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PUBLIC ENEMIES |
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In 1973 Warren Oates starred as the famous bank robber John Dillinger in the appropriately titled film "Dillinger". I was 15 years old when I saw
it and was at the edge of my seat in awe of the whole cops and robbers scheme. The characters were real and FBI Director J Edgar Hoover had just died - so at least one of the
characters was vividly real to me. A young Richard Dreyfus played Pretty Boy Floyd, a villian (according to the film) who was more concerned that getting killed might ruin his day. The film didn't do that well I don't think but it stirred certain emotions from my grandfather, father, and great aunt who lived through his time - the
Great Depression. They made it even clearer why he was a dark folk hero. The general population blamed the banks for everything that was wrong with the economy. |
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Funny how things are similar with the release of Michael Mann's version of the John Dillinger story - "Public Enemies. This time Johnny Depp was cast in the lead
role as Dillinger. Cast as the lead agent trailing him, Melvin Purvis is Christian Slater. Both Slater and Depp are coming off BIG box office returns from "Dark Knight" and "Pirates of the Caribbean" (respectively),
the only reason the two would be cast together - the studio is counting on ooh-aah star power. That's were this review is going to focus. There is not much to say about the story, it's about one of the notorious criminals in modern history and the reason J. Edgar rose to power. However,
if you are looking for a more bang-bang shoot-em-up, you may be a tad bit disappointed. Yes it does briefly review a couple of Dillinger's criminal exploits, Mann decided to look more at
the romance between Dillinger and his lady friend Billie Frechette (Marion Cotillard). "Public Enemies" easily qualifies as a chick flick (much like last years Oscar Winner "Slumdog Millionaire"). The romance and his obsession with her easily over-shadows his flight from the FBI. Important characters in the 1973 Dillinger - Pretty Boy Floyd, Baby Face Nelson,
Alvin Karpis, and Pete Pierpont are now merely decoration. Christian Slater as Melvin Purvis - whose love/hate relationship with Dillinger was the basis of the 1973 version, takes a back seat to the
romance. Almost to the point you wonder why they needed Slater save for the chance to draw dreamy eyed women into the theater. There is more detail in Dillinger's escape from the Indiana State Prison to begin the film, a move the placed him on the front court of crime.
Equally detailed is his escape from the Indiana jail with the gun carved from soap. But the the bank robberies were glossed over. One might get the impression he only robbed a couple when
in fact he robbed over two dozen banks and even a few police stations. Mann did bring into perspective the crossover of crime in Chicago with Al Capone's syndicate operation butting heads with Dillinger concerning the attention
he was drawing. In the film (and apparently correctly) there was a "professional" relationship between Dillinger and Capone strongman Frank Nitti (Bill Camp). |
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But keep in mind the star and saving grace of the film is Johnny Depp. His attention to character detail keeps Public Enemies interesting.
He maintains enough of the viscousness he demonstrated in "Sweeney Todd" to make Dillinger a cold blooded killer. But when I stack Depp against Oates version, Oates comes out on top. Not only
for resemblance but believability. However, kudos to Billy Crudup for his version of a young J. Edgar Hoover who forced his way into respectability. Few knew that Hoover had little support in his
early days as Bureau chief. Kudos also to Cotillard as Billie Frechette. She brings a certain wide-eyed golly-wolly likability as the small town girl totally rapt by Dillinger's suave
persona. Much like Bonnie Parker's infatuation with Clyde Barrow, Frechette stood by Dillinger even when faced with prison. At a tad over 2 hours, action fans will be disappointed that Mann didn't focus on more robberies. However, gun fans will appreciate Mann's
attention to the difference between what a .45 calibre Thomson sub-machine gun can do (and sounds) than the standard issue .38 specials the FBI was using. (Gun aficionados will
appreciate them representing the Tommy with both the drum magazine as it is commonly depicted but also the regular 30-round box magazine.) |
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Historians will also appreciate the general attention to detail with era correct wardrobes, cars, technology, etc. But "Public Enemies", by the title deserved to focus more on the crime and action than the romance. We should have gotten to know more
of Pretty Boy Floyd, Baby Face Nelson and others. Mann should have let the romance be a footnote more than the main theme. We needed to see more enemies than love. That is where "Public Enemies" fails - but it's still worth seeing. --GEOFFREY BURTON
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