Johnny Depp plays Public Enemy Number One: John Dillinger

Rating: 8/10 (30 September 2014)

Set in the days of the Great Depression this film follows the actions of notorious bank robber John Dillinger and the hunt for him which led to the creation of the FBI. We are introduced to Dillinger as he goes back to prison to break out his associates. He is declared Public Enemy Number One by Hoover's Bureau of Investigation but that doesn't mean he plans to lie low; instead he sets about hitting a string of banks. The more he gets away with it the more desperate the investigators, led by Special Agent Melvin Purvis, become. Dillinger forms a relationship with Billie Frechette and the Bureau think his love for her will provide them with the opportunity to catch him. He is eventually caught but that isn't the end of him as he escapes from prison and once again robbing banks across the country it is only a matter of time before the Feds catch up with him and criminals like him.
While the film is based on real people and many real events some liberties have been taken with other details; several people who we see killed before Dillinger actually died in different events after Dillinger's death; that doesn't detract too much from the film though. Johnny Depp puts in a solid performance as Dillinger making him a likable character despite his crimes something that seem suitable given the real Dillinger's folk hero status at the time. Christian Bale is also good in the supporting role of Purvis and Marion Cotillard is likable as Billie Frechette. Michael Mann does a good job directing; keeping things more matter of fact than his more obviously stylish early works. The frequent action is tense and brutal rather than overly exciting. Overall an entertaining film that is well worth watching; it is fairly inevitably violent but there is little else to offend.