Watch The Bling Ring For Free

Thanks for the memories!

Lack of good storyline.

The movie is surprisingly subdued in its pacing, its characterizations, and its go-for-broke sensibilities.

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

We live in a hideous world in which the top 8 richest people are richer than HALF of the ENTIRE human population. In California, these disparities may not be quite so great, but they are pretty great, and ordinary-ish school kids there find themselves in the incongruous situation of studying as pupils literally a few miles from the homes of music- and film-industry icons known from stage and screen (no matter how messed up their lives may be), and enjoying both wealth and celebrity (and even a measure of real influence). In those circumstances, it actually seems surprising how rarely "something has to give"In Sofia Coppola's 2013 film "The Bling Ring" something does indeed give, as leading characters still in (nothing-special) education decide that they are going to help themselves to a bit of the wealth, the bling, that the celebrities have at their disposal; and for some time at least that proves trivially easy to achieve.I came to "The Bling Ring" entirely by chance, not quite from the start, but at the moment when Marc Hall (played by Israel Broussard) first arrives at the Indian Hills High School. I therefore lacked background, and did not realise until later that this film was in essence a rendition of a true-life 2008-2009 story. The discovery changed many of my perspectives in an interesting way, given the film's tightrope-walk above total moral relativism, indeed decadence which represents a dilemma I only add to by reporting on the above disparities in American and world society that one cannot help thinking on as one watches, stunned with near-disbelief as the film unfolds. If such background facts can be seen in anyway to justify a wanton, judgment-free crime spree (with $3M in takings in the real-life case), how long is it before society - or at least society as we know it - collapses?Fair enough, flash-forwards make it clear regularly enough that our protagonists get their punishment and comeuppances soon enough in various different ways; but it's hard to resist the impression that their exploits are being praised - and if we are really not that far from Robin Hood here, how can that come as a surprise? Far more troubling even than the crime, though, are the ROUTINE drugs and smoking and alcohol; as well as the lack of discipline and ad hoc nature and don't-really-give-a-damn-about-anything and anyway-it's-consequence-free lifestyle of the kids protrayed here. Scarier still is the way that I can vaguely, ever-so-slightly, understand how they might (be persuaded to) behave that way.Shocking, in fact. Hence the EXTREMELY subversive nature of this film.A further frustrating (actually jealousy-inspiring) aspect is how misfit Marc, who comes to something of a school for msifits, is actually adopted, allowed to fit in supremely well - with what is extreme speed - by Rebecca (Katie Chang), who rapidly introduces him to a wider group of teen females up to and including Nicki Moore, whose portrayal by a 23-year-old Emma Watson makes her - with hindsight - the most famous face of all here. Distant memories of similar cases from one's own schooldays suggest that this ostensibly dream circumstance for a schoolboy can only be accounted for by Marc's being gay, but the section of the film I saw did not make this especially clear, hence one's inclination to scream "what are you waiting for?" at the screen!Ultimately, whether one likes it or not, "The Bling Ring" is a film that says much about the one heck of a mess our tech-savvy, celebrity-obsessed, morally-uncertain, disparity-ridden society has got itself into. The fact that this is a true story may detract from that a bit, in fact, but not too much. As an adult I am fit/enfranchised/experienced/world-weary enough to make the above statement, can condemn the film and its makers for what they say or fail to say, but also find myself uttering the aforementioned "who can be surprised?" remark. On the other hand, as a father of somebody about the age of the protagonists at the time the film was made, I would have moved heaven and earth to stop that person watching this film when it hit the cinemas. So is this a teen flick, or one for seasoned and sensible adults?My attitude surely amounts to hypocrisy, but then that is only the hallmark of the times we live in.

This is barely a story. The entire thing is just an endless repeat of the main "characters" robbing celebrities' houses and partying at the club afterwards, in fact it's as if one scene just got stuck and repeated over and over again until it created a black hole of bad dialogue, flashing lights, pulsing music and annoying teenage girls. It's all simply nauseating! The few nice things that can be said about this "film", such as the great cinematography and the talented main actors who try their hardest to say the terrible lines they're given, aren't enough to save it.

I had to give The Bling Ring a re-watch since I was on the Sofia Coppola binge. I remember not being overly fond of this film when I first saw it and thinking it was her weakest work. Fresh eyes and all I'm more positive about the film although I think the message of the film isn't exactly clear nor is it a film without some issues. Still there are plenty of things about this film that I really enjoyed. It did remind me of something that you would see from Harmony Korine like Kids or Spring Breakers, however much more presentable.The film follows the real life events of a bunch of young kids in California who robbed items from the homes of famous celebrities. They are a group of fame obsessed teens who broke into houses and tracked down when celebs when they weren't home. They were eventually caught for their crimes and served various sentences. Its a wonder why Sofia Coppola decided to present this story as a film but I think I'm more lenient to it now than I was back then. Its a good film although it feels slightly underdeveloped as a project.The first thing to notice is how shallow the characters are. You won't be identifying with them or even feeling sorry for them. I don't think they were meant to be developed very well, the intention may have been to have vacuous privileged kids at the center. We don't really know why they do what they do, they just might be bored. One thing that I noticed is that Sofia Coppola doesn't really go any deeper to exploring the story. The events are laid out as they happened but there's no real condemning or attempting to identify with the characters. Its just a straightforward presentation of the popular events.That's not to say that this film isn't good though. Coppola masters beautiful shots of streets and houses in Hollywood. Its got a youth driven loud soundtrack which compliments the scenes and characters well. Its still a very nice looking film although there may be a longing for more in this film. I will say this though, Emma Watson is very good in this. Who would have thought Hermione Granger can completely become a prototypical snotty girl who is obsessed with getting her social brand out there. Its wonderful to see her disappear into that role really naturally.7/10

Sophia Coppola is a brilliant film maker who is a master at capturing characters without delving too deep into their psyche. That may preclude some critics from placing her high on the list if best film makers, but her poetic cinematography and creative scene direction are so good, the glimpse works perfectly. Had she been able to somehow give us more depth of the characters, I would have given this 9/10.The cinematography in this film is brilliant. The break-in scene of Audrina Patridge's glass home captured entirely from an external view with a ultra slow zoom throughout is amazing. Scenes such as Israel Broussard hanging alone in his room, wrapped in his euphoric "pre-game" pre-partying prep moment, and Emma Watson preparing what to wear for her court appearance are stand-outs. I am confident every actor who has worked with Sophia has great respect for her and likely most adore her. She brings out something in each actor we have never seen before. This is a trademark of Sofia's body of work. Israel Broussard, Emma Watson and Leslie Mann produce the standout performances that bind this movie together. Bravo!Emma Watson's Nicki illustrates how skilled she is at becoming the character she portrays. I think Emma will continue evolve into one of the world's most respected actors. Leslie Mann is perfect as a new age rich parent whose altruistic and spiritual intentions, and home school parenting have noble intent, but is blind to what's happening to her daughter, and lost in the LA haze of self-importance and desire for fame that surrounds the show business culture. And Israeli Broussard produces the only character we get the opportunity to care about. Clearly a promising future for this young actor. The cinematography is brilliant. The break-in scene of Audrina Patridge's glass home captured entirely from an external view with a ultra slow zoom throughout is amazing. Scenes such as Israel Broussard hanging in his room alone, wrapped in his euphoric "pre-game" pre-partying prep moment, and Emma Watson preparing what to wear for her court appearance are stand-outs. Catie Chang, Taissa Farmiga and Claire Pfister all put in completely believable performances and all deserve praise. Catie carries a central character effectively throughout the film. The scenes of all the characters as under-age club VIPs out at a hot LA nite club, are spot-on, and each is perfectly subtle in delivering A-level performances. Sophia ALWAYS brings out the best in actors, and no doubt promising futures for these actors. So, in The Bling Ring, we have a front row seat of careless, self-absorbed, peer-pressure influenced teens, who rapidly spin out of control over their addiction to having to have the "jewels" and lifestyle of the most famous and glamorous tabloid celebrities (Paris Hilton, Lindsay Lohan, Orlando Bloom, etc). If Sophia were able to show us more below the surface, this would have been a near perfect film. Perhaps it wouldn't have worked though.I do hope Sophia ups the ante in producing more frequent movies. I get the idea of life balance and picking your spots, but the limited number of movies she has done is not enough. We need more Sophia Coppola please!