House of Gucci Movie Review: Ridley Scott is about to release his second huge film in a month and I honestly have no idea how he does it. Coming off The Last Duel which was a medieval tale, he switches lanes and is now giving us a film about the fashion world during the ‘80s and ‘90s. While Adam Driver and Lady Gaga do shine in House of Gucci that’s gorgeous to look at and occasionally enjoyable, it ultimately falters due to just how uneven its progression feels. House Of Gucci Movie Review: Lady Gaga, Adam Driver’s Film On Iconic Italian Fashion Empire Fails To Impress Critics.
House of Gucci as you guessed by its name, tells the story about the Gucci family. The primary protagonists here are Maurizio Gucci and Patrizia Reggiani, played by Adam Driver and Lady Gaga, whose romance basically transforms into a fight for power. Joining them alongside are Al Pacino, Jared Leto and Jeremy Irons who all portray members of the Gucci family.
Well starting with the cast itself, like the headline says, Adam Driver and Lady Gaga are the best parts about this film. They begin off with great chemistry and their eventual downfall is made believable due to their acting. Especially Gaga here who in A Star is Born had a role specifically written for her, but in House of Gucci she is out of her comfort zone. She perfectly portrays the manipulative Patrizia as she gets lost in the role. Even other cast members like Al Pacino and Jeremy Irons do great, while Jared Leto feels like he is acting in a completely different film altogether. If I have one bad thing to say about the casting is that Jared Leto felt like he was pulled out of a bit that would air on Comedy Central.
Watch The Trailer:
Now of course with the film having Gucci in its name you’re going to expect some great costume design too, and the film delivers in spades. The costumes are genuinely some of the best of this year. The outfits worn by Gaga, Driver and all the actors evoked a great sense of the time period they were in. It even gave the Gucci family a sense of royalty to it which made their power in that industry all the more believable while watching the film.
House of Gucci is also surprisingly really funny. A lot of jokes had me in stitches and they just crept up quite unexpectedly. A lot of it has to do with House of Gucci’s snappy and clever dialogue. Another highlight here is just the dialogue is filled with amazing lines. The actor’s deliver it so well that I was always interested in what these characters were saying. Especially during the first act, the dialogue shines. The first act is also the best in terms of hooking you into the plot. It’s the right amount of wit, drama and romance that is needed for a film like this. All the actors shine the most over here and I genuinely enjoyed watching the plot progress until it hit the mark where House of Gucci started to lose me.
As the acts started to go by, there was a sense of House of Gucci losing steam each and every minute. During those moments there were points where I was again engrossed, but it just regressed back and it made it feel dull. After a point I was genuinely bored as the story lacked any substance to it and matters that could have been resolved quickly were stretched out into very long moments.
There is so much uneven progression here as the passage of time is never done properly. The story takes place over the course of many years, and the film just tries cramming all of it with no real sense of progression to it. Maurizio and Patrizia are two very different people at the beginning of the film and their personalities take such a sudden turn that it is never fully explored. It just feels like their personality shifts weren’t earned properly and that it was extremely jarring to see. House of Gucci: Ridley Scott Hits Back at the Criticism From the Gucci Estate About His Upcoming Biographical Crime Film.
With the shift in the character’s personalities, there also came a sudden shift in the plot. Gone was its charm and I could see what Scott was trying to do here but again it wasn’t executed to its fullest potential. There is a good message about how greed corrupts but the way that message is delivered is the problem. Also the long runtime of the film really made it a chore to watch at times. Honestly it is not the family politics that killed the House of Gucci, but rather its pacing.
Yay!
Lady Gaga and Adam Driver
Great Costumes
Funny at Times
Nay!
Jared Leto
Uneven Progression
Poor Pacing
Some Things Don’t Feel Earned
Pacing
Final Thoughts
Like a Gucci ripoff, House of Gucci felt like a film that was pretty to look at, but lacked any substance. While it is filled to the brim with wonderful costumes and performances, House of Gucci ultimately crumbles due to its inconsistency in telling a plot that is filled with potential.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Nov 25, 2021 04:06 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).