A Rat is a Rat is a Rat is a Rat

Rating: 5/10 (23 July 2016)

***SPOILERS*** Overblown film, in trying to make him look somewhat likable, about Boston Irish Mob boss James "Whitey" Bulger , Johnny Depp, with an in depth look of the man who's anything for the youth of America to look up to. We see right from the start that "Whitey" is willing to rat out his own kind, mobsters, to the FBI in order to be free to do his dirty work without any interference from the law. "Whitey" has his brother big time state politician Billy, Bennie Cumberbatch, stick his neck out for him that in the end destroyed his meteoric political career.
As For "Whitey" himself he just goes through the movie doing his thing in breaking skulls shaking down business with his protection racket and murdering his victims mostly doing it close and personal with the law not for a moment laying a glove on him. At first it was the FBI's attempt to use "Whitey" to get information on his fellow gangsters that seemed like a good idea but later that's turned and bit "Whitey" on his behind with his fellow mobsters, those that he was ratting on, ratted on him to save their own hides.
It's when Kojack look alike FBI section chief Fred Wyshak, Corey Stoll, took charge that things start going sour for "Whitey" and his boys or those that were still willing to put up with him and his back stabbing as well as murderous antics; That included shipping arms, as a patriotic juster, to the IRA in its war against the British Empire's occupation of Northen Ireland. On the run for some 15 years "Whitey" finally gave himself up to the FBI that for years covered for him. In the end we see Whitey as an old and broken down man soon to serve two consecutive life sentences for as many as 11 murders as well as the many crimes that he committed through the years from murder racketeering down to public intoxication and shop lifting that dates back to the early 1940's.