Akito HirataReview - Public Enemies
October 23rd 2009 04:09
Johnny Depp is the notorious John Dillinger, enemy of the state who robs from the banks although not from the people. This is his story in parallel with the story of his captor Melvin Purvis (Christian Bale), the FBI agent under appointment by J Edgar Hoover to hunt down and kill Dillinger and other criminals like him.
Both Depp and Bale give fine performances although the characterisation of Dillinger is kept close to his chest. We see snippets of feeling when it comes to his love Billie Frechette, excellently played by Marion Cotillard. In fact when introducing himself to Billie he states, "I was raised on a farm in Moooresville, Indiana. My mama ran out on us when I was three, my daddy beat the hell out of me cause he didn't know no better way to raise me. I like baseball, movies, good clothes, fast cars, whiskey, and you... what else you need to know?"
The initial movie starts out with a bang with Dillinger escaping from prison. One by one the FBI closes in on his colleagues until he is the last one left alive. Does this dampen his spirits or make him run? No. He intends to do another job convinced that he will succeed and outwit the police. The movie is quite long - 140 minutes in length - although I didn't feel that it was over long - I just felt that the time could've been used more effectively in some parts. The final scenes wrapped the film up nicely especially those featuring Billie Frechette.
Voyage Review: 3.5/5
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Comment by JohnDoe
Film & TV on DVD
I will always check out any of Michael Mann's films, though he has disappointed on occasion (eg: Ali, Collateral) but with the cast here it is a must see for me....still with my hectic schedule I haven't got to the cinema in months so a slew of releases are relegated to DVD in this house.
Comment by Michelle Sweeney
Competition Queen