Entertaining Drama/Comedy

Rating: 8/10 (2 January 2003)

I found the movie to be top notch entertainment. The acting was great, and the story was paced in a way that it didn't have any slow spots for me. There were enough laughs to make the movie seem quite light hearted. But, there was also a dramatic element of the movie where you realize that Frank (DiCaprio) is committing crimes, and he is being tracked down.
Frank leaves home as a 16 year old and begins a "successful" career as a con man who uses the cover of a pilot, lawer, doctor, etc to help him to a life of riches as he uses his counterfit identifications to help him pass bad checks. The FBI is always a step behind. Frank seems to be able to get away with anything, and seems quite the clever con man. But, you begin to realize that he is really just a very young man, who despite the adventures, is really quite lonely.
Yes, he is a criminal and you do have to kind of root for "bad guy" to get away to enjoy some of the drama in the movie. However, I don't think I'll be giving away too much to say that he does eventually have to pay for his crimes.
I had just finished the book just prior to seeing the movie. And I do think the movie captures the spirit of the book. However, I found a couple of things curious about the transformation to the screen. Apparently the book is embelished. Probably several things in the book are presented more "grand" than they actually occured, or just made up entirely. But, there were a couple of events in the book that might have been interesting in the move. While the movie also adds some elements that weren't in the book at all. Oh well, I enjoyed the book also, and it was a pretty easy read, so if you enjoyed the movie, you may want to consider reading the book also.