Review (American Hustle)
I saw a very enjoyable movie, American Hustle, with my sister this vacation week. I would highly recommend it. Set in the 1970s, it centers around the FBI sting Abscam. It stars Christian Bale, Amy Adams, Bradley Cooper, Jennifer Lawrence and Jeremy Renner. The first four have been nominated (Golden Globes) for Best Actor/Actress/Supporting and Jeremy should be, too. The film has been nominated for Best Comedy.
Many of the movie’s scenes were filmed in Central Massachusetts in a city called Worcester.
BTW, there is a comics connection here: Christian Bale, Amy Adam, and Jeremy Renner have all played comics characters: Bruce Wayne, Lois Lane and Clint Barton. :)
The following scenes were filmed in Worcester: two scenes in a museum were set in the Worcester Art Museum. The mosaic in the foyer comes from the B.C.E. era. Pretty old! ;) One scene shows the characters with a backdrop of a dark, shadowy area, which happens to be a European monastery from the Middle Ages that was brought over lock, stock and stone. The second scene is in one of the galleries.
The scene in which Christian’s character chases Jeremy’s character out onto the street and they talk is filmed in downtown Worcester. The advance scouts considered the street already very ‘70s and just dressed it up a little. ;)
A night scene with Bradley and Amy heading out for a night on the town shows some buildings downtown.
A scene where the four major characters go out to dinner was filmed in a local bar.
Finally, an important party scene in the last half of the film was filmed at Union Station, the local train station. It was restored to its former glory at the turn of the century. There is also a brief outdoor scene showing the station in the daytime and a shot of downtown Worcester.
So there’s your local color!
Want a break from superhero movies or action flicks that rack up the body count? Tired of comedies that rely strictly on bodily fluid and sex jokes? Then American Hustle might be for you!
American Hustle mixes drama and comedy as it details the FBI Abscam scandal of the 1970s. Christian Bale and Amy Adams play con artists who are caught and are forced to work for the FBI. Bradley Cooper is the agent who gets the bright idea of using them.
For Christian fans, don’t expect him being gorgeous in this film. Once again he’s done the weight thing: gained it for a big pot belly and wears a hideous comb-over but is still sexy enough to attract two very beautiful women, Amy and Jennifer Lawrence. And it’s your chance to see Christian do comedy! Yes, you read that right. ;)
The story is fast-paced and has many twists and turns. The ‘70s fashions are a hoot and the music is fantastic. Along with the ‘60s, it was a great decade for music (disco was for dancing, all the rest was for singing).
Never try and con a con artist should be the motto of this movie. Bradley Cooper gets in over his head and Jeremy Renner does a star turn as the mayor of decaying Camden, New Jersey who Christian’s character befriends as part of the con. Hawkeye and Batman have good chemistry together! ;)
Actually, the friendship between Irving (Christian) and Carmine (Jeremy) is one of the most interesting in the film. Irving begins to have regrets for his part in the sting as he genuinely feels friendship for Carmine. And Irving's wife Roslyn (Jennifer) snarks about them getting married. The whole 'science oven' (microwave) thing is hilarious but with a touching undercurrent as you'll see when you watch the movie. :)
Also, a tiny bit of lesbian subtext in one scene. ;)
Christian and Amy worked together in The Fighter, the film that starred Mark Wahlberg as Micky Ward, an Irish-American boxer from Lowell, Massachusetts. Christian won his Oscar as Dicky Eklund, Micky’s half-brother, and Amy was Micky’s girlfriend. She and Christian were hostile to each other for most of the movie and had scenes that sparked! It would be ironic if Christian won his first Oscar for playing an emaciated junkie and his second for playing an overweight con artist.
American Hustle captures the look and feel of the '70s very well. The Italian family and party scenes were very well-done. I could relate! :) The music helps and the fashions and hairstyles...heh heh! ;)
This film is fast, funny and requires thought. It doesn’t seem as if it was written by twelve-year-old males in a locker room. Go see it!
site meter
Many of the movie’s scenes were filmed in Central Massachusetts in a city called Worcester.
BTW, there is a comics connection here: Christian Bale, Amy Adam, and Jeremy Renner have all played comics characters: Bruce Wayne, Lois Lane and Clint Barton. :)
The following scenes were filmed in Worcester: two scenes in a museum were set in the Worcester Art Museum. The mosaic in the foyer comes from the B.C.E. era. Pretty old! ;) One scene shows the characters with a backdrop of a dark, shadowy area, which happens to be a European monastery from the Middle Ages that was brought over lock, stock and stone. The second scene is in one of the galleries.
The scene in which Christian’s character chases Jeremy’s character out onto the street and they talk is filmed in downtown Worcester. The advance scouts considered the street already very ‘70s and just dressed it up a little. ;)
A night scene with Bradley and Amy heading out for a night on the town shows some buildings downtown.
A scene where the four major characters go out to dinner was filmed in a local bar.
Finally, an important party scene in the last half of the film was filmed at Union Station, the local train station. It was restored to its former glory at the turn of the century. There is also a brief outdoor scene showing the station in the daytime and a shot of downtown Worcester.
So there’s your local color!
Want a break from superhero movies or action flicks that rack up the body count? Tired of comedies that rely strictly on bodily fluid and sex jokes? Then American Hustle might be for you!
American Hustle mixes drama and comedy as it details the FBI Abscam scandal of the 1970s. Christian Bale and Amy Adams play con artists who are caught and are forced to work for the FBI. Bradley Cooper is the agent who gets the bright idea of using them.
For Christian fans, don’t expect him being gorgeous in this film. Once again he’s done the weight thing: gained it for a big pot belly and wears a hideous comb-over but is still sexy enough to attract two very beautiful women, Amy and Jennifer Lawrence. And it’s your chance to see Christian do comedy! Yes, you read that right. ;)
The story is fast-paced and has many twists and turns. The ‘70s fashions are a hoot and the music is fantastic. Along with the ‘60s, it was a great decade for music (disco was for dancing, all the rest was for singing).
Never try and con a con artist should be the motto of this movie. Bradley Cooper gets in over his head and Jeremy Renner does a star turn as the mayor of decaying Camden, New Jersey who Christian’s character befriends as part of the con. Hawkeye and Batman have good chemistry together! ;)
Actually, the friendship between Irving (Christian) and Carmine (Jeremy) is one of the most interesting in the film. Irving begins to have regrets for his part in the sting as he genuinely feels friendship for Carmine. And Irving's wife Roslyn (Jennifer) snarks about them getting married. The whole 'science oven' (microwave) thing is hilarious but with a touching undercurrent as you'll see when you watch the movie. :)
Also, a tiny bit of lesbian subtext in one scene. ;)
Christian and Amy worked together in The Fighter, the film that starred Mark Wahlberg as Micky Ward, an Irish-American boxer from Lowell, Massachusetts. Christian won his Oscar as Dicky Eklund, Micky’s half-brother, and Amy was Micky’s girlfriend. She and Christian were hostile to each other for most of the movie and had scenes that sparked! It would be ironic if Christian won his first Oscar for playing an emaciated junkie and his second for playing an overweight con artist.
American Hustle captures the look and feel of the '70s very well. The Italian family and party scenes were very well-done. I could relate! :) The music helps and the fashions and hairstyles...heh heh! ;)
This film is fast, funny and requires thought. It doesn’t seem as if it was written by twelve-year-old males in a locker room. Go see it!
site meter