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CATCH ME IF YOU CAN Send This Review to a Friend
Catch up with "Catch Me If You Can" if you can. Leonardo DiCaprio has a plum role in Steven Spielberg's new film about a young, super-con man. It is based on the real-life con man Frank W. Abagnale, played by DiCaprio, and the film has extra impact with Tom Hanks cast as exasperated but determined FBI agent Carl Hanratty, who hunts him down and is repeatedly given the slip. Abagnale , whose autobiography served as the basis for Jeff Nathanson's screenplay, did a stretch in prison, and then was co-opted by the FBI as an expert on the art of the con and forgery.
Spielberg gives the film breeziness a good part of the way, although the story has its dark and ironic sides. The most fun lies in Abagnale pulling off deceits in a variety of guises and situations. DiCaprio being so appealing and enjoyable in the role, it is easy to root for the con man over the law. Some of the situations are downright hilarious, as when Abagnale manages to recruit a bevy of airline hostesses as part of an escape plan.
Dramatic weight is supplied by Christopher Walken as Abagnale's loser of a father, whose performance helps us to understand the impulse of the con artist to make money that he can give his dad for all the things he wanted but couldn't afford, as well as not repeat his failure. It's another reason to be sympathetic to the perpetrator, although the cruel deception of a young woman whom he intends to marry sorely tries one's tolerance for his actions.
French actress Nathalie Baye gives added dimension playing Abagnale's mother, and Martin Sheen is effective as the victimized father of the intended bride. At two hours and twenty minutes, "Catch Me If you Can" is a bit long, but thanks to the performances and the trickery that frustrates Hanratty no end, the film works well most of the way. This isn't top level Spielberg, but it is Spielberg nonetheless and, as has been made amply clear by now, he does know how to make a movie. A DreamWorks release.
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