Gangsters are nice guy

Rating: 4/10 (1 August 2009)

Much as I like other Michael Mann movies, I truly despised this one as a manipulative cross between "Last of the Mohicans" and "Heat".
From a visual point of view the movie is beautifully shot with a real feeling for the 30's, yet the scene of the chase through the woods reminds of the Mohicans. The soundtrack too is reminiscent of that movie. The scenes of bank robberies, though not as powerful as in "Heat", convey the same type of manic energy.
The love story which forms the heart of the story is also supposed to be moving and romantic like those depicted in the two other movies. Unfortunately, the two lovers of this movie are superstars Depp and Cotillard, playing a ruthless gangster and a dumb girl who think they are living the romance of century.
Besides presenting the tragic story of the star-crossed lovebirds Mann does his best to prove how stupid and inept policemen are. It is exactly here that lays the fraudulence of the movie: some scenes have no purpose whatsoever, but are just built to enhance the reputation of superstar Johnny Depp, playing a very romantic tragic hero. Among all, the scene of Dillinger entering the police station and walking around, without anybody challenging his presence or recognizing him, truly has no purpose whatsoever, but to prove how supremely stupid cops are.
The romantic angle can also be debated, with Dillinger uttering to Frechette lame sentences on the phone, such as "I want to protect you", while he is on the run from the police. Hard to see how he is going to protect anybody, but it does sound good. The same applied to Frechette, challenging the police while being interrogated and telling them how stupid they are. However, since she got arrested and is going to be sentenced to two years of prison, she seems hardly in the position of being the smart one.
Since Depp is a superstar the movie must drag on forever, and thanks to the useless of several scenes it takes quite a while before the final showdown. You can finally leave cinema with the uneasy feeling of having been taken for a ride.