Bradley Cooper: 5 Awesome Performances And 5 That Sucked

3. Richie DiMaso - American Hustle (2013)

Though Christian Bale's more ostentatious performance was always bound to pick up more attention, Cooper's less showy take performance is no less notable and no less great. In the familiar setting of a Russell film, Cooper is excellent as the FBI agent with the ridiculous haircut and the grand ambitions for a big sting that will make him and break a lot of others. But despite his apparently good alignment, there's enough complexity in the performance to suggest that he too slots into the great cross-con: sympathies are polluted, allegiances in the audience change and it's not entirely clear at all who we're supposed to be cheering on. That is as much down to Cooper's clever performance as it is to those of his fellow cast members, and he sells Richie's hotness particularly well, like a street kid bubbling under the surface of the guy in charge.