Based on the true and daring exploits of John Dillinger during the Great Depression, Public Enemies stars Johnny Depp and was directed by Michael Mann. There was much hype about this film... we heard all about their filming schedule from T.V. and saw distant glimpses of Johnny Depp on set in his 1930s duds caught by news cameras and aired during reports of local goings-on. They used many outdoor as well as indoor locations in the cities of Milwaukee, Oshkosh, Madison, and Beaver Dam (to name a few!) The whole state of Wisconsin, as well as the Midwest of this country where John Dillinger himself used to roam and ramble, was waiting with great anticipation for this film's release...
I saw it as a treat to myself on the day before my birthday and must say that I enjoyed watching it, but was a little disappointed by how much it reminded me of a mindless action movie.
One of the things that I thought was done well, was the Robin Hood vs. Sheriff of Nottingham situation that Johnny's Dillinger found himself in with Christian Bale's Melvin Pervis; FBI head honcho. The competition between the two seemed to be the main source of energy for the plot, and despite the fact we as an audience know the outcome to their little cat and mouse game, it keeps one biting their nails nonetheless.
Something I did not really expect was the love story that the film wove between Dillinger and Marion Cotillard's Billie Frechette; only one of his many real life romantic interests. This, I think, was one of the weakest elements to the film, and came across looking awkward and nonsensical as they tried very hard to portray the relationship as star-crossed love. The fact that Johnny Depp plays Dillinger behaving suave, and yet more than a little controlling and prone to violence even during his first encounters with Billie, leaves me wondering why she would fall for such a guy? I mean, if a guy came into your place of employment to ask you why you did not do exactly what he had told you to do on your first date with him, and then became so frustrated by your answer that he punched out one of your customers, wouldn't you be at least a little turned off? Well not Billie Frechette apparently. She even seemed to accept the fact that she was supposed to hang around and wait for her beau while he ran amok with his buddies playing shoot-em-up and driving fast, then getting thrown in jail with execution a sobering possibility.
When this movie started to play on our theatre's huge, ultra screen, I was overcome by the feeling that I had sat down in my seat mid-way through the show, instead of right before the previews as I had done in actuality. This I believe, is one of the main issues with the film. It could use a good dose of character establishment before we begin jumping into the action as we do with the film's beginning. Even as some of the gang members die at various points in the film, these deaths lack meaning, as we were never allowed to know their characters, or see the relationships that they had to fellow gang members.
One film that I saw many years ago and explored this territory well was The Newton Boys (1998), and needs to be seen by those that thought Public Enemies was too shallow and too obviously trying to cover their historical inaccuracies with noise and a ridiculous romance. Another film that is in the same vein, but done much better is The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (2007). Brad Pitt as Jesse James really gives you pause, so that you actually THINK about what is occurring on the screen, and you see history in a way that you never considered seeing it before.
My closing thoughts on Public Enemies, (it's so hard to stay focused on my blog subject here and not wander off into recommending better movies...) is that you really must be warned not to expect too much from this film. I know that it is Johnny Depp, but the role he took on here really does him no justice. I know that a good portion was filmed in Wisconsin, but let me assure you that this will never put us on the map due to Public Enemies becoming more classic than Casablanca. Accept Public Enemies for what it is; an action flick that is more fun than deep, and though parading as a historical drama, has gotten most of the facts mixed up without much gain from doing so. Bear in mind as well that this film is rated R.
- Dani
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