American Hustle (2013), Director: David O. Russell, rated R for language and sexual content

Everyone Hustles To Survive

Starring: Christian Bale, Amy Adams, Bradley Cooper, Jennifer Lawrence, Jeremy Renner, Louis C.K., Jack Huston, Michael Peña, Shea Whigham, Alessandro Nivola, Robert De Niro

DML Rating: ★★★★★★★★★☆ - near perfect

"She was the Picasso of passive-aggressive karate. She was better than any con artist I ever met, including myself, and she had me like nobody had me." – Irving Rosenfeld, narrating

Why watch this? A great plot and an incredible cast doing their best.

Plot Summary: A con artist and his seductive partner are forced by an ambitious FBI agent to participate in a sprawling and dangerous sting operation to catch corrupt schemers and politicians. As the plan to expose the fraudsters, power brokers, and Mafia gets more complicated, the con artist's unpredictable wife threatens to unravel everything. The film details the volatile alliances and shifting loyalties that arise as everyone tries to hustle their way to the top.

Dad's Preview: For a story about some nefarious characters (based on the real-life Abscam scandal of late 70's), this film is exceedingly funny. This is in no small part due to a very talented director, and four movie stars at the absolute top of their game. This film, with a banging 70's soundtrack, has such a classy mood that you almost forget it's a movie. Each character drips of something: caution, sexuality, neglect, ambition - they're all damaged goods either searching for respect or a way out. The confrontation between Lawrence and Adams is one for the ages; my mouth was hanging open. The whole thing builds, and we feel something bad just has to happen to one, if not all, of our seedy quasi-criminals... and that is the fun of it. It gets better every time you watch it. 

Columbia Pictures, Atlas Ent., Annapurna Pictures; Sony Pictures Releasing