House of Gucci

Ridley Scott continues in his efforts to bring new films that will not become quick wins, but will remain in the audience's consciousness for at least a few years. This time, he embarked on an excessively long epic, where I was completely captivated by the first half, but the second half entertained me much less. I didn't know much about the House of Gucci before the film, so I cannot judge where artistic license (which is certainly abundant as always) begins and where Ridley stays within the bounds of history. However, one person I must definitely praise is Lady Gaga, whose previous movie performances left me unsure whether she annoys or entertains me, but she was quite entertaining here. Never mind her exaggerated accent, this was simply her role. It's just a shame that Ridley couldn't maintain the pace in the second half of the film; otherwise, it would have been another masterpiece in his career, the second one this year. So, for a great 8. (2021-12-05)

This movie balances right on that line between three and four stars at this point. I was entertained by the entire one-hundred and sixty-four minutes of millionaire chess and backstabbing, plus it introduced a story I had no idea about before, and the ensemble cast is absolutely amazing, no question about it. I enjoyed the scenes with Irons, Leto, and Pacino the most (the latter, in particular, steals the show a lot, and I am glad he got so much screen time). I was slightly distracted by the variance in Italian accents with the actors (Driver, Irons, and Pacino were restrained X Gaga’s and Leto’s was totally extravagantly over the top). I found the movie a little disappointing because Ridley Scott had so much room to tell the overall story evenly in the space of two and a half hours. Despite that, he spent more time on some of the less crucial parts, which made the ending feel rushed by comparison. Therefore, the way the final scene is connected to what precedes it lacks any convincing explanation of how it came about and where the participants went wrong. Too bad, I found it all very interesting otherwise. (2021-11-26)

A star-studded mob movie without mobsters in a thoroughly engaging delivery by Ridley Scott. When I wrote two days ago about how much I was moved by Last Night in Soho and how few films manage to do that, I was kind of hoping that House of Gucci would be another one. Fortunately, it was. This riveting saga benefits from a stellar ensemble cast as much as it does from Scott's understated yet thoroughly engaging direction. Lady Gaga will be forever a safe bet for me after this performance, Adam Driver confirms that after John Williams's music he is the best thing the new Star Wars has brought us, Al Pacino is classic Al, obviously happy to get a proper role, and I had a great time watching his art in the cinema again (the "No!" scene is unforgettable). Jared Leto doesn't get lost even under the (excellent) make-up, which is good, Jeremy Irons and Salma Hayek have probably the smallest roles of all, but that doesn't mean they don't rightfully enjoy them. One of the films of the year, hands down. (2021-11-27)

House of Gucci is a moderately entertaining film, though thanks only to the overacting, which can hardly be considered an asset. It’s as if Scott deliberately didn’t keep them on the leash, so as to cause ripples on the stagnant surface of the dramaturgically weak material. For a more dramatic subject (also based on actual events), a more suspenseful narrative and a better “bad guy”, I liked his All the Money in the World a bit better. Jeremy Irons and Al Pacino were the only ones I enjoyed here. And of course Camille Cottin towards the end. (2021-12-10)

It's at once so insanely overwrought and yet so cheap and fragmented that it's reminiscent of a sulkfest in which the creative team lost funding for a project, but still decided to finish it with the help of two hundred and fifty Spanish investors folding themselves into a straw man. This also gives me some uncontrollable sympathy for the film, because (probably wrongly) it feels somehow "resilient". If it weren't for the swift Last Duel, one might even offer to mention that directors in their 80s simply lose a certain visual sense out of complacency (see Wajda, Polanski, Bellochio, or Konchalovsky), such that a film that's called freaking House of Gucci lacks above all else style and elegance. And yet it's helmed by a director who, when he devoted a two-second shot to the seated emeritus mobsters during one court scene in American Gangster, just from their body position, clothing, and layout in the shot screamed that these gentlemen mean business. Here, it's like every once in a while no one really knows what to do, so they deal with it in their own way. Jared Leto, whom no one told he wasn't in a Bruno Dumont film, Lady Gaga aiming for the Proudfoot from Bag End Award (presented at Bilbo's 111th birthday), and the writers ticking off the necessary scenes in a high society life story (crying a single tear, a drunk wife terrorizing her husband, the husband slamming her against the wall). As a result, the film feels oddly artificial (thanks in part to the ugly digital camera) and almost everything in it feels like it's happening for applause. However, you can really see some effort, commitment and directorial ideas, but it all feels oddly disjointed and staged. (2022-02-22)