Movie Review/Breakdown: Public Enemies (2009) - Full Spoilers

Type of Movie - True Anti-Hero Movie; At one level it is a boy meets girl, boy loses girl, boy gets girl again role.

Notes:

-Johnny Depp Excellent - One of his best

-Good amount of exciting action scenes with real weight to them; People good and bad, die.

-J. Edgar Hoover and Old FBI Man are strong minor characters

-Christian Bale role waaay under-written and performance is flat

-Movie is a bit too long for the content; it ebbs and flows

-Liked the rich quantity of characters

-Bank robberies were OK but underwhelming

-Story structure is subtle

-Dillenger character development is undersold.

-Sometimes you don't know where the movie is going.

Act I: Establish Characters, Dillenger falls in love but still lives for the thrill

End of Act I: Dillenger captured

Act II: Dillenger tries to fight his way back to the top; He wants to merge his love affair with his criminal lifestyle

End of Act II: Dillenger's crew is killed

Act III: Dillenger wants to retire. He's learned there is more to life than living moment to moment and that he has to chose between his girl and his criminal ways. He chooses the girl.

End of Movie: Dillenger dies with true love in his heart.

On Second Look - 24 Day 4: Episode 1 (7 to 8 AM)

One great innovation (or tool, if somebody else did it first) of 24 is the fast forward that occurs in between seasons. It allows a new, mysterious continuum to form and then be discovered piece by piece by the viewer. This episode begins to reveal that new continuum while setting events in motion. I like that. The first episode should be filled with hints and teases.
I forgot how bad the dialogue and acting was on 24. Even Jack Bauer and Cloe absolutely murder some of their lines.

LUDICROUS MOMENT: A suspect has been brought into CTU regarding a terrorist attack that has just occurred. There is also chatter about a possible 8AM attack. Jack Bauer is no longer with CTU but is visiting in his role as laison for the Secretary of Defense. After less than five minutes of interrogation by CTU, Jack takes it upon himself to not only break into the interrogation room holding the suspect and lock himself in there with him, but then, after failing to illicit information via yelling and table throwing, SHOOTS the suspect in the leg AND THEN begin TORTURING him by digging the tip of his pistol into the suspect's wound. Jack is incredulous when CTU actually takes him into custody after he does this.