, but it is interesting how often we suspect performers are just "playing themselves".) In any case, it is certainly a far cry from Katniss Everdeen. I enjoyed the (not quite?) subversion of the "dumb blonde" stereotype; you can never be sure just how much of it she has figured out.
I am sure I would notice a few logical problems on repeat viewing – they are all but inevitable in most plot-heavy stories. Whatever. In spite of its flaws this is a well-made, entertaining movie. I would certainly recommend it to the general audience member.
There is a more serious flaw I have touched on, however, and that is the film's somewhat inconsistent comedic tone. Sometimes it gives us much- needed comic relief that really hits the mark, but other times it plays out in a really goofy, over-the-top way that feels out of place. (One of the opening shots is a perfect example of this; while thematically appropriate, it is a ridiculous gag that makes the character look more clownish than he is and really does give a false impression of what is to come). As genuinely funny as these jokes were, and as sparingly as they are sprinkled throughout the movie, there is just enough of this goofiness to give it a kind of "Seth Rogeny" vibe that might compromise some viewer's emotional investment. It's no "Back to the Future" either, which was silly in a way that was whimsical and heartwarming. This is a different, more serious story demanding a different kind of approach, and some of the jokes and gags really do feel out of place here, perhaps even jarring.
But never mind. 8.5/10, rounded up to 9 because some of its flaws were probably difficult-to-avoid consequences of its strengths.