Too much Edulcorant, Mr. Spielberg

Rating: 6/10 (12 November 2007)

I saw the movie twice, and the first one dazzled me with a premise that basically is a constant run and some fun in coning. Di Caprio is outgoing and charming. Everyone else is like publicity, you know it's there but you don't take them in account. Except Christopher Walken, who is Superb.
At second viewing, three years later, I remembered only pieces, and was bored to death. The settings are urban boring and the action is heterogeneous but unimpressive. I think Spielberg rooted to make the story of the con man too sweet, to make him infantile and reachable phsycologically. I didn't like that approach being the character in real life a lot more interesting, obscure and harder. Tom Hanks character Hanratty tries to be smart at all times, guessing and boring, tires with his pseudo-hero role.
All of the movie tries to make what would be an interesting, edgy film into a bedtime story, sweetened by all filmical elements (actings, directing, lights, script). Im sure you will like it, because you want a smile on your face. But I sure do enjoy stories like these being much darker, much more intrinsically approached and a lot deeper. A nice try though, Spielberg. Im still a big fan of you.