Johnny The Wolf

Rating: 5/10 (5 October 2015)

It has been the Fall of disappointing movies. BLACK MASS stands at the top of this list. Take one look at Johnny Depp as Whitey Bulger and you'll think his make-up artist had Tim Burton on a direct line.
Nonetheless, I understand how BLACK MASS fell into the trap of becoming yet another poorly failed Goodfellas/Donnie Brasco. The life of one of the most infamous crime bosses is hard to discern - what is even harder to discern is the world that surrounds him.
It's not truth versus fable. It's how do we explain the damn thing?
From his heinous acts of legendary proportion, the real Whitey is known as one of the most ruthless/inhumane people to ever walk this planet. He was on the 10 most wanted list for the entire world before being captured by the FBI. There's some nasty buggers on there - so we get the drift.
However, for most movies/TV shows to work, the audience has to have an affinity for the main character - it's the element that made The Sopranos such a smashing success. Do we even have the right to give Whitey Bulger the privilege?
Yes - purely on dynamics, of course. His heart is black (no spoiler here, folks). Lets see how it beats - not just look at a dude dressed up like the Joker with a leather jacket.
In my opinion, there are alternatives to create a more compelling story - but I didn't write the film or will claim to be able to pull it off myself. Although I might have had some objections with making Johnny Depp look like the Wolfman.
Give me a strong story runner from TV and we might have some gasoline. David Milch, want to hop in the batter's box? We'll surely give you a bat.
SPOILER* We're not asking for a documentary - we can't ask that of any fictional movie. But, we do want human moments that make us relate to the character - if at least for five minutes. And, where Goodfellas has Henry Hill in tears when asking his boss for money or Tony Soprano crying in therapy, Black Mass has a few mundane blasé scenes with his wife and mother - who checks out early on.
In fact, every female character in the film is the same (except for the prostitute Whitey strangles played by the sultry Juno Temple).
SPOILER* the one good scene Whitey purposely freaking out the FBI agents at dinner when discussing a homemade family receipt - this is in the trailer - which is why I wanted to see the movie. This is followed by Whitey paying a visit to Connolly's wife upstairs. He is terrorizing, horrifying, you name it - and he's actually dynamic here. Too bad this is five minutes amongst 122.
Wait for this on HBO. Do not pay for it on demand. Seriously. Don't.