Nothing epitomizes celebrity worship and consumerism quite like this.
Sophia Coppola’s newest film, The Bling Ring, is an excellent, humorous, and sad portrayal of consumer envy gone overboard- and our culture’s obsession with excess.
Based on the 2010 Vanity Fair article “The Suspects Wore Louboutins” by Nancy Jo Sales, The Bling Ring follows a group of teenagers arrested for burglarizing celebrity homes in Hollywood in 2008 and 2009.
Marc (Israel Broussard) is a new kid trying to adjust to a new school in Agoura Hills, California, just outside Los Angeles. Rebecca (Katie Chang) is the cool, sophisticated, and stylish queen bee who takes him under her wing. The two become close friends.
Rebecca quickly introduces Marc to her favorite pastime: checking unlocked cars for cash and other goods. Marc idolizes her confidence and style, and he goes along with her lead. Before long, the two have moved from checking cars to checking houses.
After reading that Paris Hilton will be out of town for a party, Rebecca gets an even bolder idea: “let’s go to Paris.” She’s probably so stupid she keeps a key under her front mat.
Ka-ching.
Rebecca and Marc make off with jewelry, clothes and cash from Paris’ home. Emboldened by their successful heist, the pair, along with three other girlfriends, eventually go back to Paris’ home at least six times. They use news reports to track down and rob other out-of-town celebrities too, like Rachel Bilson, Meghan Fox, Lindsey Lohan, and Orlando Bloom.
There is no sense of guilt in taking other people’s possessions, or invading their private homes. Rebecca often chooses to rob people based on their wardrobe, which she wants for herself.
The shallowness of these teenagers is hard to ignore- their lives revolve around what clothes they wear, who their friends are, and what clubs they can get into. When their felony habits finally catch up to them, they get exactly what they want: fame and glory.
“America has this sick fascination with a Bonnie and Clyde kind of thing,” Marc would later tell police.
Coppola does a very sophisticated illustration of this true story. Although it would be easy to satirize and laugh at the ridiculousness of this all, Coppola instead does a very straightforward depiction of the real-life events and the characters in it. The true story is so ridiculous it doesn’t need embellishment.
These teenagers are only 18, 19 years old. They’re wearing Louboutins, Chanel, and Marc Jacobs, carrying Birkins and Louis Vuittons on their arms. Their clothes, and the attention they get from their perceived “status,” are their whole lives.
Materialism is the major theme of this film, and Coppola makes that clear. The Bling Ring is full of close-up shots of the jewelry, clothes, cash and “bling” these kids pull off.
“I just think we wanted to be part of the lifestyle, the lifestyle everyone wants,” Marc said. His statements are a haunting reminder of what some people in this country will do for fame, fortune, or image.
With great acting by all involved, particularly Emma Watson as Rebecca’s friend Nikki, The Bling Ring is another successful Coppola film. Without a great cast to accurately reflect the shallowness and shortsightedness of these teens, the film would have fallen flat. But Coppola’s role choices were perfect, and paired with great visual scenes and a hip soundtrack, this is a film worth seeing (and thinking about).
