The Bling Ring(2013) Film Review

 

Rating: 4 Stars Out Of 4, Thumbs Way Up.

Rated R For Teen Drug And Alcohol Use, And For Language Including Some Brief Sexual References.
1hr 30min/90min.
10 uses of the F-word.

Nicki: "I'm a firm believer in Karma and I think this situation is a huge learning lesson for me... I want to lead a country one day for all I know."

2013 is just full of great films. Behold, The Bling Ring, a film based on actual events, like another great film this year, Pain & Gain. However I like this one a little better than that film. Watching it, I was reminded of Spring Breakers. Both films have a Hyper-Kinetic energy to them. This one was directed by Sofia Coppola, this being my first viewing of a film from her and I love it. Most people see this as a dumb teen party flick, but like Spring Breakers, It's So much more than that.

Interesting fact, this is Emma Watson's first film to be not adapted from a book. Her other films have been based off of the Harry Potter novels. But in this film she gets to express her acting ability outside of shouting spells and running through mystical landscapes. I'm not bashing those films, but it is nice to see her doing something else. She really stuns in this film. This Is The End came after this, where she played herself.

 

As stated before, the film is based on actual events. What's interesting is why this story became famous. The actual story involved a group of 5 Teens stealing from high-profile celebrities. That plot alone is ripe for movie material and makes for a compulsively intresting movie. Why did they do it? For the fame. They wanted to make a name for themselves. They wanted to be infamous, and lo and behold, they did.

 

5 Teens, Marc(Issac Broussard), Rebecca(Katie Chang), Nicki(Emma Watson), Sam(Taisssa Farmiga) and Chloe(Claire Julien) rub shoulders with high-profile celebrities. When they get the idea to rob from them, they feel on top of the world, stealing from people such as Megan Fox, Lindsay Lohan and most of all, Paris Hilton. However, their world falls apart when the five get caught when they have stolen over $800,000 worth of material from these celebrities.

 

Now, it's their own fault they got caught. Why? Because, like idiots, hey posted pictures of themselves, with the stolen material, on Facebook. You see, it's not so smart to do something like that. That would be like if I shot someone and then posted a picture of me with the dead body, gun in my hand, that says in big bold letters, I KILLED THIS MAN. But it's like how I said, they wanted to be famous. They wanted to let the world know they were doing this. Mission acomplished.

 

Money, clothes, guns, jewelery. Just a portion of things these girls steal from these people. The cast do a stupendous job at portraying these people. Sofia Coppola actually met with some of the people from the real life story just to make sure that her information was accurate. As of this writing, the people have not seen this film. It would be nice to imagine their reaction. For me, I think they would be angry. Why? Well no one wants to see a movie on thier life that either skims over details or glorifies them in the wrong way.

 

Emma Watson is stunningly beautiful. She owns this role of Nicki and then some. She reminds me of James Franco from Spring Breakers. It's because these are two very well known actors giving, what could be considered, the best performance of their careers. Which one is better? Well, right now, that's too close to call, but I will say that Watson gives the best female performance of the year and Franco gives the best male performance of the year.

The cast memebers interact so well together that you forget that they are playing characters. That's because the writing is so efficiently well done. These are well developed characters. However, I wouldn't want to spend a day with them. They seem irritating to be around. They seem like those social concious teens that won't be comfortable with themselves unless they have the acceptence of everyone around them. Scratch that I would want to hang out with Emma Watson's character. Let's face it, who wouldn't want to hang out with Emma Watson?

Coppola directs with such a fine presicion. Not a single shot is wasted. We focus on these 5 for a total of 90 minutes, and then we leave. But I don't want to leave. I want to stay and expierience these characters for a longer time. I want to know why they wanted to steal from celebrities. Yes, because they wanted the fame, but what really prompted them to go into these houses and steal?

Once again, just like with Spring Breakers, I am reminded of the song "Royals" by Lorde, but in retrospect, it makes more sense here than in Spring Breakers. The song talks about what people want in fame and why they want it. But, looking closely, they seem fame hungry. They really can't live their lives unless their noterized. That speaks so many words about todays generation. But let's stop there because I don't want this turning into a rant about how bad this generation is.

We need more films like this. Ones where girls call the shots. Not like Mean Girls where they're just the main characters and esspecially not like that atrocity Pitch Perfect. Movies like Spring Breakers and The Bling Ring. Yes I do realize that there is a main male character in both of these films, but Broussard really doesn't steal the show like James Franco did. This is one film that cannot be missed. By the way, did I mention how much I like Emma Watson?