Public Enemies: The Jonas Bros. Story

Let's get one thing straight---actors were apparently clamoring to nab any role they could in Michael Mann's gangster drama Public Enemies. Reduced nearly to cameos, I spied Shawn Hatosy, Leelee Sobieski, Channing Tatum, Lili Taylor, Giovanni Ribisi, and Stephen Lang (gay cinema lovers should recognize Lang as the closet case husband of Jennifer Jason Leigh in Last Exit to Brooklyn - 1989). Not to mention the presence of Stephen Dorff and Billy Crudup in roles closer to cameo appearances rather than performances. In the end, I just kind of wondered why. Christian Bale is the angry Melvin Purvis and Johnny Depp is the bee-stung Dillinger, the nicest, it seems, of the bank robber baddies from the 1930's. And Marion Cotillard stars as Depp's love interest. A mostly unromanticized gangster epic, Mann's newest film is interesting, with some cool shots, and beautiful music, but it's a bit long in the tooth. There's nothing exactly wrong with it, but there's not a whole lot of excitement, either. Perhaps the failure is that Mann is recalling an infamous, oft-romanticized period of Americana history, but in an unsympathetic way. What happens when we don't root for the notorious bank robbers? Well, we realize they got what they deserved. Do I like seeing women get tossed around? No, quite the contrary. But how bad should I feel for Marion Cotillard's character when she gets manhandled by the police? They want information as to the whereabouts of a murderous bank robber and she's his girlfriend. It's the company you keep, my girl. Ah, those were the days, when banks could be robbed in under two minutes. I walked away from Public Enemies feeling underwhelmed but certain of one thing--while technology has advanced to a level of hyperintelligence (when it comes to robbing banks), the prejudice of people remains the same. Cotillard's character reluctantly reveals that she's half French and half Native American. "Most men don't like that part," she says. "I'm not most men," says Depp. Well, it's nice to know that bank robbers are more open minded than bankers. Public Enemies is a decent film, but I've yet to think Michael Mann will ever top The Last of the Mohicans (1992) or Heat (1995).