Robbing, Killing, Romancing: Those Were the Days!

Well, okay, what the heck, why not? Director Michael Mann does everything in his power to turn Public Enemies into a love story between John Dillinger (Johnny Depp) and Billie Frechette (Marion Cotillard), while at the same time trying to keep within the ball park of historical accuracy. He gets high marks for coming pretty close, and for a good tight story, and for coaxing decent performances out of everyone, including the stoic Christian Bale as Melvin Purvis, Billy Crudup as J. Edgar Hoover, and both Depp and Cotillard. Good solid work all the way around, but certainly nothing special, which I must say was a bit disappointing considering the talent.

In the end I thought that Mann was trying too hard to pretend that Dillinger wasn’t really a rotten, murdering bank robber. Does anyone really, seriously believe that Dillinger had a heart of gold and was a misunderstood product of a failed American judicial system? Mann also glosses over the fact that Dillinger was a fella who enjoyed his prostitutes (and in fact was in the company of one when he was finally gunned down on the street), which kind of throws a wet towel over the whole romance thing.

The bank robberies and the daring escapes didn’t seem very romantic either. Maybe I’m just tired of all the senseless killing these days, in real life and on the big screen. It was a long film at two hours and 23 minutes and it felt long. By the end of the movie I was yawning, and I didn’t quite buy into the tragic-hero climax that the director was hoping for and that we all knew was coming. A good rental maybe. Mildly recommended. 

Sci Fi Frey

Speaking of love stories, remember Oprah and James Frey? Frey, the controversial author of the memoir A Million Little Pieces (2003) fibbed his way into the literary limelight via Oprah’s Book Club. He has landed another book deal, as reported in the New York Times, this one with a movie attached to it. Frey’s continuing success proves the old adage that even bad press is good press. HarperCollins signed Frey and collaborator Michael Bay to write a YA series, and DreamWorks has already purchased the film rights. The story, a science fiction concept, is about a group of young alien teens hiding out on Earth after their own planet has been attacked. Any author these days who can make big bucks writing should be an inspiration to us all. Congratulations. But it does make you kind of wonder about the whole celebrity of writing and what it means to the rest of us, doesn’t it?

Of further interest…

James Frey “Bending the Truth“

The Smoking Gun exposé

One of my favorite actors is Giovanni Ribisi, who played a bit part in Public Enemies. If you’ve never seen Heaven, check it out. It’s a great little film. You won’t be disappointed.