'Public Enemies' a real gem

Director: Michael Mann

Cast: Johnny Depp, Christian Bale, Marion Cotillard, Stephen Graham, channing Tatum, Billy Crudup

Cert: 15

A glorious modernisation of all those classic gangster films from Warner … honed to perfection by the period detail, the music, the atmosphere and the performances into one of the best films of the year.

It’s the story of notorious hoods John Dillinger (Depp at his most compelling), Baby Face Nelson (Graham) and Pretty Boy Floyd (Tatum at his most psychopathic) and the battle waged against them by the FBI led by Hoover (a terrific contribution from Crudup) and agent Melvin Purvis (Bale in knock-out form).

It’s packed with the expected action and solid chemistry between Depp and Bale but it also presents us with interesting questions.

These guys were thugs and yet they still fascinate us – take the case of Floyd, as brought to us by Tatum: he’s mad but he’s sympathetic – and, however reluctantly, we are with them all the way.

Mann simply illustrates why there is no other director who can craft such a film, a gem in all respects.

Star Rating: 5/5