Posts tagged mobsters
“American Hustle” Shows Never Con a Con Artist
Dec 28th
“Never Con a Con Artist”
“Hotshots” looks at a movie!
American Hustle is so good that don’t be surprised if during some awards ceremony it sweeps an award in all the major categories.
In fact, it is so good that Robert De Niro appears in it as an important character and doesn’t even get listed in the credits.
However, appearing both in the movie and in the credits are Christian Bale, Bradley Cooper, Amy Adams, Jeremy Renner, and Jennifer Lawrence, and most if not all of them are going to come out winners during the next awards season.
The movie is based on one of the most stunning scandals and sting operations in the late Seventies, and it begins with a title that says, “Some of this actually happened.”
We are introduced to Irving, who is a con artist with such an elaborate comb-over that he not only combs his long hair over, but also glues it to his bald scalp.
Irving says, “I learned how to survive when I was a kid,” and we see how he broke the law in order to send more customers to his father’s business.
As an adult, however, and even though he owns some legitimate businesses, Irving prefers to make most of his money by charging people a nonrefundable $5,000 fee in order to get them a loan, but then he never comes back with the loan.
Irving’s partner in crime and in love is Sydney, a woman whose dream was to become anyone other than who she was, and her role in the scam is to pretend to be British royalty with bank connections.
Unfortunately, one man they try to con turns out to be Richie, who is an FBI agent with dreams of exposing and bringing down dirty politicians, and when he reveals himself to Irving and Sydney, he promises not to arrest them if they will help him in his own sting operation, which eventually involves a New Jersey mayor who wants to relaunch the casino industry in Atlantic City, a sheik who might provide the money, and mobsters from Miami who might provide the connections.
So, can you see how those involved in the operation might be in over their heads, especially when they are still keeping secrets from each other?
And all this time Irving has been married.
American Hustle is a truly enjoyable comedy.
I’m Dan Culberson and this is “Hotshots.”
“The Tourist” Very Disappointing Movie
Dec 15th
“Very Disappointing Movie”
THE TOURIST stars Johnny Depp and Angelina Jolie, and so what more do you need to know in order to see this movie?
Well, whether or not it is any good would be nice, and in this case, it is not.
Oh, it looks well enough, that is for sure, taking place in Venice, Italy, and once the two stars check into a fabulous hotel, every scene in the movie looks like a picture postcard.
And, then, of course, it stars Johnny Depp and Angelina Jolie.
The movie even starts in Paris, where Angelina is a target and being followed by who we eventually learn is Scotland Yard.
She receives a note by courier, telling her to take a train to Venice, and in addition the note says, “Pick someone my height and build, and make them believe it is me.”
So, Angelina, knowing she is being followed, heads for the subway and loses her followers by the old subway trick.
We then learn that the note was from a man named Alexander Pearce, who stole an enormous amount of money from an international mobster and is wanted in 14 countries, so Angelina is also being followed by Interpol and the mobster’s men.
When she gets on the train, Angelina sees Johnny sitting alone, picks him, and sits down across from him, engaging him in conversation.
He tells her that he is a math teacher from Madison, Wisconsin, and once the surveillance team identifies him, we learn even more about him.
Unfortunately, the mobster and his men believe Johnny is Pearce, and after Angelina entices him to check into the hotel with her, it is picture postcard time–except for the mobster and his men, of course.
So, now there are going to be chases throughout Venice, and it almost becomes a comedy when Johnny is chased across rooftops in his pajamas.
However, once the story shifts to a fancy dress ball, the movie begins to go downhill fast.
The premise makes no sense if we are to believe all the so-called “facts” we are given, and the audience is played for suckers.
The movie is better as the film it pretends to be instead of the one it turns out to be.
THE TOURIST has a good premise, excellent previews, preposterous execution, and, finally, is very disappointing.
I’m Dan Culberson and this is “Hotshots.”
The Tourist – Movie Trailer
Dec 13th
American tourist Frank (Johnny Depp) meets a mysterious beauty who drags him into a dangerous world of intrigue and espionage while traveling through Europe in director Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck’s paranoid thriller. When Frank met Elise (Angelina Jolie) on the train, he thought it was a chance encounter. Little did Frank realize it was all part of a much bigger plan, one that would soon find him dodging bullets through both the historic streets of Paris and the winding canals of Venice. Now, the faster Frank and Elise run, the more intense their romance grows.
