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I'm not very in tune with Michael Mann right now. He's done very little that I've been interested in watching, so seeking out his movies is either academic or on account of other people, like when I watched Thief some time after James Caan's death. I was hoping I would get something big out of Public Enemies, thougj, as it's a historical crime movie. The last movie in that vein that I watched was Brian De Palma's Untouchables, which gave me most of what I wanted from movies like this, so I had my fingers crossed. Since this is my third Michael Mann movie, this is the movie where Michael Mann qualifies for a Directorial Score.
This movie recounts the story of real-life bank robber John Dillenger, who also had a lot of skill in planned escapes and getaways. While he's on the run with his literal partners in crime, he develops a romance while the government uses any sneaky tactic they can to catch him when the law fails them.
The thing that really caught my attention throughout most of the movie was Michael Mann's direction. He had this uncanny ability to capture mass amounts of activity in the background while filming not only on the locations of the events, but putting together very realistic sets and costumes as well. Something about this movie bled the realism of its time despite any changes to history. There's also a good amount of bullet hell action here which keeps things exciting when things get boring. And of course, we have some amazing cast members rocking their roles with very little effort.
This is also a problem. These amazing actors are given very little character development, and so their characters are too easy for them. Eventually, it feels kind of lifeless. This also plays apart in another serious problem on the movie's part: the plotting of this case is by-the-numbers. I didn't really feel like there was anything new here despite all of the detailing put into each individual scene. It kind of makes all the detail seem unimportant in the long run, and eventually leads some scenes to either go around in circles via similarities in bank-robbing and escape sequences we've already seen, and eventually they decide to just make the ending overlong for no reason.
And this is all I have to say about Public Enemies. This is the kind of movie I'm typically into, but this specific movie didn't impress me that much. So much that was great was wasted on tropes and length, and I feel sorely disappointed i Michael Mann because of it considering his status as a modern essential director. Here's hoping Heat satisfies.
= 64.
Michael Mann's Directorial Score (3 Good vs. 0 Bad)
The Last of the Mohicans: 95
Thief: 82
Public Enemies: 64
Score: 80.33 / 3
Michael Mann debuts on my Best Directors List at #138 between Albert Hughes and Louis LeTerrier.
Public Enemies
(2009) - Directed by Michael Mann
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Historical Drama / Gangster / Biopic
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(2009) - Directed by Michael Mann
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Historical Drama / Gangster / Biopic
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"My friends call me John, but a son of a bitch screw like you better refer to me as 'Mr. John Dillinger.'"
I'm not very in tune with Michael Mann right now. He's done very little that I've been interested in watching, so seeking out his movies is either academic or on account of other people, like when I watched Thief some time after James Caan's death. I was hoping I would get something big out of Public Enemies, thougj, as it's a historical crime movie. The last movie in that vein that I watched was Brian De Palma's Untouchables, which gave me most of what I wanted from movies like this, so I had my fingers crossed. Since this is my third Michael Mann movie, this is the movie where Michael Mann qualifies for a Directorial Score.
This movie recounts the story of real-life bank robber John Dillenger, who also had a lot of skill in planned escapes and getaways. While he's on the run with his literal partners in crime, he develops a romance while the government uses any sneaky tactic they can to catch him when the law fails them.
The thing that really caught my attention throughout most of the movie was Michael Mann's direction. He had this uncanny ability to capture mass amounts of activity in the background while filming not only on the locations of the events, but putting together very realistic sets and costumes as well. Something about this movie bled the realism of its time despite any changes to history. There's also a good amount of bullet hell action here which keeps things exciting when things get boring. And of course, we have some amazing cast members rocking their roles with very little effort.
This is also a problem. These amazing actors are given very little character development, and so their characters are too easy for them. Eventually, it feels kind of lifeless. This also plays apart in another serious problem on the movie's part: the plotting of this case is by-the-numbers. I didn't really feel like there was anything new here despite all of the detailing put into each individual scene. It kind of makes all the detail seem unimportant in the long run, and eventually leads some scenes to either go around in circles via similarities in bank-robbing and escape sequences we've already seen, and eventually they decide to just make the ending overlong for no reason.
And this is all I have to say about Public Enemies. This is the kind of movie I'm typically into, but this specific movie didn't impress me that much. So much that was great was wasted on tropes and length, and I feel sorely disappointed i Michael Mann because of it considering his status as a modern essential director. Here's hoping Heat satisfies.
= 64.
Michael Mann's Directorial Score (3 Good vs. 0 Bad)
The Last of the Mohicans: 95
Thief: 82
Public Enemies: 64
Score: 80.33 / 3
Michael Mann debuts on my Best Directors List at #138 between Albert Hughes and Louis LeTerrier.