Review of Catch Me If You Can

Introduction

Spielberg`s fictionalised account of the exploits of con-man supreme Frank William Abagnale Jr is a gripping if somewhat slow-moving wallow in the look and sound of the 1960s. The degree to which the story is fictionalised comes as something of a disappointment, but the movie is definitely worth more than a cursory viewing.

Abagnale (that`s a-bag-nail) ran away from home when his parents divorced while he was in high school. In the following five years, he successfully passed himself off as an airline pilot, a doctor and a lawyer and forged over $4million in counterfeit cheques. Once caught by the FBI, he served four years of a twelve year sentence before being seconded to the FBI`s fraud investigation squad as a counterfeiting expert. Since working out his sentence with the FBI, he has turned his security skills into a multi-million dollar consultancy business. Now who said crime doesn`t pay?

Leonardo DiCaprio takes the lead, turning in a performance that is not overshadowed by sinking liners. He comes across as basically amoral. He doesn`t steal from little people, he defrauds large corporations and he does it all by convincing people he is who he isn`t. DiCaprio`s youthful looks are no handicap in this piece as Abagnale`s exploits ended at the tender age of 21.

The movie is almost, but not quite, stolen from him by Tom Hanks as his FBI nemesis Carl Hanratty. Hanratty`s tenacity and self-righteousness about Abagnale`s exploits are just sufficient to keep you from liking him - at least until the end when he takes on an almost fatherly interest in Frank (once he`s doing time for his crimes). Frequently, the movie plays as a two-hander between DiCaprio and Hanks, but they are also supported by an excellent cast of well-known faces and a few exciting new ones. Christopher Walken turns in a fascinatingly strange (Bafta award-winning) performance as Frank Abagnale Sr whose life is one failure after another. Nathalie Baye is his French-born wife who drifts rapidly away from him into the arms of a fellow Rotarian as the IRS investigates his business. Martin Sheen plays his Lutheran would-be father-in-law.

The feel of the early-to-mid 1960s is caught magnificently by the design of the movie. Even the title sequence has the air of Saul Bass about it and John Williams` score is pretty eclectic. With its centralisation on the Abagnale character rather than the good guy Hanratty, I couldn`t help feeling there was a slightly Hitchcocky air about the story - you feel you want Abagnale to win.

Video

The picture is absolutely spotless. Colourful, vibrant, beautifully shot by Janusz Kaminski this is real movie-making. If there are any special effects, they`re unnoticeable. Presented in anamorphic 1.85:1, the movie progresses from muted tones to almost psychedelic colours as Frank`s success at what he does leads him from adventure to adventure.

Audio

Similarly wonderful is the soundtrack which comes in both DD5.1 and DTS flavours. Of the two, the DTS mix is undoubtedly the more heavyweight, more presence-y. Although not a terribly "tricky" soundtrack, you are enveloped in the sound, with the usual atmospheric sound effects often coming at you from all angles. John Williams` progressive Jazz score is just right for the movie, which also showcases a number of mid-to-late sixties hits. Sinatra`s "Come Fly With Me" is the inevitable accompaniment to Abagnale`s flight from Miami International Airport.

Features

They had to stick these on a second disc for the bandwidth of the movie. While not exactly overwhelming, these give a nice, light Electronic Press Kit background to the movie, the stars and the music. The real Frank Abagnale Jr features extensively in the extras which unfortunately do a lot of back-slapping and ego-boosting for all concerned. There`s a very interesting piece with the film`s FBI advisor about the way the Feds operated in the 1960s. A most noticeable absence on the movie disc is any kind of yak track. Spielberg hates these, so the lack of one is hardly surprising. Both the movie and most of the extras have HOH subtitles.

Conclusion

One of Spielberg`s better efforts. Not quite as crowd-pleasing as his better known works, or as deep as his "serious" works, "Catch Me If You Can" is a satisfying caper-piece and well worth the price of the disc. As I said at the beginning, the movie bears at least a couple of viewings to get the hang of the story and to appreciate the work that went into reproducing the 1960s in the movie.