Just when you've made it through another unfocused prison break sequence or another bank job more about the sound of the machine
guns then the strategy or risk of the heist, "Public Enemies" gives a glimmer of hope it's going to become a better movie.
There are effective but far too-few moments between G-man Melvin Purvis (Christian Bale) and his boss J. Edgar Hoover (Billy Crudup). Unlike Dillinger, these guys at least have overriding goals, which makes their side of the story more compelling.
Billie Frechette, the coat-check-girl turned moll, also has more of a story to tell. But in the hands of the unfocused script and Michael Mann's distracting direction, actress Marion Cotillard comes off as Meg Ryan with an accent.
Context might have helped. In "Public Enemies," the Depression takes a back seat. Everybody seems to be getting by just fine. Which diminishes the folk hero aspect of the story and makes the scenes with Dillinger himself (an uninspired Johnny Depp) the least engaging.
But it's a hard movie to give up on. Just when you are ready to throw in the popcorn bucket, there's Peter Gerety, making maximum use of his minimal screen tie as Dillinger's attorney. Or Stephen Lang, who gets some sharp late-in-the-game moments as a cop, hinting at the major supporting actor he could and should be. Lily Taylor, Giovanni Ribisi, and others keep circling in and disappearing too quickly. They breath life into "Public Enemies" while, at the same time, reminding us of what this rambling 140-minute exercise could have been.
Your thoughts?
There are effective but far too-few moments between G-man Melvin Purvis (Christian Bale) and his boss J. Edgar Hoover (Billy Crudup). Unlike Dillinger, these guys at least have overriding goals, which makes their side of the story more compelling.
Billie Frechette, the coat-check-girl turned moll, also has more of a story to tell. But in the hands of the unfocused script and Michael Mann's distracting direction, actress Marion Cotillard comes off as Meg Ryan with an accent.
Context might have helped. In "Public Enemies," the Depression takes a back seat. Everybody seems to be getting by just fine. Which diminishes the folk hero aspect of the story and makes the scenes with Dillinger himself (an uninspired Johnny Depp) the least engaging.
But it's a hard movie to give up on. Just when you are ready to throw in the popcorn bucket, there's Peter Gerety, making maximum use of his minimal screen tie as Dillinger's attorney. Or Stephen Lang, who gets some sharp late-in-the-game moments as a cop, hinting at the major supporting actor he could and should be. Lily Taylor, Giovanni Ribisi, and others keep circling in and disappearing too quickly. They breath life into "Public Enemies" while, at the same time, reminding us of what this rambling 140-minute exercise could have been.
Your thoughts?
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Too bad Public Enemy isn't better. I was looking forward to it. Maybe I'll wait until it shows up on pay per view in a month...
movie that doesn't come out for a few days...
I was with a full house of general public sneak preview-ites at the Galaxy theater. And, as Andrew said, the film opens this evening.
The blog will still be here tomorrow...or whenever you get to the film. I look forward to reading your comments then.
Lou
Also, I bought the book when the author was here at Borders and got to ask questions about the books focus. It really was the history of how the FBI evolved and how unprepared most of the men were. I'm afraid there was so much in the book that the gunshot approach just didn't do it. I did enjoy the authentic feel of the photography.