The Superficial: The Bling Ring Reviewed

One of my favourite guilty pleasures is to sit down with a big block of chocolate and a juicy gossip magazine. It is fun to peek into the world of the rich and famous, to catch up on who is dating who, the latest teen singing sensation in a fast lane to rehab (cough, Miley Cyrus, cough). I particularly enjoy admiring their designer outfits and how they manage to look so perfect all the time. However, for the four Los Angeles teenagers in Sofia Coppola’s latest film The Bling Ring, the life of celebrity and high-end luxury is more than a passing interest – it is an obsession.

When Marc (Israel Brussard) begins at a new high school, he is shunned by everybody except the pretty and confident Rebecca (Katie Chang).  Marc is pleased when they discover a mutual interest in fashion, and Rebecca is excited to find that Marc’s father is ‘in the biz’ as a film distributor. What begins as a typical teenage friendship made up of parties, trips to the beach and smoking weed, quickly becomes something more serious when they embark on a series of burglaries, accompanied by ditzy Nicki (Emma Watson), her adopted sister Sam (Taissa Famiga) and fellow party girl Chloe (Claire Julien).  They don’t just rob any old homes, though.

The Bling Ring is based on the real life events described in the Vanity Fair article, ‘The Suspects Wore Louboutins’. The article details the crime spree that saw the teens steal US$3 million worth of jewellery and designer clothing from the mansions of celebrities they admired, including Paris Hilton, Orlando Bloom and Lindsay Lohan during 2008 and 2009.  The ‘Bling Ring’, as they became known, used the internet to research the addresses of their favourite celebrities and targeted them on nights they’d be away filming or attending events. They got in using keys hidden under doormats or via unlocked doors. Who knew it would be so easy?

Co-written by the article’s author Nancy Jo Sales, the film is relatively close to the events as described. Taking the perspective of the teens involved, it follows them as they ransack one celebrity home after another. However, there wasn’t much else to it, and without a fuller storyline it struggled to maintain my interest.

For a film, the story needed to be more substantial. Although the opportunity to develop the characters presents itself, this is where the film falls flat. We really know nothing about them, apart from Nicki and Sam bring products of their mother's (Leslie Mann) misguided home schooling curriculum based on The Secret, that Rebecca comes from a broken home, and that Marc has anxiety issues garnered via a passing remark. Also not revealed are their motives for partaking in this series of audacious crimes.

What the film does say about these characters is that they reflect a generation that is narcissistic, superficial and obsessed with fame. In the world of The Bling Ring, having a ‘DUI’ (driving under the influence) conviction like Lindsay Lohan is something to be celebrated, and life goals include owning a collection of Louboutin shoes, appearing on TMZ or having your own reality TV show. On the one hand, the film’s visual style is very reflective of this and looks like a television advert or gossip magazine, interspersed with Facebook profiles and pics, white at other times it has a very dreamy feel more akin to Coppola’s Lost In Translation.

What I most enjoyed about the film was Emma Watson’s performance as Nicki, who is perhaps the most superficial and fame obsessed of the bunch. My favourite line in the whole film, sadly based on an actual quote by one of the real-life Bling Ring members, is delivered by Watson, surrounded by paparazzi as she enters the courthouse to face trial:

“I’m a firm believer in Karma and I think this situation was attracted into my life because it was supposed to be a huge learning lesson for me to grow and expand as a spiritual human being...God didn’t give me these talents and looks to just sit around being a model or being famous. I want to lead a huge charity organization. I want to lead a country, for all I know.”

God help us all.

The Bling Ring is out on DVD and Blu-Ray through Roadshow.

-Eliza Murphy