House of Gucci

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. (11/26/2021)

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. (11/27/2021)

While I did expect something a bit better, still I can't help rating the second Ridley Scott film this year with anything other than a high score. Essentially, it's a brilliant conversation film with a slight thriller edge that benefits from a mega-awesome cast and the firm hand of one of the greatest contemporary directing legends. It's a really great 4-star film that’s only lacking some ultra-powerful moment to sway me towards that fifth one. However, the storytelling style, the fatefulness, and the incredible stylishness (represented by the ubiquitous extravagance) make this saga about the Gucci family one of the best I've seen this year. (11/25/2021)

When I first saw the ambitious length of this film, it gave me pause. Yet, as the final credits rolled, I was pleasantly surprised at how quickly the time seemed to fly by. True, action lovers definitely did not get their fill, but I was satisfied. Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta, whom I've never particularly warmed up to due to her music not being my cup of tea, caught me off guard with her wonderful performance. The rest of the cast didn't lag behind either; the script was delightfully unsettling, and thankfully, no one mispronounced the word Lamborghini. This all added up to a decently satisfying watch. Lesson learned: I know I don't need to say this but it still holds true: "Beware of gold diggers!" (05/30/2022)

Ridley Scott's second biopic this year, this time from a more recent history than The Last Duel, had to compensate for the foregone conclusion through the acting and technical execution, which he thankfully managed to do quite well in most cases. The screen brings together acting aces of both the older and younger generations, and although their English-Italian comes across as a little dodgy at times, they give quality performances. The audio-visual execution is good, which is not surprising in a film by Scott. Although I’ve rated both films with four stars, I found The Last Duel more impressive. House of Gucci gets minus points for an unnecessarily long running time and the death of Maurizio, which was a bit too much for my taste, but it's still a solid biographical drama. (12/10/2021)