Brilliantly Shines in the Gray Area

Rating: 9/10 (26 December 2013)

Many films nowadays fall victim to the trap of self-sacrifice--sacrificing characters for the sake of the plot, sacrificing the plot for the sake of characters, sacrificing intelligence for a visual escape, etc. The list runs long. 'American Hustle', on the other hand, sacrifices nothing. It is greedy in terms of wanting everything and achieving a step more. It is ambitious in being ambitious. It is beautiful. It is the best movie of 2013.
Many viewers claim to be confused and/or bored by the plot. This is a grievous misstep on their part, in my opinion. The brilliance of the plot lies in the thematic mists of the 'gray area.' From the very beginning of the film, deceit, deception, and a wildly fantastic British accent flourish on screen--and that's for the "good guys." The opening scene of obsessive hair care illuminates that point. Throughout the film every character continually re-invents themselves in order to survive. Alliances are never a sure thing, and suspicious eyes view the character's choices from beginning to end. The movie does an unparalleled job of making the audience realize that life, and choices, are not black and white. We live in a world of gray. This is cleverly referenced in Rosalyn's sickly sweet nail polish, the downfall of Carmine, who is a guy with good intentions and is punished accordingly, and the unorthodox work relationship under which Richie operates. This is off-putting to some people, I reason, who do not wish their own demons so blatantly danced across the big screen. Perhaps, it is time they drop their own phony accent, and own up to life.
The acting was out of this world. Every single one of them--Christian Bale, Amy Adams, Bradley Cooper, and Jennifer Lawrence--deserved their nominations. Bale is subtle and brilliant as Irving, the main conman. He is unappealing and dubious, yet you can't help but like him. His later soft heart towards Jeremy Renner's Carmine is icing on the cake for the dabbling in the gray area. Amy Adams shines, literally at times, as Sydney, Irving's con partner. She is the most volatile and hardest character to read for most of the film. Adams embodies the cocoon that Sydney has created with elegance and fiery deceit. Cooper is entirely convincing as the Richie, the FBI agent whose own ambition proves to be too much. Cooper brings the same electrifying energy he put on display for 'Silver Linings Playbook' (2012), and doesn't miss a beat between howl of laughter of roar of frustration as his plans become convoluted to a maximal degree. Jeremy Renner is also an absolute winner as Carmine, the mayor, despite not receiving an award nod as of yet. Renner is the consummate politician, and you can't help but sympathize with his character (even though you wonder if you should be, 95% of the time). Last, but certainly not least, is Jennifer Lawrence's Rosalyn, Irving's hysterical, deranged wife. The hype around Lawrence's role is well-deserved, she solidified herself among the elite with this role. Each of her scenes brought laughs and anticipation as you awaited what sort of screwball situations her character would stir up next. Standing ovation to all of the cast on this one--you stand far high above the rest.
At the core, this movie is more than just a dazzling spectacle of throwback clothing and crazy hairstyles. It speaks to an era. It speaks to human emotion and ambition. It speaks to the world we live in today. It speaks sometimes with an infectious British accent and sometimes adroitly American. Most importantly, it speaks. Go out and listen to what it has to say.