I’ve always had a soft spot for the gangster genre. Of course there is violence in these kind of movies, but the thing which I find fascinating isn’t only the hunger for power, but also the personal relationships in which trust plays a very big role and the characters gamble with their lives if that trust is harmed. Johnny Depp in the past has played several roles in the genre in movies like Blow, Donnie and Public Enemies. In this new film he plays the infamous James ‘Whitey’ Bulger in Boston.
Last year I watched the documentary Whitey: United States of America v James J. Bulger, so I was already familiar with the story. Even Jack Nicholson based his role of Frank Costello in The Departed on this criminal. Now it is Depp’s turn, who wears a lot of makeup for the role to make him look like the real Whitey. Although he certainly looks convincing in the photos I believe that in the film itself this makeup is just distracting. It’s just simply stands out that so much was done to make him look like that, that I didn’t feel like I was looking at an actual person. But that isn’t the only problem I have with the film.
Black Mass is based on a true story and is in fact a kind of biopic. Those can be made in different ways. Of course, it is important to show the big events, but there is also a certain “magic” needed to make the whole thing interesting. Earlier this year Straight Outta Compton was a good example of that, where it elevated the movie to a higher level.
Unfortunately, Black Mass can not. After seeing the film I did not really have the feeling that I got to know more about James Bulger and his motivations. It is clear that he was a brutal criminal who could not be trusted and was willing to do anything to get things done. Besides the Bulger story the movie also revolves around his relationship he has with the FBI and how the officers involved on the case are dealing with that. The film contains an impressive number of famous actors (Joel Edgerton, Benedict Cumberbatch, Kevin Bacon, Adam Scott, Corey Stoll), but they fail to breathe enough life into the story. If you are looking for a gangster movie set in Boston it would be better to watch The Departed again instead of Black Mass.
