House of Gucci is a new crime drama directed by Ridley Scott, the director of Gladiator and Alien.

The film is inspired by true events surrounding the family behind the Italian fashion house Gucci. When Maurizio Gucci (Adam Driver) begins a relationship with the outsider Patrizia Reggiani (Lady Gaga),he is disinherited by his father Rodolfo Gucci (Jeremy Irons). He suspects that Patrizia is behind Maurizio's family money. That's how the two have to make it without the support of the Gucci family. Years later, the two are married and have a child together. Maurizio's uncle Aldo Gucci (Al Pacino) thus contacts him again and brings him back into the family business. The Gucci fashion house is once again going under multiple names, leading to creative differences, exposing betrayal, revenge and even murder cases.

There have been many changes in the making of this film. Martin Scorsese, for example, could have directed the film at first, but Ridley Scott was eventually given a directing position. Together with the casting directors, he also had many ideas for the casting of the roles before they finally came to the chosen actors and actresses.

After the many changes in casting and direction, they probably should have looked back at the writing crew of the film, because the final script was written by more novice writers, which can sometimes be seen in the film. The story can sometimes seem a bit messy and so long-winded, because the story makes many jumps in time. Some relationships come across as rushed, which can cause some loss of credibility.

What comes out best in the film about a well-known fashion brand is therefore the costumes and make-up of the characters. Janty Yates can expect film award nominations for this. Still, the film has received complaints from actual members of the Gucci family that the relatives were better dressed in real life compared to the actors in the film. They also credibly convey the places where the story takes place.

Al Pacino comes out the best of the film cast and knows how to provide the best and most believable accent compared to the entire cast. Lady Gaga and Adam Driver have good chemistry together in the film, but their relationship sometimes comes across as weak. Patrizia is clearly showing signs that she is more behind the Gucci family's money than she really loves Maurizio. Their accents can also come across as a bit unusual. Lady Gaga has more of an Eastern European accent than real Italian. Her characters seem to come more from Russia in some scenes. Of the entire cast, Salma Hayek is the only one who has received help with speaking in the correct accent. This is probably because she is married to the man who now owns the Gucci brand. If they had helped the entire cast a little more with their accents in the film, they would have come across a bit more like people from the same country. Who even seems to play in a completely different film is Jared Leto, because in the film he wears a fattening costume and also has a strange shaved hair style. In the film, he comes across as too exaggerated compared to the rest and speaks excessively in a high-pitched voice. He sometimes sounds just like the video game character Mario.

Taste is, of course, a unique thing. As I write this review "House of Gucci" has a score of 6.9 which is baffling to me, as the film I sat through last Saturday was an unmitigated disaster. One that's story is too boring to even allow you to enjoy the hilariously bad performances.

Patrizia Reggiani (Lady Gaga) meets Maurizio Gucci (Adam Driver) at a party. Maurizio is the son of Rodolfo Gucci (Jeremy Irons) who owns 50% of the family named fashion chain. Initially training to be a lawyer, Patrizia, along with his uncle Aldo, (Al Pacino) encourages Maurizio to join the family business. Very quickly, lines of division are drawn, and alliances and double crosses push Maurizio to the head of the company.

I am not the first person to come here and make fun of some of the performances. Adam Driver and Lady Gaga can leave with their reputations relatively unscathed, even if perhaps Gaga hones an accent that's a bit more Transylvanian than Milanese. Al Pacino and Jared Leto though are in a different film, with broad comedic performances that make the Dolmio adverts look like Mike Leigh in comparison.

I could, perhaps, forgive their choices if the overall film hung together better, but alas it doesn't. The story is glacial at some points, but at others either skips over or brushes through sections that are required to make the story make sense. Why do the police come after Maurizio as quickly as they do? How does the information about Aldo's taxes make it to the American authorities? What does Maurizio actually do, once he's taken control? Why does he abandon his wife and child after one brief argument? The story needs Patrizia to be Lady Macbeth, subtly twisting and cajoling her unwilling husband to power, before he turns on her and she extracts revenge. Instead though, Maurizio's whole personality changes in a moment, without that much justification, and he moves on without her. Also, I never really had the right feel for how much time has passed between scenes, and I'm not helped by the score, which seems to use anachronistic songs, but at others tries to evoke the period.

In lesser hands, this might be more forgivable, but this is Ridley Scott and we've come to expect more. This was, in no uncertain terms, a shambles.

It's 1978 Milan. Patrizia Reggiani (Lady Gaga) meets Maurizio Gucci (Adam Driver) at a nightclub. He is the heir to a large portion of the fashion house Gucci but his father disapproves of her supposed mafia family although they only own a small trucking company. He marries her anyways and his father disowns him.

For me, this is all about the accent. Everybody is speaking English but in an overt Italian accent. It's distracting. As a story, I would concentrate more on the murder and the decline feels rushed. At least, it should be equal to the rest of the movie. Maybe this needs to be a limited series on a streaming service. The acting seems to be getting accolades. I don't mind that. They're doing good work. The accent is just not my preference. All in all, this is a functional biopic with interesting actors doing a specific choice.