The moral of this story is that everyone hustles to survive. With all of the backstabbing that takes place in the film, it’s questionable whether or not David O’Russell has conned his audiences into believing that this is an award-winning film. Irving Rosenfeld (Christian Bale) and Sydney Prosser (Amy Adams), both excellent manipulators, are sought out by an FBI agent, Richie DiMaso (Cooper) to bring down a politician (Jerry Renner) and several members of the local government.

The opening scene starts with a hilarious note warning the audience that it’s loosely based on a true story followed by a scene depicting Rosenfeld preparing for the day in front of all of us in his not-so-appealing glory.

With a talented cast overall, Jennifer Lawrence steals every scene she’s in. Lawrence, portraying the wife to Bale’s Rosenfeld, is the loose cannon in the grand scheme of things (and a little reminiscent of Melissa Leo’s character in ‘The Fighter’). She’s unafraid to voice her opinion whenever and wherever she chooses. When Lawrence is in a scene, you cannot help but pay attention—amused or bothered— to her every gesture and speech no matter how nonsensical.

If the flashy costumes aren’t enough to convince you that our story takes place in the ‘70s, feel free to let the cinematography and the soundtrack persuade you otherwise. Instead of a clear look like most period pieces—fictional and non-fictional—‘American Hustle’ features a grainy look paired with songs featuring Paul McCartney, The Bee Gees, and Donna Summers. Essentially, ‘American Hustle’ plunges you back in time.

While the film opens on a funny note to what audiences may expect to be a drama—given the trailer—at times, the film seems to almost make fun of itself (i.e., the opening scene, Adams and Cooper seen walking in slow motion through fog set to disco music, etc). If ‘American Hustle’ was, in fact, supposed to be playing at some of the events that actually took place, then the pace and overall sequence of the film would make sense. However, there are also scenes that are quite serious—some involving the mob—that would otherwise place ‘American Hustle’ in the drama/satire category.

To add to the confusion, there is one ultimate con which—for the most part—is played out through the entire film, but there are several cons taking place that are a bit difficult to follow. Each small con is explained a little too quickly to process. In addition, all of our characters con each other—some more than once. It’s hard to determine whether these are purposefully handled this way in order to emphasize their non-importance or if we are meant to pay attention to these small betrayals. Although these ultimately won’t matter given the film’s conclusion, it may have served audiences a more thought-provoking as well as a thoroughly entertaining movie had the dialogue and story been tighter.

Overall, ‘American Hustle’ is an enjoyable film. Despite the directionless script and its lack of full confidence, the acting performances are concrete. Although ‘American Hustle’ may not be an Oscar-winning movie-going experience, it consists of a lot of great moments between characters and you’re in for a cool time at the movies.

Jim’s Rating: 7/10