islandclaws

There were so many talented people involved in making this movie, and, yet, not a single one of them could have stopped it from being so damn boring. What a total letdown.

I never felt invested in the plot or characters. Not once. The direction was so bland and lifeless, like Russell was just hoping that having these people and aesthetics up on screen would be enough to make the picture have life. It didn't. And, man, was Lawrence so, so bad here. She was chewing scenery like nobody's business. Cooper was... Cooper, as usual.

After this and SLP, I'm seriously wondering what people see in Russell's movies. Both were overrated to the point of absurdity. I can't believe this is taking home awards.

RichC2

I enjoyed Lawrence in the movie, was it a particularly great performance? Naw, but her scenes were pretty much the only ones with any life to them.

inri222

You forgot The Fighter.

DaveyJoe

I'll always love Russell for giving us Three Kings.

pjflyer

David O Russell is one of my favorite directors. I think everything up through "The Fighter" is a classic film.

I found his last two films very disappointing. They both are somewhat enjoyable entertainments but to me have very little depth.

Groucho

Not enough jump cuts and yelling for this crowd.

RichC2

There simply wasn't enough midget tossing, helicopter crashing or boat sinking in it.

inri222

Coral

Finished watching it.

I thought it was decent, but definitely overrated. It was MUCH better than Silver Linings Playbook though (which was an extremely overrated cliche'd teenage rom-com trying to disguise itself as something more).

The performances were good, although I was wondering why Richie wasn't on to Sydney earlier as her American accent was pouring out of her mouth. I swear she would say a few words or a couple lines with a British accent and the rest was with an American one.

I think Russell should've calmed down on the music tracks. It was overused. It felt like he was using it as a crutch to try and help out the slower scenes, instead of using them to accompany energetic ones or to mesh with the feel of the scene. He used it well in some scenes, but in others it felt forced.

fumanstan

I ended up lukewarm on this too after really anticipating it. Although I liked Silver Linings Playbook (and The Fighter) much better. I can't quite put my finger on it, but I just felt bored throughout most of the movie. I liked all the actors and their respective roles, the acting was fantastic, but the pace and plot of the movie just didn't really draw me in at all.

Decker

I just watched it with the Mrs tonight after the games and agree with pretty much all of this. I enjoyed it, but am certainly not over-the-moon about it. Did like it more than SLP which I though was just okay (besides J-Law's part). My favorite Russell film remains Three Kings, which was just fun and not attempting any sort of grand actor's showcase.
Kudos to the casting folks who when faced with the task of casting actors to play corrupt politicians and mobsters in Atlantic City, decided to hire not one but two series regulars from Boardwalk Empire. Inspired.
I thought Renner (the only main star without an acting nod) had the most interesting part. He was the emotional soul of the picture. Liked his interaction with his wife.
I didn't know that Cooper's agent didn't know that Sidney was American until that scene. Agree that her accent tended to come and go (at least it seemed to for me) and don't think that the deception was clearly depicted enough before that scene.

I wish they'd have been more forthcoming with how much of the story was true. I'm curious. At least they don't present the entire thing as factual like a certain recent live-action Disney film did.

Crocker Jarmen

I wish more movies like this would copy the end credits of The Hunting Party, which did a great and funny job of naming the real people and pointing out the parts that were made up and the parts that were true (some of which were surprising).

I enjoyed the movie okay, but all the techniques from stuff like Casino and Goodfellas and Boogie Nights made the movie seem so silly. If it wasn't for the acting, I'd say this is on the level of something like Blow. Just a pale imitation of better movies.

I loved Bale's wife in this, I thought she was the most interesting character in the movie.

Everytime I see Jeremy Renner in a movie I think it's Jason Bateman and spend the whole movie thinking about, "Wow, they really made him look different somehow".

Mike86

Surprised at the negativity here. I just saw it last night and thought it was fantastic. Bale and Adams were both really great and I find Amy Adams incredibly sexy. Cooper is really cementing himself as a solid actor too and Lawrence was good in the film but I expected her character to have a bit bigger role. She was good in the parts she was in though and is becoming a fine young actress. I also think that Renner works better in films where he's in a co-starring role and not the leading man. I liked how the film got the styles of the late 70s down and the soundtrack was really good. The film really seemed like it was giving a nod to Scorsese films only minus the excessive violence and swearing. Not that it was a bad thing but you could definitely see where O'Russell got some influence from. Overall easily one of my favorite films of 2013 and a definite day one purchase for me when it hits Blu-ray.

RoyalTea

I really wanted to hear the end of Louis CK's ice fishing story.

MrSmearkase

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Dr. DVD

I really am curious as to how what started as a front runner in the Oscars lost all of its momentum.

musick

it's not a very good movie (O. Russell's fault more than anything)

Why So Blu?

I put AH on my top-10 of 2013 and just watched it a day or two ago and it was just okay this time out. I don't know what happened. Yes, I do agree that it was better than Silver Linings Playbook. I thought SLP was mediocre. The Fighter is the bomb, though. Three Kings is David O. Russell's best film by far, imo.

inri222

I have not seen yet seen American Hustle or Silver Linings Playbook. As for The Fighter, it ain't all that. IMO without the great performances by Christian Bale & Melissa Leo it would be a turd.
Have not seen Three Kings, I Heart Huckabees, Flirting With Disaster & Spanking the Monkey in a long time I will have to revisit those.

RichC2

Three Kings is an actual good movie with an interesting storyline, solid directing and was proof Boogie Nights wasn't a fluke for Wahlberg.

I liked The Fighter, thought Silver Linings Playbook was well acted but a mess of a movie and found American Hustle well acted but dull.

hanshotfirst1138

A friend of mine told me that I disliked SLP simply because "it was happy" and that I was "full or shit." He may have a point, but for the life of me, I didn't get what all of the hype and Oscars were about, I thought it was a feel good romcom and little more. Didn't think it was terrible, and the performances were good, I just admit I didn't think it added up to very much. I am glad to know that I wasn't alone. And I've read the book too.

RichC2

I didn't like the conflicting shooting styles in the movie.

Why So Blu?

See, and I thought SLP got happy and sappy, with the lame ending. Up until then Cooper's character was the ultimate douche, mental illness or not. I could not stand him and the fact that no one could beat his ass? Yeah, right. I thought Robert Deniro was the best part in SLP.

raven56706

what type of ending were you looking for in SLP?


i mean i thought it was done well... blended funny with serious...

Why So Blu?

Something non-typical.