Movie Breakdown: House Of Gucci

Pre-Screening Stance:

Ridley Scott’s House Of Gucci has had some excellent trailers, and I’m excited to see it. Also – and maybe this is out of left field – but I’m pulling for Lady Gaga to have a noteworthy follow up to A Star Is Born.

Post-Screening Ramble:

House Of Gucci is a very long, winding film that most will either like or just find boring. The story begins with Patrizia Reggiani (Lady Gaga) meeting Maurizio Gucci (Adam Driver). They quickly fall in love and want to get married, but Maurizio’s father, Rodolfo (Jeremy Irons), objects, which inadvertently pushes the couple into the open arms of Aldo (Al Pacino), who is Maurizio’s uncle and the primary handler of the Gucci family business. At first, it’s Patrizia that shows the most interest in being involved with the already-famous brand, but eventually Maurizio gets into the swing of things. Drama and intrigue then follows.

I don’t know if Ridley Scott will eventually release some massive director’s cut (as he’s done plenty of times before), but considering how House Of Gucci doesn’t quite engage the way that it needs to, it does make me wonder if a ton of cuts were made just to get it down to two and a half hours. This isn’t to say I found the film to be bad, it’s more that it’s just there. I kept waiting around for some big spike, for the movie to really take off, but it tows the steadiest, most linear line, which in turn causes some of it to drag. I did like the performances, even though a couple of them are weird (Jared Leto is truly something else), and I was pleasantly surprised at the amount of humor in it. Again, this isn’t a terrible film, nor is it even anywhere close to being one, but you should still temper your expectations.

House Of Gucci hits theaters this Wednesday, November 24.

One Last Thought: