Lightly dramedic period piece

Rating: Null/10 (18 May 2003)

Since 1993, Steven Spielberg has burdened himself down in heavy material. After releasing "Jurassic Park" that year, he won a best picture Oscar for "Schindler's List," and with the exception of '97's "The Lost World," has had trouble making a happier movie since. He followed the '93 pattern that year, releasing the depressing true story of "Amistad," "Saving Private Ryan" in '98, and in the past two years, two bleak visions of the future, "A.I.: Artificial Intelligence" and "Minority Report." Is Spielberg saying something by making a lighthearted flick that takes place in the past? "Catch Me If You Can" finally pulls Spielberg out of the doldrums, quickens the pace, and leaves his audience with a pleasurable experience. At the same time, he gives Leonardo DiCaprio a chance to prove he's very capable of pulling off a great performance that is a driving force in a great film.
Frank William Abagnale Jr. (DiCaprio) lives a happy young life with his father, Frank Sr. (Christopher Walken) and his French mother, Paula (Nathalie Baye,) whom Frank Sr. met during WWII in Mont Richard, France. They have a happy family, but Frank Sr. has had far too much trouble managing his finances and runs into endless trouble with the IRS. As a result, Paula leaves him for a family friend, and Frank Jr. runs away. Frank Jr. did, however, pick up a few con artist tricks from his father while he tried to dodge his financial troubles, and he never forgot them.
Frank Jr. cons his way into a position as a co-pilot for Pan Am Airlines, printing fraudulent cheques to maintain a financial balance. From there, he successfully impersonates a lawyer and a doctor on the way to cashing over 5 million dollars in fraudulent cheques, which soon earns the ire of the FBI. Agent Carl Hanratty (Tom Hanks) is hot on his trail and is outwitted at every turn. He is embarrassed by Frank's actions and his coworkers and superiors begin to lose their confidence in him. But soon enough, as his fatehr becomes less of an asset to him, Frank turns to Carl for a parental figure for lack of his own parents. He turns to the only one left who is watching out for him... even if all he's trying to do is catch him.

"Catch Me If You Can" is a whimsical film. The chemistry between DiCaprio and Hanks hit just the right notes, creating a delicate relationship that fuels a lightly comedic drama about family. DiCaprio starred in two of my favorite films of 2002, this one and "Gangs of New York," though in the latter he did little more than fill the space of the lead role. He truly comes into his own in this film, playing a lost young boy looking for a father, and using a variety of criminal means to get that attention.

There are three stars in this film: one is DiCaprio; another is Tom Hanks, who breaks his emotionally-repressed typecast and plays a role that allows him to be funny and touching at the same time; the third star is the amazing effort that went into staging a '60's period piece. Every visual detail is authentic, from the bathing suits, to John Williams' score bookended by appropriate hits from the period, as well as the costumes and production design. It's all spectacular - this film is a dead ringer for any popular '60's setting.
What made me happiest about "Catch Me If You Can" is that Spielberg made a film that I could enjoy without feeling guilty about it. I couldn't easily say the same for "Schindler's List" or "Saving Private Ryan," but here the director has returned to his better form, the form that made me love his early films in the first place - let there be hope he continues in the same vein. 4 stars on a five star scale.