Public Enemies

Unlike most modern criminals who do their best to avoid the camera when arrested, John Dillinger was a man who reveled in his criminal celebrity. If he committed his crimes in our own era, the cable news stations would likely devote countless hours to his exploits, and Dillinger himself would be its number one fan. Public Enemies tries to capture the essence of the man, and succeeds to a degree. The film depicts him as both charming and brutal, and if he was ever viewed as a kind of "folk hero", then it's likely that the "folk" were unaware of exactly how brutal he really was. His bank robberies always began with bursts of extreme violence, and I guess he knew what he was doing because it certainly did the trick in cowing the bank employees. Johnny Depp plays Dillinger with all the skill that we've come to expect from this extremely talented actor. Chistian Bale plays Melvin Purvis, who relentlessly pursues Dillinger, along with some other infamous criminals of the era. Although enjoyable, the film at times seems nothing more that a collection of violent set pieces, between which Dillinger is portrayed as nothing more than a charming rogue. He uses this charm to win over his girlfriend (OSCAR winner Marion Cotillard), and her love and devotion to him does her no good. Billy Crudup plays a young J. Edgar Hoover, and in this small role he almost steals the film. In one scene you see him testifying before Congress trying to cajole more money for his pre-FBI federal investigatory force. The film could have used more of this. Considering the actors, subject matter, and director (Michael Mann), this was a film that I expected to love, and am disappointed that I only liked it.

Rating 3 (Light)