Great direction, great acting

Rating: 8/10 (27 July 2009)

I think that Public Enemies is a really good movie. It might not be the instant-classic a lot of people (including me) hoped for, but from the first minute, I knew that Public Enemies is a lot better than most films in cinema. It's not hard to tell why: first, there's Mann's excellent direction and mise-en-scene and second, there's the level of acting, which is really high. Especially Johnny Depp: and so, I'm glad to see him in a film like this and not in a mediocre blockbuster (such as Pirates of the Caribbean). Johnny Depp is really incredible as the famous bank robber, John Dillinger: this is a movie character that you won't forget. Although Depp draws most attention, I must not forget Marion Cotillard: the French, Oscar-winning actress shows that she easily can cope with roles in major American productions. I have to add that I was a bit disappointed in the character of Melvin Purvis. This is not the fault of Christian Bale - his character is simply too flat (all we know is that Purvis wants to catch Dillinger - and you don't even have to see the movie to find that out). In my opinion, that's a shame,'cause an actor like Bale deserves better roles than this one - think not (only) about the Batman-movies, but (espacially) about The Machinist and The Prestige. I do hope to see him in such movies in the future. But let's not forget the great story, the great Dillinger-character and of course the excellent direction of Michael Mann. Mann uses the blackbird-motive in a great way and, although some scenes (in the forest, for example) are too quick, he shows his experience throughout the whole movie, especially in the epic and just fantastic ending scene. This is a really good movie.