Wednesday, July 29, 2009

Film Review – Public Enemies

The story revolves around a bank robber whose exploits dominated the press during the deperession era, and also what is sometimes referred to as the public enemy era, between 1931 and 1934. When the film main attraction is some fella called Johny Depp, expectation will automatically rise to another level. Come on, this is the man that made the pirates franchise astonishingly enjoyable, even though the movies themselves, especially the final one, was crap. Add Christian Bale (the Batman of course) into the equation, and you should have one heck of a movie. There are moments in the film that will make your eyes heavy but they were matched by some brilliant moments as well. This is where Depp really shines. His portrayal of a vicious criminal who struggles with love and finding his place in the world was top notch. You got to feel for Johny Delinger. As bad as he was, he was so charismatic, cool and always find a way to survive. Thumbs up for Depp for that. The storyline was decent, and I especially love the gun shooting scenes. The sound of guns blazing and blasting everything was great, it made me feel like I was in the 30’s. Also the cat and mouse game between the bank robbers and the police was good, although it would be better if they made the fight more even. Enuff with the chit chat, here are some hot points regarding the movie.

1. Johny Depp was fucking brilliant. He made me rooted for the bad guys. Although I knew eventually Delinger will die at the end of the movie, Depp made me hoped that he didnt. His cold blooded but somehow innocent portrayal of a vicious gang leader was like never seen in any mafia themed movies before. Simply original.
2. The meticulus detail of the cinematography. Damn it why cant Malaysian movies shot like this.
3. The overall acting was great. This is real actors’ work. Take note Megan Fox.

Some not-so-hot marks

1. I wonder why they didnt dig further into why Johny Delinger started to rob banks. Yeah we were told at the start of the movie that they were in the depression era, but any image of the economic misery that made Dillinger a criminal, and eventually a folk hero was missing.
2. Marion Cotillard. Shes just not THAT hot. Nice acting though.
3. Errr that is all.

All in all, this is a great, but not Godfather type of great, movie. Any mafie-themed loving audience would love this movie. So go ahead, spare your twenty bucks and relive the era when the tommy gun rules. You wont be dissapointed.

Rating : 7/10

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