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Irving Rosenfeld: Did you ever have to find a way to survive and you knew

your choices were bad, but you had to survive?

Sydney Prosser: You're nothing to me until you're everything.

A fictional film set in the alluring world of one of the most stunning scandals to

rock our nation, American Hustle tells the story of brilliant con man Irving

Rosenfeld (Christian Bale), who along with his equally cunning and seductive

British partner Sydney Prosser (Amy Adams) is forced to work for a wild FBI

agent Richie DiMaso (Bradley Cooper). DiMaso pushes them into a world of

Jersey powerbrokers and mafia that's as dangerous as it is enchanting. Jeremy

Renner is Carmine Polito, the passionate, volatile, New Jersey political operator

caught between the con-artists and Feds. Irving's unpredictable wife Rosalyn

(Jennifer Lawrence) could be the one to pull the thread that brings the entire

world crashing down. Written by Sony Pictures Entertainment

AMERICAN HUSTLE FILM REVIEW & OSCAR PREVIEW – 1-15-2014 1-15-2014 - Written By: David L. $Money Train$ Watts – Journalist/Film Reviewer

FuTurXTV & HHBMedia.com - David Velo Stewart – Editor – HHBMedia.com

I have to say that one of the most pleasant things about last year’s release of David O’

Russell’s Silver Lining Playbook was not expecting to like it so much that I was

actually dumbfounded and very upset that when it lost Best Picture to Argo. So we fast

forward a year and I again heard about this huge super hybrid cast of A-listers from The

Fighter and Silver Lining Playbook and I thought David O’ Russell did not strike gold

again for sure? But as soon as started watching American Hustle I knew was gonna

love it big time! So instead of a regular style film review I will tick off 25 things I loved

about American Hustle. I have no doubt that this film is destined to win multiple Oscars

for the cast and writing. And American Hustle might even steal Best Picture as well.

David L. $Money Train$ Watts • FuTurXTV • HHBMedia.com • info@hhbmedia.com • www.hhbmedia.com • David Velo Stewart

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1. I loved the way the film opens with Irving Rosenfeld (Christian Bale) paying close

and meticulous attention to his bald spot and comber over because this was an

important insight to how careful and detailed he treats hustles and scams. And

one can seriously wonder later on in the film if one of the hidden reasons that

Irving truly hates Agent Richie DiMaso (Bradley Cooper) is that Richie messes up

his hair in front of his girlfriend to show him who is the boss.

2. I loved the fact that Irving owned and run a few legit dry cleaners while he

moonlighted as a con man. And I even loved the fact that Irving had a sort of

private hustle as art gallery con that he did for more himself than to make money.

3. I loved the natural, passionate and symbiotic romantic chemistry between two

“con soul-mates” Sydney Prosser (Amy Adams) and Irving as much as I

understood the chaotic, explosive and dysfunctional romantic chemistry between

Rosalyn Rosenfeld (Jennifer Lawrence). The writing is so balanced that I never

felt Irving should have only been with Sydney at the expense of making Rosalyn

just an afterthought. Rosalyn had as much a spell over Irving as Sydney did.

4. I really loved Richie’s over the top bravado, rapid sentences and overall

cheeseball sliminess to do or say anything to get his way with Rosalyn. You can

see a sample below of Russell’s fluid and rhythmic writing in the way Richie tries

to breakdown Sydney after he arrests her and puts her in a FBI holding cell.

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Richie DiMaso: I know you think - look at me, hey, Edith - I know you think Irv loves you.

I know you think you know him. You think that he sees the world as this cold, dark place.

He cares about nobody but a very few people on a short list: His son, his father, Rosalyn,

and you. You think you're on the top of the list? What if you're not? What if you're not on

that list? What if you're not even on that list at all? He'd be in here right now if he took the

cheque, but no, you did. God, it's so clear to me; it's crazy, it's clear to me, but it's not clear

to you: He uses you, Edith, to protect himself, to protect son, and his wife in Long Island.

No? Yes. He put a ring on her finger, he adopted her son. They have a huge house and they

have two huge cars, what does she do all day? I'll tell you what she does: She plays with her

nails, she watches TV, and she spends your money; the money that you make.

[sighs]

Richie DiMaso: I don't like that you're in jail while he's going free, I don't like any of that,

I want to help you. All the razzle-dazzle that he does? It's not good, it's not real; it's fake,

it's not real. Who you are is who you are, between you and God. You and your soul; that's

what matters, that's what counts, that's what I'm about. That's what I see in you. Tell me

you didn't feel it the first time we saw each other? Am I crazy? I don't think so.

[beat]

Richie DiMaso: I'm not supposed to be talking like this, but I don't care, I break the rules.

[takes a deep breath]

Richie DiMaso: Okay, Edith, Edith, I wanna help you. I like you.

[mouths]

Richie DiMaso: I like you.

[speaks]

Richie DiMaso: I like you.

5. I loved Rosalyn because Jennifer Lawrence’s performance was so unpredictable,

captivating and mesmerizing that one could not look away or even care about

anything else plot wise until she stopped speaking or screaming at Irving.

6. I like that Richie’s boss Stoddard Thorsen was played by smartly played by Louis

C.K. as demure, patient and conservative bureaucratic boob. It was far more

refreshing to see this new acting side of Louis than his loud and wild rants.

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7. I loved that Irving was actually and deeply insulted that Richie thought he could

easily become a professional con man like himself and Sydney. Irving takes

great pride in his cons and truly wants Richie to respect him for what he does a

big time or sophisticated level. Irving does no see himself as a small time hood.

8. I loved the fact that Irving is actually torn up inside about having to scam Mayor

Carmine Polito (Jeremy Renner) after Carmine trusts him and treats him as a

genuine friend. Before meeting Carmine Irving seemed like he had kept up a

wall, so he could distance himself from the folks he regularly hustled or conned.

9. I loved Rosalyn “science oven scene” in American Hustle so much I actually felt

really sad for Lupito Nyong’o because I knew after that there virtually was no

chance of Lupito easily winning an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress. Before I

saw American Hustle I could not honestly see anyone get that Oscar besides

Lupito outstanding performance as Patsey in 12 Years a Slave. But there is so

much raw emotion and humor in Rosalyn taking no responsibility whatsoever in

her actions of putting metal in a microwave despite being warned not to do it.

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Irving Rosenfeld: [Rosalyn has accidentally destroyed their new microwave] I told you not

to put metal in the science oven, what did you do that for?

Rosalyn Rosenfeld: Don't make such a big deal! Just get another one.

Irving Rosenfeld: I don't want another one, want the one that Carmine gave me.

Rosalyn Rosenfeld: [mocking] Oh, Carmine! I want the one that Carmine gave me!

Carmine! Carmine!

[serious]

Rosalyn Rosenfeld: Why don't you just marry Carmine? Get a little gold microwave and

put it on a chain around your neck! You wanna be more like Carmine? Why don't you

build something, like he does? Instead of all your empty deals; they're just like your fuckin'

science oven. You know, I read that it takes all of the nutrition out of our food! It's empty,

just like your deals. Empty! Empty!

Irving Rosenfeld: Bullshit.

Rosalyn Rosenfeld: It's not bullshit! I read it in an article, look: By Paul Bradeur

[hands Irving the article]

Rosalyn Rosenfeld: . Bring something into this house that's gonna take all the nutrition out

of our food and then light our house on fire? Thank God for me.

10. I loved the fact that Sydney and Rosalyn openly knew of each other, but might

not have never met each other until Richie forced Iriving and Sydney to do the

Arab scam to bust Carmine and other crooked Jersey politicians. And I especially

like how each of the women saw each other not as true competition for Irving, but

rather that each possessed some unique feature or characteristic that Irving

really wanted in them. He was not satisfied with only having Sydney or Rosalyn.

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11. I loved how Agent Richie had to keep begging for hotel suites, jets and other

support materials from his boss. The more Stoddard keeps telling Richie “No” to

his requests to make his sting as big and believable the more I kept laughing.

12. I loved how Robert De Niro played a Victor Tellegio as a very low key and wise

Mobster that actually knew how to speak Arabic. One could easily have

dismissed De Nero’s cameo, but that scene was such a shocker that even folks

in the theaters were wondering if Irving and Richie’s scam was going to blow up

right there. Just a great bit of writing so De Niro can throw viewers a curve ball.

13. I loved the fact that Richie becomes so obsessed with nabbing a real mobster

like Victor Telligio that you could see was going to do something reckless and

foolish to help out Irving and Sydney. Blind ambition is Richie’s downfall.

14. I loved the running gag between Richie and Stoddard about ice fishing story

because every time we think Richie has figured it out he hasn’t. And I also

thought it was pure brilliance to not actually finish telling the

15. I loved the fact Rosalyn was so crazy as a personality that you just know the

scam is in trouble when she dates mob enforcer Pete Musane (Jack Huston).

16. I loved the fact that Rosalyn is so stubborn and proud that even when she knows

she is dead wrong-like telling her mobster boyfriend that Irving was speaking to

“IRS” guys—that she insists to Irving that if she had not gotten him almost killed

he would not have been forced to come up with a solution to all their problems. It

is brilliantly written scenes like this that will make Oscar voters forced to vote for

Jennifer Lawrence. Russell really knew how to turn Rosalyn into a great film role.

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17. I loved how Sydney dropped her English ascent and Richie could not mentally

deal with the fact that he had been fooled 100% by her fake English identity.

18. I loved the quirky and awkward of Richie at his real home wearing curlers trying

to psyche himself up and barely acknowledging his real girlfriend and mother

listening to him in character. Just showing Richie wearing curlers helps deflate

and almost mocks the traditional masculine images for FBI agents in Hollywood.

19. I loved Irving and Amy fighting over how to live their lives as real people when

Irving is still very concerned about being a step-father to Rosalyn’s young son.

20. I loved the fact that Richie finally loses it and beats up Stoddard with a phone.

There are many Millennials who have no idea how heavy those old rotary office

phones were, so that beating would have been very painful to Stoddard’s face.

21. I loved the moment when Richie thinks he has won and replays the voice

recording of Victor Tellegio’s lawyer admitting to taking bribes to a room full of

FBI agents, Stoddard and Stoddard’s boss Anthony Amado (Allessandro Nivola).

22. I loved the way that Irving tries to warn Carmine about his impending arrest, but

the film does not cop op out and let Carmine escape from still getting arrested.

23. I loved the music in American Hustle because it was a mixture of great jazz

songs, rock hits, classic R&B songs and popular disco songs from the 70’s.

24. I loved the fact that Irving pulled one last “American Hustle” on the FBI and

Richie just to prove to Richie who really was the boss of bosses among con men.

25. I loved that Irving’s loss of his friendship with Carmine made him go straight and

not predictable reasons like he loved Sydney and wanted to take care of his son.

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David L. $Money Train$ Watts • FuTurXTV • HHBMedia.com • info@hhbmedia.com • www.hhbmedia.com • David Velo Stewart