Ryan McNeil
I have to imagine that watching PUBLIC ENEMIES is a lot like watching Walter Johnson pitch late in his career. See, The Big Train used to galumph his way up to the mound, and almost comically work into a slow, leisurely wind-up. He’d then unload on the batter with pitches that reached ungodly speeds. Hitters were left baffled, lulled and distracted by the slow effortlessness…then taken aback with the resulting display of power.
Indeed, with his latest film, director Michael Mann has sauntered his way up to the pitcher’s mound…and after a long, deliberate motion, he delivers with a pretty good fastball.
John Dillinger (Johnny Depp) is one of the most wanted men in America, given his talent for holding up banks in record time and continually evading capture. Wanting to bring Dillinger down once and for all, FBI director J. Edgar Hoover (Billy Cruddup) assigns a special task force to hunt him, and taps agent Melvin Purvis (Christian Bale, who has thankfully left the Batman/John Connor growl at home) to lead the division.
One night at a club, Dillinger falls for a woman at first sight. Her name is Billie Frechette (Marion Cotillard), and she takes a shining to Dillinger’s direct manner…but not before making him work for her attention. As Dillinger briefly details his life to Billie, we understand what it is that keeps him in business. Many people, including the very ones trying to bring him to capture, have no idea who he is, or what he looks like. Despite being the most wanted man in America, this is a trusting age where information travels slowly. Thus he is able to often walk right past many of the foot soldiers out to find him.
Increasingly frustrated by Dillinger’s talent for evading capture, and likewise breaking out of custody when he is captured, the FBI comes down hard. They pass laws that force Dillinger’s syndicate support network to abandon him, thus forcing him to work with fellow solo acts like Baby Face Nelson (Stephen Graham). Since Dillinger and Nelson’s methods are so drastically different, this move tips the scales in the feds’ favour, and finally sends Dillinger on the run.
PUBLIC ENEMIES takes a puzzling route to get where it wants to go. The movie clocks in at two hours and twenty minutes, and much of that first hour is a lot of steak with no sizzle. That’s not to say that nothing happens – much to the contrary. The opening sixty minutes gives us one jailbreak and two bank robberies. Curiously though, it all happens in a very cold, quiet, distant manner. While I had the patience to stay with it – patience that was ultimately rewarded – I fear that this subtler chapter will deter some audiences, and cause many to reach for their DVD remote.
However, patience is a virtue, and patient audiences will be rewarded as the second half of this movie really takes off. From the moment of the Dillinger/Nelson heist, director Michael Mann shifts the movie into a higher gear, and suddenly decides to deliver on the sexiness of the story. One of the highlights is an explosive gunfight at a rural Wisconsin Inn, which evokes memories of the downtown L.A. shootout in HEAT. Interestingly, it’s the last pure action scene in the movie. The rest of the way, Mann goes cat-and-mouse and lets the intriguing nature of the manhunt entertain the audience.
One mis-step of the film is the fact that Johnny Depp really doesn’t get a chance to come out and play. His portrayal of Dillinger is almost all business, and it lacks the impish nature that made his portrayal of Ed Wood and Jack Sparrow so very memorable. Depp is front and centre during much of that low-boil opening hour, and much of that time he spends being enigmatic, distant and direct. This was an era where gangsters were rock stars, and one must wonder how much better a film PUBLIC ENEMIES could have been had Depp gotten in touch with his inner Jagger.
PUBLIC ENEMIES is a thoughtful movie, slow execution included. It’s a focused film that relies on intrigue and structure to achieve what lesser films would lean on car chases and tommyguns to do. Unfortunately, it isn’t one that will lure audiences away from the franchises that surround it. This is a shame really, since it’s a solid movie that isn’t trying to muscle its way on to the lists of all-time great gangster flicks. I had high hopes for the film (I actually pegged it as my most anticipated of the year), and even I had to have patience. It’s a movie that delivers, just be sure to stand well back in the batter’s box…and allow the pitch to come to you.
Good review, loved the film
Good review, just came back from the theaters and I really enjoyed the movie. It definitely could have been better, but I thought it was really good. Currently working on a review, but I think you nailed most of the problems with the film. It is a slow paced film and the story could have been more fleshed out, but its also a film that I'm very curious to see on Blu Ray with some kind of special extended cut version. Public Enemies reminds me of American Gangster. Its theatrical release was really good, but its extended version on home video was much more better in my opinion. I have a feeling Public Enemies will be the same.
I agree with the fact that the film was a little bit slow in its execution. As a matter of fact, I yawned twice when I was watching Public Enemies. Other than that, I got to admit that the film manages to be entertaining without being pathetic to death like certain summer blockbusters.
As for the performance by Johnny Depp, I didn't feel something that can make John Dillinger as memorable as Jack Sparrow. In fact, while Depp's performance can conceal (through his eyes) Dillinger's coldness and meticulousness, you just feel that his performance was okay (hopefully, it wasn't downright bad, either).
My high school friend is one the guys dancing next to Johnny Depp in the club.
I thought it was methodical in its setup, but necessary for the payoff to be so powerful.
In that respect it reminded me very much of McCabe and Mrs. Miller, a similarly mold-breaking western with a slam-bang ending after a very lyrical meandering setup.
Patience is a virtue.
@ Farzan… Damn! I was starting to think that I was the only person out there who liked AMERICAN GANGSTER. I think you're on to something though…warts an all I really think that PE will age rather well.
@ Anh Khoi Do… Depp gave glimpses of where he could have taken the character in the scene where he faces the press. Had he been given a bit more latitude, i think he could have turned Dillinger into a real a modern day Tom Powers.
@ ViewAskew… Rather apropos since much of the story is set right in your backyard!
@ Tony… I'm all one for methodical, but there's a world of difference between deliberate pacing and glacial. Thankfully, I'm a virtuous filmgoer!
The Mad Hatter:
"One mis-step of the film is the fact that Johnny Depp really doesn’t get a chance to come out and play. His portrayal of Dillinger is almost all business, and it lacks the impish nature that made his portrayal of Ed Wood and Jack Sparrow so very memorable. "
Well, to be fair, Ed Wood and Jack Sparrow are very different characters. Do we really want to see Depp repeat himself? That being said, throughout the film Depp does show glimmers of impish behavior in the way he confidently hits on Frechette, his girlfriend-to-be early on… or when they exchange banter while she's in the tub but the best moment is when he works the press conference while being booked in Indiana. He works the reporters like a seasoned pro and displays loads of charm.
What I liked about Depp's performance was that he showed a different side of himself in this film playing a very determined bank robber and killer. I thought it was a very internalized performance at times but you can see the mischievous twinkle in Depp's eye.