The Bling Ring

Sofia Coppola is one of the most interesting and divisive filmmakers working today. It seems that with every new film she releases there's always a wide array of responses, both positive and negative. And that's very true with her new film, The Bling Ring. Some love it, and some loathe it. I personally enjoyed it very much, and the more I think about it, the more I like it and would maybe even see it again. It's an interesting and atmospheric look at American celebrity and media culture that bleakly shows how we can think being rich and famous can make us "happy."

The film is based on a Vanity Fair article about how in 2008, a group of Californian teenagers (4 girls & 1 boy) stole millions-of-dollars worth of clothing and jewelry and possessions from celebrities such as Paris Hilton, Orlando Bloom, Megan Fox, and others. It's a stranger-than- fiction kind of story that could lend itself to exploitation, satire, or even heavy-handed moralizing, but Coppola distances herself from the lurid material and simply displays it as a set of facts. It's a cold, deadpan film, but there's several fascinating moments of insight and darkly funny commentary that make it interesting. It's been compared to Harmony Korine's similar film "Spring Breakers," which also features several young girls trying to experience the media's view of what a fun Spring Break is. Whereas that film is knowingly repetitive in its dialogue and images and very violent and exploitative to get its point across, Coppola goes for a more restrained and almost documentary type of style. In fact, there's several instances where the main action is interrupted and we see scenes of the characters being interviewed after the events or TMZ-like celebrity news stories.

The Bling Ring is benefited by its central young actors who give strong, naturalistic performances that feel so live-in that they give an improvisational feel. The leaders of the Bling Ring are Marc (Israel Broussard) and Rebecca (Katie Chang). Marc is the quiet, insecure gay kid who soon is taken under the wing of Rebecca, who's troubled yet confident and cold-as-ice. Broussard is charming and subtly sympathetic and Chang is hyper-perceptive, smart, and cold but not without a conscience. There's Chloe (Claire Julien), the loud and outgoing one in the group. Then there's sisters Sam (Taissa Farmiga) and Nicki (Emma Watson). It's interesting seeing Watson in a supporting role since she's arguably the most famous out of the central gang, but it pays off because of Nicki's larger-than-life, self-absorbed Valley Girl personality. Watson is the scene-stealer of the film with her smart and satirical performance that never goes over-the-top and always feels real, which makes the character that much more misguided and tragic. It's early to say something like this, but it's a performance that deserves some Best Supporting Actress recognition. Also very good and inspired here is the always funny Leslie Mann, who plays the flighty mom of Sam and Nicki and teaches them the ever so spiritual teachings of "The Secret." There's a scene near the end of the film between Watson and Mann that is just pure, dark comedy gold.

The plot mostly consists of the gang clubbing, breaking into houses, driving around, and trying on clothes. It sounds repetitive, and well, technically it is. But Coppola distinguishes each break-in with its own tone and style and you can very subtly see how the characters change as they become more and more comfortable with invading the houses. For example, the break-in of Audrina Patridge's house is all done in one, long take from outside, across the street as Marc and Rebecca rummage through all her things and run from room-to-room and eventually leave. Another break-in finds Sam cluelessly waving around Megan Fox's pistol without a care in the world. And one of the film's most telling and haunting shots comes when the gang is inside Lindsay Lohan's house and Rebecca stares at the mirror and smiles so genuinely that it almost seems like that's the happiest she's ever been. It's a truly disturbing and haunting moment and the film is full of subtle images that let you into the characters' psyche and ego.

But the glue that holds the film together is the dynamic between Marc and Rebecca. There's several poignant and moving moments between the two characters that cut through the film like a knife and let you into the ultimately empty and sad feelings the two characters have. Their scenes and dialogue are so sharply drawn that it reminds you just how gifted of a writer Coppola is as well.

So this movie just worked for me. It's not a film that's trying to dig deep into it's subject, and it's not even really interested in telling you all of the details about this group of young robbers. It's ultimately this odd, off-kilter tone poem that's beautiful to look at and at times surprisingly poignant and hilarious. (And lastly I'd like to mention the great and legendary work of cinematographer Harris Savides, who, during shooting this film, passed away from brain cancer. The film is dedicated to him.)

The collective level of vapidity on display in the Bling Ring might (like totally) reach epic proportions.

Award-winning, insightful director, Sofia Coppola, has once again made a film that is highly successful in portraying fame and celebrity ... only this time she has turned the cameras onto those who obsess over and covet the fame and celebrity others have.

The Bling Ring is a character study/meditation of a group of people -- based on real life individuals in SoCal -- with NO character whatsoever. They are all beautiful bling on the outside with no inner core of morality. They are shells of a mass emptiness who worship others for merely having stuff they want ... or being on their TVs.

Coppola's story is based on real-life events of a group of five vacuous and insipid teenagers (one boy and four girls) who used the internet to track the whereabouts of their "celebrity" idols -- some were merely "reality stars" -- so that when the stars were out of town the five could play. The five would break into celeb houses and play with beautiful things that belonged to Paris Hilton, Rachel Bilson, Orlando Bloom, Audrina Patridge or ... their ultimate idol, Lindsay Lohan. They also ended up pocketing and stealing a lot of designer goods and merchandise (you know, like to wear and be cool with). They had fun and bragged about their shenanigans at parties and on social media all the while believing that they had done nothing wrong. One even believes this happened in order for her to become more charitable -- her comment on "karma" must be heard to be believed. Coppola wisely lifted this line word-for-word as it is tragic comic gold.

Emma Watson (Harry Potter, Perks of Being a Wallflower) is the most-recognizable face in the cast and she totally has the film's bestest lines! Watson is a genius comedienne ... who knew? Her line delivery and depiction of oblivious shame are perfect.

Coppola understands the world of fame and she has proved she also understand the world of those who dream of it. This isn't a movie in which characters learn life lessons and change ... this is a depiction of people who believe they do no wrong (like never ever). It is eye-opening because these people walk amongst us. The film is full of face palm, jaw drop and eye rolling moments. Like ... a lot. Totally.

The Bling Ring (2013)

First, what this is: a re-creation of a series of actual robberies by spoiled rich high school girls of spoiled adult celebrities in the L.A. area. They do the crimes, they get caught. This is evident from the beginning with some interviews after the fact.

Second, what this is: nothing more than the above. That's the big big problem here. This feature length movie re-creates and re-creates.

We see these indifferent, superficial girls in house after house (and in Paris Hilton's house a lot), trying on clothes and jewelry and taking home whatever they want by the purse-load. And we see all the parties between, party after party. Some with drugs, some without, all with music and dancing and utter detachment from consequences and culpability.

I guess that's the point, to make visible this world and make clear how really repulsive such prettified, well dressed, fashion imitation girls can be. This is the territory of Lauren Greenfield's photographic essay in the book "Fast Forward," but with a very specific focus on this group of half a dozen girls (and one boy who is sort of sucked in by his willingness to fawn and give attention).

There is zero attention to really what makes these girls tick. A very slim attempt is made at showing they have no true education, and no acculturation beyond fashion magazines. But really, what are these girls about? Where are there jealousies, their aspirations, their sex lives, their doubts? The movie is as superficial as the subject, and for Sofia Coppola that's a real shame and inexcusable, as if she just got lazy. Not that making a movie like this is easy, but someone somewhere should have said, hey, look, this amounts to nothing at all.

Where are there comparables beyond Greenfield (whose book has its own flaw of making glorious what she apparently means to critique)? Larry Clark's "Kids" is one place to consider (or his other films, which deal with youth more disturbingly). Or maybe the even more horrible "Murder in Greenwich" which dealt with the East Coast version of spoiled kids losing their bearings (and at least created a plot you could follow with some curiosity).

Coppola has gone this direction before in "The Virgin Suicides" and there she created a semblance of depth. Not this time. And the spoiled title character in "Marie Antoinette" gave her at least a fascinating subject, which she layered up in really compelling ways. And to be sure this isn't "Lost in Translation" (her masterpiece) in any manner. These are all written and directed by Coppola.

If you are the type of person who recoils at the Paris Hilton antics, skip this movie. This is a bunch of wannabe Hiltons and you don't feel sorry for anyone, perpetrator or victim. You just hope it ends fast.

Yeah this is a dismal misfire. Worse it shows a new Coppola that I'll be avoiding in the future. I say this as someone who can get excited for a project like this, one that embraces youth without sugarcoating the folly and pretensions, that brings a genuine curiosity to a vibrant world—in short something like Spring Breakers that in the thuggish lifestyle finds room for reflection.

This is a superficial look at superficial people, and I mean superficial in what Coppola sees of them. For what it's worth she decided to delve into these lives, apparently inspired by real events. The real events are not a concern here, they are always a springboard for our cinematic journey. She decided to bring these people into focus for us to see, at least so far as she could see into them.

And what does she see? A flaky, rootless youth that has not worked to create its world, that emptily covets expensive trinkets and finds them by merely walking through the door and grabbing stuff. This isn't just about these four individuals who sneak into celebrities' homes, it is a broader look at instagram culture. Naturally.

What's worse is that Coppola has not found some inner space where souls feebly try to know each other and participate, how stealing fabrics can be a search for the identity of what to wrap around self. I'm not saying they should have been shown as troubled romantics. Looking at my youth I recognize a lot of superficial obsessions with unimportant things, it comes with being young and just throwing yourself at this or that current, but I also recognize that as inadvertent part of a larger floating sense of everything feeling doable and airy, which is the essence of youthfulness.

It's what Korine brings to Spring Breakers and feels transcendent, the free wandering of mind.

Coppola tries to show some of that, for instance in the scenes of partying where time ecstatically slows, but is constantly bogged down by the surly need to press on with their neuroses and vacant desires. She adopts a catty and empty look because in her eyes they are merely catty and empty people. There's too much judgement here and not enough intuitive understanding of subtler pulls.

In the future I expect her to be torn to shreds for this one film. How is it that her Marie Antoinette, obviously modeled after her own self, can be shown wistfully in spite of the sheltered privilege as a quietly suffering soul but not these girls? It's a worthless film and even manages to reduce everything else she's done.

The Bling Ring pace was fast simply because the kids went from one burglary to the next without much else in between. The acting, what there was of it, was okay. And Emily Watson's Valley Girl accent was spot on. But, there was hardly any character development.

How did these well-off privileged kids turn into obsessive narcissists? What are they doing now? There was no reaction shown from the victims.

The kids parents played minor roles in the film and they showed little reaction to the crimes their kids committed.

The film seemed a rush through the plot without bringing into play all the elements that one would expect in this real life caper plot. In the end it seemed more like an outline for a film rather than a completed film.