Let’s get something out of the way. Yes, I am a guy, writing a review about a movie that centers around a group of women that work at a strip club, where nudity is seen throughout; yes, I am not above being entertained by colorful visuals and beautiful people; and yes, I purposefully chose this movie over something more “serious” like The Goldfinch. That being said, I enjoyed the movie.
Directed and written by Lorene Scafaria, Hustlers centers around a group of women who steal from the rich in order to better their lives; the group is run by Jennifer Lopez’s Ramona and Constance Wu’s Destiny. Through tampered drinks and peer pressure that only lustful men could fall for, these women run their business with a strip club as their backdrop, obtaining ridiculous amounts of money in the process. |
Hopefully those criticisms don’t dissuade people from checking out the movie, because I think it has much more to offer than what’s seen at face value. Wu and Lopez were phenomenal in the movie, perfectly portraying the high and lows of two women hustling their way through life. I actually saw myself completely buying into Lopez’s acting, rather than a usual issue I have with certain actors where I just see them playing a character rather than only seeing the character (e.g. Tom Cruise and Beyoncé).
The supporting cast is just as good. Keke Palmer and Lili Reinhart were able to hold their own against the more seasoned actors, and though somewhat underused, Julia Stiles, Lizzo, and Cardi B were just as believable in their roles. Todd Banhazl’s cinematography and Kayla Emter’s editing were so wonderfully stylistic that it was able to keep my attention throughout its runtime. The colors and glamour of a lot of the scenes are stunning, which perfectly juxtaposed the grey, depressing reality set scenes that show the true hardships these women go through outside of the strip club. The humor was well timed, the music elevated the movie rather than serving as a distraction, and the pacing allowed for a coherent back and forth narrative told from the perspective of a future Wu retelling her story to Julia Stiles’ Elizabeth. The editing also presented some different takes on how to display certain scenes that keep the movie from being too familiar. Some examples include Wu and Stiles getting audibly censored when speaking the name of one of the victims of the hustle, as well as a scene where Wu and Lopez are being set up by one of their underlings, and all of the audio sounds like what would be heard if one was listening to the wire that the underling was wearing. |
Interestingly enough, one of the most surprising aspects of this movie is through its many forms of representation. Hustlers stands as one of the few movies that doesn’t have any shame when it comes to representing the adult industry. Outside of the main hustle involving stealing from the rich, the women still primarily work at a strip club and at the beginning of the movie were strippers themselves. At no point in the movie is the job of a stripper shown as degrading or less noble than any other job, even shown to be more honest than the rich men who make their money through dirty methods, as Lopez puts it perfectly by saying, “These Wall Street guys, you see what they did to this country? They stole from everybody. Hard working people lost everything, and not one of these douchebags went to jail.”
The core women never clash over petty reasons like beauty or jealousy, instead showing a real sisterhood that keeps them afloat throughout the story. Their hopes and dreams are never seen as laughable, but instead rather attainable goals, such as Lopez’s want to make denim swimsuits, which does appear to be somewhat successful as the film progresses. The film’s decision to accurately show the struggles these women go through is refreshing. Their jobs are jobs, they put in hours, they have their own issues, it’s not just a superficial career where they make money off being naked in front of men. The cast is rather diverse, with the group of women made up of an Asian American, a Latina American, and a few African Americans. As an Asian American myself, it is nice to see an Asian character starring in a movie such as this, as well as not being pigeonholed into a stereotypical, socially awkward nerd that is either super smart or the supporting best friend of another character. With the likes of 2018’s Crazy Rich Asians, To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before, and Searching, we’re slowly getting to a better form of Asian representation in the general movie market. |
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