Ever since Francis Ford Coppola abdicated the rights in 1974 after The Godfather II, no one has mastered the crime epic better than Michael Mann. Mann's Heat (1995) is, in my opinion, flawless. It's inevitable that his latest film, Public Enemies, will be compared to that masterpiece and it is not an unfair comparison.
Indeed, Mann seems to invite the association, making it impossible to ignore. Public Enemies is Heat with fedoras, a gangster epic that is easily the best and most rewarding thing the director has done in more than a decade, an intensely visceral tour-de-force. In a summer season tailor made for teenagers, Mann has come out with something perfect for adults.
Public Enemies stars Johnny Depp as John Dillinger, the notorious bank robber who gained folk hero status among the populace in the 1930s for robbing the banks believed responsible for the Great Depression, and Christian Bale as dashing FBI agent Melvin Purvis, the man appointed by J. Edgar Hoover (Billy Crudup) to bring him to justice.
A sort of Robin Hood, Dillinger was an almost mythological figure, a charming bandit who treated the public with the utmost respect; they, in turn, sheltered him from a police force always a step or two behind. Dillinger's exploits only fueled his iconic status--he cleared out banks in record time and mounted audacious escapes from jail. Dillinger's mockery of the law--and the lawmen assigned to stop him--was the perfect impetus for the fledgling Federal Bureau of Investigation, which labeled him the country's first Public Enemy Number One, and charged Purvis with taking him down by any means necessary. Frustrated by the criminal mastermind at every turn, Purvis traded in his Yale-trained special agents for a posse of Texas lawmen, initiating a bloody, urban showdown.
Public Enemies is about the dawning of a new age. Agent Purvis constantly tells his men that the only way they will catch their prey is if they leave the antiquated tools of police work behind and embrace modern technology. Hoover too makes this contention when he tells Purvis that the ends justify the means when it comes to apprehending Dillinger. We live in a new, modern age, he tells Purvis, and we must adapt our methods to fit it and abandon polite civility. One wonders if Mann is intentionally trying to evoke the language of former Vice President Cheney, when he said America must embrace cruelty in order to survive in a cruel world. In the end, Dillinger is not brought down by modern police work so much as by a progressive criminal enterprise that leaves him and his anachronistic methods in the dust.
Depp, so good at being the chameleon, is also great at playing it straight. While Dillinger is charismatic when the news cameras are rolling, he is a very different man in private. Purvis, whom we never really get to know as anything other than a man singularly possessed of an all-consuming mission, is even more elusive. Bale sports an accent that is difficult to accept at first but is a welcome change after growling his way through The Dark Knight and Terminator Salvation. Like DeNiro and Pacino in Heat, the two men are embodiments of the two-faced Roman god Janus. Both are cut from the same cloth and temperament, opposite sides of the same coin.
Dillinger's two personas are seen best in his relationship with Billie Frechette (La vie en Rose's Marion Cotillard), a poor coat check girl whom Dillinger sweeps out of her placid, going-nowhere world into a heady existence of excitement and glamour. She is memorable specifically because she is not a vampish torch singer but a poor girl in a cheap dress without two pennies to rub together. Dillinger does not go for her because he finds her a vulnerable target, but because she is singularly authentic. With her he can simply be a man, not a criminal celebrity.
Public Enemies spends much of its running time addressing the cult of celebrity. Its villain hero is more relatable and far more human than its knight in shining armor. Dillinger is a likable rogue, a criminal who eschews violence as often as possible, who goes out of his way to protect the public, and a crafty entrepreneur who understands that the media spotlight that seeks his scalp is also the most effective PR tool at his disposal. Dillinger uses his celebrity to craft a public persona. When he is captured by the police, thousands line the streets giddily to get a glimpse of him, and cops and prosecutors pose arm in arm with him. Mann blurs the line of persona even further in the film's penultimate scene in which one of Dillinger's last acts on earth is taking in a gangster movie staring Clark Gable.
Mann was one of the first directors to embrace digital technology. Working with famed cinematographer Dante Spinotti, Mann employs HD (as well as quite a bit of shaky cam), a method I feared, from the trailers, would be far more distracting than it really was. I was concerned that the HD cameras would jar me from the immersion of the period, calling attention to the equipment used to produce it rather than be the world it reproduces. Instead, the digital format gave the film an odd sense of hyper-reality. The amount of detail and depth of field is breathtaking. Most noticeably employed in night scenes (not coincidently the occasion of several of the gun battles), the digital medium gave it a greater air of authenticity, one more level of veracity that made the incandescent muzzle flashes, singing bullets and sickening collisions with either wood or human flesh that much more frightening.
Most firefights are shot with an aesthetic nod to what looks most glamorous and evocative. But this is the director of Heat and its seminal cinematic heart--a firefight on a crowded L.A. street--which is still the standard by which all gunfights are judged. Here, Mann trades aesthetics for claustrophobia and pandemonium. There is nothing exhilarating about being in a Mann shootout. They are terrifying, primal, visceral experiences.
Public Enemies is exactly what you'd want and expect from a gangster movie. Mobsters hang off car running boards, bags of loot in one hand, chattering Tommy guns in the other. This movie isn't all that different than the ones James Cagney used to make, though the R-rated world is a lot tougher and more realistic. Like all Mann's films, there are lulls of peace punctuated by fits of extreme and brutal violence. Gangsters don't crumple bloodlessly like in the olden days, they are hewn where they stand, leaking crimson like human sieves.
Mann isn't interested in making a historical film so much as a psychological one. While Public Enemies sticks mostly to history and never plays especially fast and loose with the facts, details are secondary. His leads are not moral archetypes but highly skilled professionals with deeply flawed emotional cores. Mann, a perfectionist and modern auteur in a way that very few directors today are, strives to strike a balance between glamorizing his famous subject and painting him as the sociopath he obviously was. He places his men (for while there are women in his films, his is a deeply phallocentric world dominated by hyper masculine superstars) in crisis situations and then stands back to see how they will react. Public Enemies is his most ambitious project to date, a film in which he shows complete mastery and control over each and every element of the production. Technically and artistically, Public Enemies is a sterling film, a supremely mounted epic of the sort few are willing to undertake anymore.
SOURCE: Christianity Today
Comments |  RSS |
|
major league register you admit
good quality post thanks
This must be avoided at all costs.
very good \o/
Been visiting this blog for a while now, though I might comment and let you know to keep up the great writing!
Credit score reviews perform a important part within our life as if you have got decent score in that case you might be considered to get personal loans at good interest levels along with lesser monthly charges.
Been visiting this site for a while now, though I should comment and let you know to keep up the great posts!
Great! Thanks for post
There are some interesting points in time therein article but I don't know if I see all of them center to eye . There is some validness but I will hold legal opinion until I look into it further. Good clause, thanks and we want more! Added to FeedBurner besides.
When I open your RSS feed it throws up a bunch of garbled text, is the issue on my end?
good quality post thanks
TY for the useful information! I would never have discovered this on my own!
Once more information. very easy to advice I really liked reading I was doing, and this kind of.
Vehicle service contracts are a good investment. When your vehicle breaks down the contract pays the invoice. We have a warranty on our Murcury.
I have put your site to my favorites. And I’ll certainly I read your articles a little more often... Stay frosty and keep up the first-rate work. ;)
Been visiting this site for a while now, though I should comment and let you know to keep up the good work!
thanks good post
Once more document. can stuff like this looking at I was doing, and precisely what I needed.
Thank you fantastic. get stuff like this noticed I have a presentation, and trying to find such.
Way to go I really really enjoyed reading this web page.;-)
You gave nice ideas here. I done a research on the issue and learnt most peoples will agree with your blog. Ever Considered Moving your Banking Over to at the Credit Unions?
i wanted to say here for written here was absolutely in store. . had I can't
i am really appreciating,woow very informative.....great job thank's...!
recently. online actually clearly familiar with
post view of the topic. excellent, It is nice to see views that interesting and effective in nature.
A topic close to my heart cheers, found you through Bing.
Trusting to make the right decisions can be tough. It can take many people a long time to build a strong moral system. Frankly it takes more than just happening to happen.
Do you know that your site looks really strange in Opera on my office computer Ubuntu .
This makes me somewhat upset. I'm not calling you out though, really I think its everyone else that is responsible.
An cool blog post there mate ! Cheers for it .
It is expected for to increase in value.
Wow. This site is cool. How did you make it look like this !
I will show you several examples soon although this was quite potent.
I agree with this, Half a loaf is better than none.
Keep working, wonderful job! Just the thing I needed to know.
Your RSS feed doesn't work in my browser (google chrome) how can I fix it?
Ohh very much thanks admin
very good \o/
This article view of the issue. pleased, i love to read articles that enlightening worthwhile in nature.
Hi! Your article rocks and is really a very good understand!…
thanks good post
Educational post, this is. It is definitely good to see a post that is useful.
Hi! Your article rocks and is really a very good understand!…
Simply thought I might remark and say neat theme, did you create it yourself? Really appears to be like superior!
Do you know that your site looks really strange in Safari on my Mac .
thanks good post
I really enjoyed this article. That is nice when you find something that is not only informative but entertaining. Awesome!
Excellent post this will really help me.
good quality post thanks
I discovered your site earlier this morning whilst I was researching in Google for some other information totally different. Nice distraction!!!
I admire your website , it’s filled of lot of information. You just got a perennial visitor of this site.
This is great! Where do you find this stuff?
Interesting article, thank you! Can you tell me about the second paragraph in more detail?
thank you for sharing with us, I think this website truly stands out : D.
post a realistic look at the issue. perception, i love to read articles that make sense and are worthwhile anyway.
some truly interesting details you have written.
Clarence Darrow~ Even if you do learn to speak correct English whom are you going to speak it to
Awesome work there. signed up to your rss feed!
I never spit in your drink; why do you smoke in my air?
Discovery is seeing what everybody else has seen, and thinking what nobody else has thought. -Albert Szent-gyorgi
Thank you for another greet post. Keep rocking.
A man brings his wife a glass of water and two aspirins. She looks surprised and says, I don't have a headache! He says, Aha!
Whenever I come to your blog now, the text looks really small. Did you change something with your design? I can't read the type when it's like this. Please advise, I don't want to miss your great posts! Thanks.
Awesome web site! I have to say that I am definitely lovin it.. I have just subscribed to your websites feed also and I will be coming back again very soon!!! thanks alot.
I saw something about that subject on TV last night. Good post.
Please, keep up the excellent work and continue to post topics like this. I am old fan of your blog!
I saw something about this topic on TV last night. Great post.
I discovered your blog this afternoon when I was researching in Yahoo for some other information entirely different. It was surprisingly insigthful from what I was originally looking for.. :)
good quality post thanks
Do you know that your site looks a little bit strange in Mozilla on my office computer Ubuntu .
With all the doggone snow we have gotten recently I am stuck indoors, fortunately there is the internet, thanks for giving me something to do. :)
Please, keep up the awesome work and continue to post topics like this. I am really fan of your page!
Excellent post.
Good thorough ideas here.I'd like to suggest taking a look at a lot around the idea of french fries. What exactly are you looking for though?
Hey, cool website. I really came across this on Bing, and that i am stoked I did. I'll definately be revisiting here more frequently. Wish I could add to your put up and bring a little bit far more for the table, but am just absorbing as much information as I can at the second.
Thanx cosas increíbles:)
Just keep making good stuff.
Good post, thank you. I signed to your blog rss feed.
I saw something about this topic on TV last night. Great post.
Hey I like your site !
Good post this will help me!
What do you get if you cross a cat with a gorilla? An animal that puts you out a night.
Excellent, but it would be better if in future you can share more about this topic. posts.
Hello.This article was extremely fascinating, especially since I was browsing for thoughts on this issue last Thursday.
I have been examinating out a few of your stories and i can claim pretty good stuff. I will definitely bookmark your site.
We'll dig deeper.
Good post this will help me.
This is tough. I'm not calling you out though, personally I think that its those that aren't motivated to change.
Ohh very much thanks admin
I cling on to listening to the news talk about receiving free online grant applications so I have been looking around for the best site to get one. Could you advise me please, where could i find some?
Ohh very much thanks admin
I'm still learning from you, but I'm trying to reach my goals. I absolutely liked reading everything that is posted on your site.Keep the stories coming. I enjoyed it!
It would make a lot of sense if I must hide from it as best as they can.
Great! Thanks for post
Your RSS feed doesn't work in my browser (google chrome) how can I fix it?
Just keep doing good stuff.
Hello. splendid job. I did not anticipate this. This is a fantastic story. Thanks!
Nice post, please visit my site Traffic Reloaded
Your RSS feed doesn't work in my browser (google chrome) how can I fix it?
Useful post, this is. It is definitely pleasant to come across a post that is helpful.
You want to take the time to pick the one you like.
Very good written article. It will be helpful to anybody who employess it, including me. Keep doing what you are doing - i will definitely read more posts.
is the fight only going to be pay per view
Ohh very much thanks admin
Good post, thanks! Could you tell us about the first paragraph more? Visit Traffic Reloaded Review
yesss very thanks man i love this site
Enjoyed your site
Your RSS feed doesn't work in my browser (google chrome) how can I fix it?
Interesting article, thank you. Can you tell me about the first paragraph more? Visit Traffic Reloaded
Definitely, what a fantastic site and educative posts, I definitely will bookmark your website.Best Regards!
Hey, just wanted to say that as a business attorney I found your blog to be excellent and informative. Take a look at my blog and give me feedback if you would, since I'm fairly new at this.
Do you know that your site looks really weird in Mozilla on my Mac .
The best website Ive found in a long time, good content and writen in a way that kept my attention.
Good article, thanks. I really like it. Conversion Prophet
Nice blog, thanks. I really love it! Conversion Prophet
Hello.This article was extremely fascinating, particularly because I was browsing for thoughts on this topic last Friday.
great thanks \o/
I have been checking out many of your stories and i can state nice stuff. I will definitely bookmark your website.
Really appreciate this post. It’s hard to sort the good from the bad sometimes, but I think you’ve nailed it!
I’d have to agree with you on this. Which is not something I typically do! I really like reading a post that will make people think. Also, thanks for allowing me to comment!
Thank you
Well I sincerely liked studying it. This post procured by you is very practical for accurate planning.
There were a number of pages in this blog that appeared worthwhile in my opinion. Unfortunately when I tried subscribe to your RSS feed, I got an error message. Don’t know if you’re aware that, only thought I’d bring it to your attention.
very good \o/
It is shrewd how big shots must avoid an entangled field like this.
thank for post
Hey I like your blog !
I want to stick at that whatever happens.
Excellent
I admire your blog , it’s filled of lot of information. You just got one perennial visitor of this blog.
It is modest how comrades cannot comprehend a nefarious assignment like this.