Movie Reviews

Sofia Coppola seemed destined for greatness with her first two movies, “The Virgin Suicides” and “Lost In Translation”. After that however came the disappointing “Marie Antoinette” and “Somewhere”, a movie that was as vague as its title. So how about “The Bling Ring”? Can Coppola redeem herself or were those first two movies a case of beginner’s luck?

Based on an article in Vanity Fair, The Bling Ring centers around five bored teens who are trying to fill the void in their lives with expensive shoes, purses,… which they steal from the houses of celebrities like Lindsay Lohan and Paris Hilton. In her typical distant, dreamlike style, Coppola follows the teens as they break into one house after another before wearing their loot to the clubs their victims attend as well. Whereas her visual flair made us connect with the characters’ loneliness in “Lost In Translation”, this time around all that becomes clear is how empty their lives are. And as a result it makes the movie feel empty as well.

Like this year’s Spring Breakers, The Bling Ring plays out like a long music video. The only difference is that Spring Breakers was just a complete and utter trainwreck whereas The Bling Ring is watchable even if all it does is show that a Vanity Fair article does not necessarily make a good movie. Go figure!