House of Gucci
Year: 2021
Director: Ridley Scott
Starring: Adam Driver, Lady Gaga, Jeremy Irons, Jared Leto & Al Pacino
Runtime: 158 mins
BBFC: 15
Published: 21/07/22
Director: Ridley Scott
Starring: Adam Driver, Lady Gaga, Jeremy Irons, Jared Leto & Al Pacino
Runtime: 158 mins
BBFC: 15
Published: 21/07/22
Ridley Scott had an interesting 2021 to say the least with two of his films, The Last Duel, and House of Gucci, both releasing within weeks of each other. Despite being one of the most revered British directors ever, both films underperformed at the box office. The Last Duel performed miserably, only making back $30 million of its $100 million budget; and House of Gucci made just over double of its $75 million budget. Scott blamed young people and their smartphones, but The Last Duel most likely underperformed because of its lack of marketing and niche appeal. House of Gucci meanwhile should have been considerably more appealing to these youngsters what with its star-studded cast and surrounding itself with such an iconic fashion brand…but of course it didn’t. I did want to see House of Gucci at the cinema however due to a busy schedule I missed it, having only just recently caught it on Amazon Prime instead. Is it indeed a case of young people being…well, young, or does House of Gucci fall into similar traps that The Last Duel did?
When Patrizia Reggiani (Lady Gaga), an office worker at her father’s trucking company, meets Maurizio Gucci (Adam Driver), heir to a fifty percent share of the Gucci fashion house, it’s love at first sight…or so it seems. Following their marriage, Patrizia becomes increasingly invested in trying to claw her way to the top of the Gucci brand, no matter the cost, creating rifts between Maurizio and his father Rodolfo (Jeremy Irons), his uncle Aldo (Al Pacino) and his cousin Paolo (Jared Leto), that eventually leads to the downfall of the Gucci family.
When Patrizia Reggiani (Lady Gaga), an office worker at her father’s trucking company, meets Maurizio Gucci (Adam Driver), heir to a fifty percent share of the Gucci fashion house, it’s love at first sight…or so it seems. Following their marriage, Patrizia becomes increasingly invested in trying to claw her way to the top of the Gucci brand, no matter the cost, creating rifts between Maurizio and his father Rodolfo (Jeremy Irons), his uncle Aldo (Al Pacino) and his cousin Paolo (Jared Leto), that eventually leads to the downfall of the Gucci family.
Based on true events, House of Gucci is ultimately the story of how Maurizio Gucci came to be assassinated in March 1995, and what became of the Gucci family empire. Now I don’t know a thing about fashion, but I do know film, and House of Gucci is kind of a mixed bag. For a film that concerns itself with true events, it’s incredibly blasé with the specifics about how things happened (which has caused many people associated to those events to slam the film for its countless inaccuracies), and it's also shamelessly inconsistent as to whether it wants to portray these true events with reverence and gravitas, or just make everything weirdly camp.
For example, everyone puts on a generally poor Italian accent and whilst Gaga, Driver, and Irons can get around this goofiness with genuinely captivating performances, Pacino and Leto simply cannot. Pacino sounds more like a New York Italian Mafia kind of Italian…which I guess comes from all his years in those kinds of roles, but it’s jarringly out of place here. Leto meanwhile seems to be doing his best impression of a wheezing clown; it’s actually horrendous, and to be frank I found it to be in bad taste. I can’t claim to have known Paolo Gucci, but Leto plays this role like someone who has a severe mental disability and not just as someone who was a tad eccentric. Paolo has an incredibly tragic story, and to see it turned into a farce by Leto was almost enough for me to want to walk away from this film entirely.
Going back to Gaga and Driver, despite flipping between normal human beings and actual psychopath’s at a moment’s notice in any given scene I feel like they were actually really good. It’s clear the script wasn’t perhaps as strong as it could have been, but they do their best with it. Gaga in particular has such a striking facial performance in this film that it’s a wonder that Maurizio didn’t die by death stare.
The costumes are stunning though, as you would hope from a film about some of the worlds most powerful fashion moguls. Every single stitch is sublime, and more than basically any other film I can think of in recent memory the costumes are so integral to conveying mood and intention. Alongside some stunning sets and locations, House of Gucci reeks of over-indulgent luxury and I was totally here for it. Despite its nasty subject matter, it made me want for a life of glamour and luxury.
House of Gucci is an odd film in that it fails where it should have succeeded, and excels where it was most likely to fail. I’m sure that Scott will blame people under thirty, but the blame lies squarely with him. This film had been in the pipeline since the early 00’s and to have a script as weak as this is inexcusable. On the whole I had an alright time with House of Gucci, I’m glad I watched it. But Leto’s horrendous performance was almost enough to topple the entire thing and send it crashing into the ground. Why does this man keep getting hired for things? He’s single handedly sabotaged basically everything I’ve seen him in, and he’s getting worse.
Regardless, if you’re in the mood for a true crime story then House of Gucci will give you one with style…even if it’s more than a little garish.
For example, everyone puts on a generally poor Italian accent and whilst Gaga, Driver, and Irons can get around this goofiness with genuinely captivating performances, Pacino and Leto simply cannot. Pacino sounds more like a New York Italian Mafia kind of Italian…which I guess comes from all his years in those kinds of roles, but it’s jarringly out of place here. Leto meanwhile seems to be doing his best impression of a wheezing clown; it’s actually horrendous, and to be frank I found it to be in bad taste. I can’t claim to have known Paolo Gucci, but Leto plays this role like someone who has a severe mental disability and not just as someone who was a tad eccentric. Paolo has an incredibly tragic story, and to see it turned into a farce by Leto was almost enough for me to want to walk away from this film entirely.
Going back to Gaga and Driver, despite flipping between normal human beings and actual psychopath’s at a moment’s notice in any given scene I feel like they were actually really good. It’s clear the script wasn’t perhaps as strong as it could have been, but they do their best with it. Gaga in particular has such a striking facial performance in this film that it’s a wonder that Maurizio didn’t die by death stare.
The costumes are stunning though, as you would hope from a film about some of the worlds most powerful fashion moguls. Every single stitch is sublime, and more than basically any other film I can think of in recent memory the costumes are so integral to conveying mood and intention. Alongside some stunning sets and locations, House of Gucci reeks of over-indulgent luxury and I was totally here for it. Despite its nasty subject matter, it made me want for a life of glamour and luxury.
House of Gucci is an odd film in that it fails where it should have succeeded, and excels where it was most likely to fail. I’m sure that Scott will blame people under thirty, but the blame lies squarely with him. This film had been in the pipeline since the early 00’s and to have a script as weak as this is inexcusable. On the whole I had an alright time with House of Gucci, I’m glad I watched it. But Leto’s horrendous performance was almost enough to topple the entire thing and send it crashing into the ground. Why does this man keep getting hired for things? He’s single handedly sabotaged basically everything I’ve seen him in, and he’s getting worse.
Regardless, if you’re in the mood for a true crime story then House of Gucci will give you one with style…even if it’s more than a little garish.