Not as art-house as The Assassination of Jesse James etc, and more entertaining

Rating: Null/10 (10 July 2009)

Watching Johnny Depp's John Dillinger, I couldn't help conjuring up in my mind images of Brat Pitt's (another super-star with a 4-letter name with the last two repeated) Jesse James from two years ago, and started wondering whether he would have been a better Dillinger. Depp's popular persona, after all, seems too campy for the one-time most wanted criminal. But after a while, Dillinger's introvert and surprisingly subdued character started to take shape on the big screen, something better suited Depp so long as he keeps is campy side in check.
Compare with JJ's infuriatingly (to some) slow-burn, Public Enemies is fast-paced (ANYTHING is, in that context). The dramatized bio of Dillinger recycles around the circle of bank robbery – capture – prison break, which would have been somewhat banal had not been for Michael Mann's mesmerizing direction. The stunning visual under his signature digital works brilliantly.
Another asset is the love story, which takes up a large part of the movie (even the time when it is not played out on the screen). Oscar-calibre Marion Cotillard as girlfriend Billie Frechette captures the heart of the audience first with her ravishing beauty and later her portrayal of the loyalty and courage when "slapped around" by FBI agents. Her final scene, when the love motif "Bye-bye blackbird" was evoked, is heartbreaking, even if melodramatically so.
Christian Bale's FBI agent Melvin Purvis, sworn Dillinger-hunter, is more iconic than substantial – grim, taciturn, determined. A slightly unrecognizable (compared with Almost Famous, Big Fish or The Good Shepherd) Billy Crudup displays some flare as J. Edger Hoover in his younger days. Adding to the general interest of frequent moviegoers is a parade of familiar to half-familiar faces – David Wenham, Channing Tatum, Giovanni Ribisi, Leelee Sobieski, just to name a few. While not something that you'll you'll include in your "top 50" list, Public Enemies is an entertaining movie and a visual treat (in more ways than one).