Lead actors Johnny Depp and Christian Bale deliver a great performance despite this film’s weak storytelling, The plot alone is good enough to earn praise from even the toughest critics. Especially once they learn the answer to its toughest puzzle: Who is John Dillinger, really?” There is a twisted answer to this one. Public Enemies is not about John Dillinger the man, it is about John Dillinger the icon, and how people respond to that legend.
At the core of the film is a powerful love story. But it seems Director Michael Mann’s profoundly great piece of film art will likely go sorely underappreciated.
Synopsis
Public Enemies follows nascent FBI and legendary agent Melvin Purvis in his crusade against the gangs of bank robbers that terrorize the US during the Great Depression.
John Dillinger, a charming, charismatic figure, captivates the public with his daring raids on banks, which were hated by common people for their hand in the financial crisis. As Dillinger’s robberies and jail escapes become the stuff of legend, more gangsters join his bad and more copycats appear all over the country.
Their loot hauls and body count climb, FBI director J. Edgar Hoover decides Dillinger’s capture is the kind of story that can catapult his new agency into national promience. He assigns the photogenic Purvis to lead the manhunt.
Scene 1
(J. Edgar Hoover has just submitted his proposal to increase bureau funding.)
