House of Gucci is a 2021 biographical crime drama directed by Ridley Scott, based on the 2001 book The House of Gucci: A Sensational Story of Murder, Madness, Glamour, and Greed by Sara Gay Forden. It tells the shocking true story of the family empire behind the Italian fashion House of Gucci. Spanning three decades of love, betrayal, decadence, revenge, and ultimately murder, we see what a name means, what it’s worth, and how far a family will go for control.

Ridley Scott is an extremely talented director who has helmed some real gems over the years, ranging from the original Alien way back in 1979, to Gladiator, Black Hawk Down, and American Gangster, just to name a few during his impressive run in the early 2000’s. More often than not the trademark of his films are the big names they include. In October his latest larger-than-life film, The Last Duel (full review and trailer here) starring Matt Damon, Adam Driver, Jodie Comer, and Ben Affleck, released in theaters and received abysmal box office numbers. Scott was vocal about his disappointment, and I don’t blame him. This was a fantastic movie which is now available On-Demand, so be sure to check out our review and give it a watch, you won’t regret it. We need more original films like this.

The cast includes Lady Gaga, Adam Driver, Al Pacino, Jared Leto, Salma Hayek, Camille Cottin, Jack Huston, Jeremy Irons, Mãdãlina Ghenea, Reeve Carney, and Youssef Kerkour.

House of Gucci released in theaters on November 24th, courtesy of MGM Studios.

THE GOOD

Just to preface this review, I am a huge fan of Adam Driver, and of course Ridley Scott as I touched on a bit in the intro. I had very high expectations because of Scott and the cast and couldn’t wait to check out House of Gucci after the first full-length trailer dropped. So, what did I think?

As someone who admittedly wasn’t very in the loop as far as the true story the film is based on, I enjoyed House of Gucci. A story of the rise and fall of a tremendously rich family will always have an intriguing factor, but this story is unique in many ways. The Gucci family was careful to protect their wealth early on, but once things started to go bad the train was not returning to the station. The story includes all of the great elements a film like this needs all centered around a love story that proves to be a ticking time bomb. And more than anything else, on some level us regular folk get enjoyment out of watching wealthy people throw it all away. I hope to at some point read Sara Gay Forden’s book that the film is based on to make sure I get all of the juicy details.

Anything Ridley Scott touches has a certain level of flair or “sex appeal”, and that is surely the case with House of Gucci. The film has a certain look and feel that lets audiences know that they better pay attention because things are going to get interesting sooner than later. As with any Scott film, the score and cinematography prove to be a big focus. I especially enjoyed the films soundtrack which helped to achieve the overall feel they were going for. The filming locations offered a ton of opportunity for eye-popping cinematography, and I felt like they took full advantage of it. The majority of filming took place in the Italian Alps, and the mansion that is featured in the film is nothing short of incredible. The stunning 16th-century mansion on Lake Como was once the home of Cardinal Angelo Maria Durini in the 1700s. It is famously known for hosting members of high society, as well as high ranking members of the Catholic Church. What I would give just to stand in the front yard and take in the unbelievable view. I did enjoy the great costume design as well which was of course a given considering this film is based on a fashion empire. I learned a great deal about the Gucci brand as well, which remains on the forefront today as a luxury line.

I have to touch on the cast because the names alone will bring in an audience. The bulk of the screen-time is split between Adam Driver and Lady Gaga, with Jared Leto playing what is arguably my favorite character as the quirky Paolo Gucci. Driver is the cream of the crop right now as far as A-list actors are concerned, and it seems he is building a bit of a professional bromance with Ridley Scott. It will be fun watching that relationship develop. Al Pacino and Jeremy Irons assume the parts of the senior Gucci men, and you really couldn’t have found a better duo to take on their roles reminding us why they are some of the best to ever do it. The supporting cast is somewhat limited as the films primary focus is on the main cast, but I did really enjoy Jack Huston in his role as Domenico De Sole. Huston may not be considered a household name necessarily, but I will always remember him for his incredible performance in the HBO drama series Boardwalk Empire. He is a very intense actor.

THE BAD

Just a reminder I had very high expectations so this part of the review might seem like I hated this movie, but I promise you I didn’t, I just expected more. House of Gucci is very much a mixed bag, and I’ll try to dive into the primary issues I had with the film which I think held it back from being great. First of all, a huge draw for people is the cast for obvious reasons. Adam Driver is proving himself to be an A-list talent, Al Pacino is, well, Al Pacino. Jared Leto is an absolute chameleon of an actor, often unrecognizable in his roles. And musical artist Lady Gaga is proving herself to have a place in the movies after her performance in the Bradley Cooper film, A Star is Born.

So why am I bringing up this stellar cast in the BAD section? I’m glad you asked. I am a huge Driver fan, and this is probably one of my least favorite films of his, as of late anyway. He does maintain a certain presence for the majority of the film, but he never really sells me on the goods like he usually does and the accent takes some getting used to. Pacino was really good as expected, and Leto was actually one of my favorite characters as there was never a dull moment when he was on-screen. Unfortunately for Gaga and her budding film career, this was a very uninspired performance from her in my opinion. I felt like she started out great overall, but when she transitioned to this “hardened member of the Gucci empire”, I just wasn’t buying it. Her scenes with Selma Hayek were all pretty weird in my opinion. I also felt her chemistry with Driver was shaky at times, which hurt the film. It’s just too bad because a project like this with Ridley Scott at the helm was a great opportunity for her.

My primary issue with The House of Gucci is the writing and what I felt was wasted potential. The characters didn’t have a chance to develop any sort of substance, all remaining pretty much one-dimensional. The film is built on a pretty crazy story with a ton to work with as far as this rich family turning on each other. Plus a great cast to bring it all together, but it fell flat more often than not. I felt like the characters would go from loving each other to hating each other without much of an explanation or at least some sort of buildup. For a 2 1/2 hour movie I felt like everything was rushed, and they could have cut out a few pointless sequences to really bring the story together. I do think the writing is a big reason why the cast was hung out to dry a bit because they have all proven they can get it done. I think the movie was much better suited as a limited series to really tell the story. It’s all unfortunate because the story of the Gucci family is bananas.

THE VERDICT

With a talented cast and the great Ridley Scott at the helm, House of Gucci takes full advantage of the breathtaking setting in the Italian Alps while offering audiences a unique glimpse at this absolutely insane true story of power and greed. I talked quite a bit about my issues with the writing, and I honestly think that if we could’ve had someone like Adam McKay involved to make House of Gucci feel more like The Big Short, it might be getting award consideration instead of criticism. But I will reiterate, this isn’t a bad movie and I did really enjoy it, it just could have and should have been so much better. Sometimes high expectations can muddy the waters a bit, especially when a film features some of your favorite actors. I am certain I will enjoy it that much more the 2nd viewing. I do personally believe they should have gone with a limited series instead, and maybe that is still an option at some point.

Please let me know if you agree or disagree with this review in the comments, feedback is always appreciated. Oh and just another reminder to read our review for The Last Duel and rent it On-Demand sooner than later to make sure we get more great original films like this in the near future.