the way we do with something
Rocco, the... You know, like we do with the chicken, very thin, right?American Hustle · 2013 — Chapter 9 of 20 · 2'47" · B1
Guests Smell Nail Polish, Talk Business, Explained: can't get enough of
Small talk over paper-thin chicken, a Swiss topcoat, and a smell of flowers and garbage. Underneath it, the table is performing charm, and someone counts down to the line 'We have to talk business.'
What happens
At a loud, affectionate dinner, the table talks paper-thin chicken, a Swiss topcoat, and a smell of flowers and garbage. A dish is presented as 'the piccata of the gods'; people smell the topcoat on someone's nails; someone counts down to 'We have to talk business.' When the talk turns to business, a drunken guest refuses to leave.
Listen for
piccata of the godstake a favor over moneyrun out ofcan't get enough of
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Phrase of the scene
can't get enough of
never tire of something
Someone confesses an odd obsession with a strange-smelling nail-polish topcoat, first admitting it sounds crazy and then leaning into it.
I can't get enough of this rainy-day playlist.
Also in this scene
- piccata of the gods
a dish fit for the gods
- take a favor over money
choose a favor rather than cash
- run out of
have no more of something
- laced with
mixed with a hidden element
- hooks you
makes you addicted
Everything marked in this scene
22 notes across 78 lines
a dish fit for the gods
Someone presents a plate of food with theatrical, over-the-top praise, and the table lets the enthusiasm carry them.
It's the piccata of the gods.how you want to be treated
I believe that you should treat people the way that you want to be treated.choose a favor rather than cash
Someone adds a worldly maxim to the moral talk, half joking and half instructing the table in how favors work.
He may have. I think also, always take a favor over money.modal perfect: Might have said marks a guess about the past, leaving open whether he said it at all.
I don't know if he said the second one, but he might have said the first one.the thing I'm currently obsessed with
I chipped that moving furniture. It's my new obsession.cheers me up
Moving, redecorating, it makes me feel better, like exercise.relative clause: The that-clause narrows topcoat to one rare product you can only obtain in Switzerland.
But there's this topcoat that you can only get from Switzerland.almost used up
And I don't know what I'm going to do because I'm running out of it, but I love the smell of it.noun clause: The clause what I'm going to do is the object of know, so it means she does not know her next move.
And I don't know what I'm going to do because I'm running out of it, but I love the smell of it.obtain it for you
I can get it for you. Irv and I can't get enough of it.In fast speech, get it can blur into a quick flap; keep for light.
I can get it for you. Irv and I can't get enough of it.never tire of it
And I know that sounds crazy, but I can't get enough of it.Land the stress on can't and enough; let get pass quickly.
And I know that sounds crazy, but I can't get enough of it.mixed with something nasty not drugged here; a scent mixed with something rotten
...they're all laced with something nasty and foul.sweet and sour
Sweet and sour. Smell her nails.the thing that gets you hooked hook literally a fishhook; here it means addicted
- That's what hooks you. - Mmm.enjoying oneself
I'm having a good time.discuss business
He's going to say, "We have to talk business."Let got you run together; the t barely lands.
I got you. Okay.only because I was laughing
I'm not this drunk. No, it was just because I was laughing.walk her to the car
I was just starting to have fun. Let's take her to the car.Guests Smell Nail Polish, Talk Business, explained
What's really going on
Everything here is about appetite and control. The table talk is deliberately physical — chicken sliced thin, a topcoat that smells like flowers and garbage — and the pleasure everyone takes in it is a way of showing they belong. 'I can't get enough of it' is the room's refrain, applied to a smell that is half perfume, half rot. The countdown is the tell: someone knows the script so well they can announce 'We have to talk business' before the talk turns. Hospitality is the warm-up act; the deal is the point. A drunken refusal to go is the one thing that won't follow the script.
Theme
DeceptionWarm hospitality is set dressing for a business pitch; even the next line is predicted in advance.
MoneyCharm is currency at this table, and someone argues a favor is worth more than cash.
Listen for
- get it for you — In fast speech, get it can blur into a quick flap; keep for light.
- can't get enough — Land the stress on can't and enough; let get pass quickly.
- I got you — Let got you run together; the t barely lands.
It's the piccata of the gods.An over-the-top compliment for a breaded cutlet: the dish is being praised as food fit for deities.
I believe that you should treat people the way that you want to be treated.A plain golden-rule line, offered as table philosophy while the room is doing business.
He may have. I think also, always take a favor over money.The reply treats the moral saying as an opening: collect favors instead of cash, because favors keep people bound to you.
And I know that sounds crazy, but I can't get enough of it.Said about the strange perfume-and-rot smell: the speaker admits it sounds odd before doubling down on loving it.
He's going to say, "We have to talk business."Someone calls the next line before it is spoken, counting down to the moment small talk ends.
Questions about this scene
Is the dinner really about business?
The table talk stays on chicken, topcoat and smells until someone predicts 'We have to talk business.' After a countdown, a line asks whether they can talk business, so the turn was expected all along.
Why doesn't the drunken guest want to leave?
The dialogue only offers a plea not to be made to go and the line 'I was just starting to have fun,' while someone insists 'She's fine.' It never explains more.
What are people smelling at the table?
A Swiss topcoat; people smell it on someone's nails and describe it as flowers with garbage, or sour flowers.
Why is the chicken praised so extravagantly?
The dish is called "the piccata of the gods" — a breaded cutlet treated as food for deities. The overstatement matches the evening's warmth and showmanship.
American Hustle · 20 chapters
All chapters →
Up next · Chapter 10back on its feetThe Atlantic City Pitch
Chapter 1last resortLast Resort Loan Pitch
Chapter 2the Picasso of passive-aggressive karateA Sun Lamp Starts a Fight
Chapter 3mess with your judgementFBI Reveal at the Loan Meeting
Chapter 4off the beaten pathThe Jail Cell Confession
Chapter 5on a first-name basis withEscape Plan Argument Over Danny
Chapter 6quit while you're aheadThe Fake Rembrandt Reveal
Chapter 7out of his leagueThe Deal Gets Too Big
Chapter 8grease someoneA $75,000 Bribe for the Mayor
Watching · Chapter 9can't get enough ofGuests Smell Nail Polish, Talk Business
Chapter 10back on its feetThe Atlantic City Pitch
Chapter 11the life of the partyRosalyn Cuts In on the Call
Chapter 12right off the batThe Ocean Room Pitch
Chapter 13keep the upper handCasino Pitch at a Party
Chapter 14falsified my recordsSydney Reveals Her Real Name
Chapter 15get over onI Should've Gone Away With You
Chapter 16get someone on a wireNegotiating the Sherman Suite
Chapter 17let something die to let something liveA Wife Spills Secrets Over Dinner
Chapter 18knock some sense intoIrving Pitches the Two Million Plan
Chapter 19pay somebody offThe Lawyer Takes the Wire
Chapter 20make this rightIrving's Apology Goes WrongChapter 9 of 20 · about 38 min to go