PUBLIC ENEMIES – Review
six out of ten
Michael Mann's Public Enemies, the correct story of infamous bank robber, John Dillinger, is a nicely acted, nicely written, nicely filmed bio-pic that regrettably is lacking soul and ultimately is rather boring. The central dilemma with the film is that it begins in the middle of the story. John Dillinger is currently a large time bank robber wanted by the law and respected by his peers and this will take away from the drama of his fall from grace. I comprehend that Dillinger is a popular criminal, but by not showing his rise to prominence, the character is woefully underdeveloped (along with each other character) and as a result you don't give a damn about him or his story.
A lot of of the components of Public Enemies are solid. The action sequences are rollicking good entertaining and are carried out to sheer perfection. You actually really feel the bullets whizzing past your head. The story is compelling and the script is effectively executed, effortlessly evoking the dialogue of 1930's America. The appear and feel of the era is accomplished brilliantly and you never ever when question when the film is taking location. As often, Mann does a wonderful job of beautifully capturing the mood of his film, but the issue that I always have with him is that there is by no means any spark in his films. It is sort of tough to explain. Technically he's a masterful director usually getting the most out of his cast and crew, but at the very same time his films feel almost lifeless. It truly comes down to lack of character improvement in this distinct film which will take away from the central drama on screen. The film is ultimately about John Dillinger finally being brought to justice by renowned G-man Melvin Purvis, but the characters in no way share any real screen time and this requires away from the cat and mouse nature of the story. I comprehend that Mann has crafted a reality based movie, but when it comes to entertaining an audience, sometimes liberties need to be taken. When a film is titled Public Enemies, you must be ready to really feel the heat in between the opponents, or at the quite least feel the want of the characters to outfox each other.
This leads me to the performances. Johnny Depp is brilliant as constantly, displaying effortless charisma as Dillinger. It can make you wonder what he could've completed with a completely created role. In fact, if not for him and his superior skills, Public Enemies would've been a disaster. Depp has matured into one particular of the greatest actors of all time and the fact that he has never won an Oscar is practically as considerably a criminal act as Dillinger's robberies. Depp is at his very best in the film anytime he is paired with Marion Cotillard as the love of Dillinger's life, Billie Frechette. The two share wonderful chemistry and you believe the enjoy they share and it is only in their time collectively on screen that the movie displays any signs of life. Sadly even though, Cotillard's character is underdeveloped as is the courtship of their blossoming romance. Christian Bale as Melvin Purvis, the man responsible for taking Dillinger down, does his greatest with the role bringing a quiet intensity and morality to the character. Other than that there is not much to the character. A small back story would've been nice. I would like to have identified what motivates him to hunt down notorious criminals and why he is so good at it.
The rest of the cast doesn't genuinely merit any mention. They have definitely nothing at all to do, but fire guns and get killed. Mann does pack many renowned actors into the movie, but none of them have characters. Search its Stephen Dorff as a gangster, I don't know who he is supposed to be in relation to Dillinger, but look its Stephen Dorff! When his character dies, I wasn't sad for the character, I was sad for Dorff for having such a thankless role. The only supporting actor that lends any weight to the movie is Billy Crudup as J. Edgar Hoover. He actually provides a amazing performance and I would enjoy to see a bio-pic about Hoover with him as the lead.
To sum it up, Michael Mann's Public Enemies is a technically impressive film with excellent lead performances that lacks any genuinely compelling drama. Component 30's gangster flick, portion really like story and portion historical past lesson, Public Enemies plays like an updated Jimmy Cagney film only without having any spark.
Bill Bonfanti is FilmGo.net's movie critic and Box office analyst. Every single week you will find new reviews and box workplace predictions for the current crop of films in the theater.
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