o'russell's ABSCAM movie AMERICAN HUSTLE

im tired to really parse my thoughts properly, but i think joy is quite misunderstood. its better than his last two movies (the marty-tribute american hustle and the icky silver linings). and for all the reviews talking about awkward shifts in tone, actually, i think the tonal shifts are pretty well integrated.

good things about this - a genuine rags to riches movie, a working/lower middle class family in a hollywood movie (not esp common anymore), some fabulous visuals/framing, jennifer lawrence and bradley cooper's performances; a racially diverse cast, and a film that manages to inspire you without being mawkish about it. its one of the few genuinely good feel-good movies ive seen in a while. ive heard some critics LOLing about its premise, which seems cruel. it might just be a mop, but hey, its still a business. and this addresses the setbacks any new entrepreneur might have to face, while also managing to express the desperation of wanting to do something with your life. i think this is what the film/JL pulls off the best.

bad things - a few scenes were a bit wes anderson-ish. it was wrapped up too neatly. i think russell's stylised approach might have cropped o ut a lot of the individual stuff about this story; sometimes i felt like i was watching dragons den, there were a few scenes with overly expository dialogue (though it was generally well delivered, which made it seem a little less forced).

sometimes i felt like i was watching dragons den

LOL, otm

Found some of Joy puzzling--things like the scene where everyone was urging Lawrence to declare bankruptcy; it didn't feel right to me that panic would set in so soon--but overall, I didn't mind it. Thought De Niro was better than I'd see him for a while (admittedly, I skip most everything he does nowadays). Cream's "I Feel Free" was wasted.

As with Gone Girl, liked American Hustle a little more second time around. I think Bale's excellent; he completely disappears into the role. Many excellent musical cues. Don't think it means much, don't think it tries to mean much.

you and I are gonna argue about the musical cues and Bale until the Atlantic absorbs Hialeah and Doral.

Totally loved "10538 Overture" (such a great choice), Chicago, and "Dirty Work," and things like "Jean Genie" and "I Feel Love" worked well too. I mean, I know there wasn't a great deal of imagination at work with a couple of those, but there's just a knack for matching the song to the moment throughout. Much better than anything found in Joy.

joy is at heart a more hateful elitist absolutely fucking stupid story than atlas shrugged and i'm sort of horrified that it hasn't been more generally received that way (from what i've seen?).