The year was 2013, and David O. Russell continued to prove that he was the director that was going to change things. No matter what one thought of his films, there was no denying they had something special about them. The Fighter (2010) and Silver Linings Playbook (2012) were critically acclaimed hits, and then we got American Hustle. This is not to say that this was not as good as the aforementioned two, but there was certainly some hesitation from the movie itself at the time.
This was to say that American Hustle was a little bloated, a little too much, and a little all over the place. Or at least this is how I felt when I saw the movie 11 years ago. With Sony releasing a brand new 4K UHD restoration available in steelbook format, I revisited the film, which I was lukewarm on initially, and came to realize, maybe I was immature or didn’t understand the movie the first time, or maybe we’ve been exposed to so much mediocre content lately that seeing something swing for the fences and mostly knock it out of the park is refreshing. Whatever it was, American Hustle is significantly better than remembered, and the 4K is a stunner.
The film focuses on scam artist Irving Rosenfeld and his partner Sydney Prosser (Christian Bale and Amy Adams, respectively) as they’re caught by FBI agent Richie DiMaso (Bradley Cooper), who enlists their help to take down political criminal Mayor Carmine Polito (Jeremey Renner). While Irving’s wife, Rosalyn Rosenfeld (Jennifer Lawrence), wants to ensure that Irving gets screwed and everything falls apart, she makes things worse for everyone involved and chaos erupts. American Hustle is truly a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it type of movie, as there are so many moving parts, but close attention makes everything stick together and realizing that the movie is truly more ingenious that it generally gets credit for.
An interesting thing to note here is this 4K release in particular. Sony has been releasing 4Ks with slip cases in the past that usually lacked Dolby Vision and/or HDR and/or Atmos, then re-releasing the films on steelbook with the aforementioned missing attributes. This rubbed some collectors the wrong way and had them angry they had to double dip, usually within a year’s time span to get the best quality. So I think it is safe to say Sony has heard the complaints and are just giving the collectors the absolute best physical presentation for the movie that will ever exist physically.
Now, let’s talk about the 4K itself. It is pristine; this is a clean presentation. For a movie that has the esthetic of the ‘70s, it shines through bright and clean in this 4K restoration, with the HDR at Atmos mix approved by David O. Russell himself. This presentation is sleek and bright for a movie about the dirty underbelly of the world, in a way. However, there is only one new feature on this new 4K and it is nearly 15 minutes of new/deleted footage. The old features are also included in this 4K UHD Blu-ray with digital combo pack. I would be remised if I didn’t talk about the one major downside to this release. The J-card, something most people throw in the trash as it distracts from the artwork. The J-card is the flimsy paper that shows the specs, features, synopsis, etc., on the back of a steelbook as the back is typically other art. However, this J-card is unlike any other J-card I’ve seen; it doesn’t just take up an inch on the front of the steelbook stating the 4K and the formats, but it takes same space on the bottom of the steelbook, too, with a few inches of black and a yellow banner stating a 10 year anniversary. The issue is, for particular collectors, this can easily hide any scuffs or dents in the steelbook itself. So, a word to the wise, if you’re going to be annoyed or aggravated about a small scratch or a minor dent, make sure to buy from a retailer with an easy exchange policy.
American Hustle Special Features:
4K UHD Disc
- Presented in 4K resolution with Dolby Vision, featuring English Dolby Atmos + 5.1 audio
- HDR and Atmos approved by director David O. Russell
- *New* Nearly 15 Minutes of Additional Never-Before-Seen Deleted & Extended Scenes
- Theatrical Trailer
Blu-ray Disc
- Feature presented in high definition
- English DTS-HD MA 5.1 audio
- 11 Deleted and Extended Scenes
- The Making of American Hustle
Available on 4K UHD Blu-ray Steelbook Combo May 21st, 2024.
For more information, head to the official Sony Pictures American Hustle webpage.
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Categories: Home Release, Recommendation
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