Black Mass - L'ultimo gangster

Now this is what I call a quality movie. One of those movies you truly enjoy from the first to the last second. And the fact that it is based on a true story makes it even better. Johnny Depp absolutely runs the whole movie. The other actors did a great job as well but Depp is the actor that gives an exceptional performance. Don't expect to see the Depp you are used to because they transformed is whole look and you barely recognize him. Black Mass, the story of James 'Whitey' Bulger (played by Johnny Depp) is very interesting and pleasant to watch if you are into crime and Mafia stories. For sure, one of the better movies I saw in the last months.

According to Kevin Weeks, a member of Whitey Bulger's Winter Hill Gang, "The only resemblance to Whitey's character was the hairline.... The mannerisms--the way Whitey talked to us--he never swore at us. In all the years I was with that man, he never swore at me once. We never yelled at each other.... The language is all wrong...and Whitey would never have berated Stevie, either. Stevie was a psychopath. Stevie would have killed him...Stevie wasn't all sympathetic, mourning and sorrowful like he is in the movie. Stevie enjoyed murder." Of course, a gang leader who bullies his thugs may not have much future. Why this discrepancy? I suppose Hollywood people assume that gangsters are always menacing. The thought that they are often charming and solicitous would not occur to Hollywood people, who have more experience in offices than on the street. It's more fun and easier to have the bad guy twirl his mustache or dress in black than to create a nuanced, complex character. Leaders lead because their followers have selected them. Still, for people who haven't met many murderers, Johnny Depp's performance is very convincing.

I was very interested in watching this film as a true-crime buff. We all understand that there will be a certain amount of theatrical license taken whenever dealing with such subject matter. I didn't expect it to be too far off base from reality since the Whitey Bulger fiasco has been highly publicized. Johnny Depp was a little odd choice in my opinion by his been known to pull bigger rabbits on the hat (even literally). Good to have Johnny Depp reminders every once in while he's a legitimate actor not just trying to fund additional island property.

The problem in films of this nature tend to be how familiar the general public is with the issues and our opinions of what we believe reality to be. We hold film a little too stringently against reality or at least what the media has presented as reality to most of us. I would like to think that enough due diligence has gone into whatever form of dramaturgy has happened by responsible parties to present a relatively balanced film. But in general we want the grit and grime without regard for legalities or implications.

True, the film focuses on alliances and the levity provided that we have always suspected. And we have seen a ton of films in this genre with such focus and we have fabricated our own concepts of how such organizations work, how such unholy alliances are formed, and therefore have an expectation of what we should see. This past history in turn doesn't really provide a fair shake for any film in the current time frame as we have so much the compare it to.

I believe that the real demystification of this spell (not to say the cast wasn't good or to question the deftness of Depp) is that we seem to have seen this story a lot. We know how it ends, we realize there's very little arc and we'd like to see a twist to the hat trick that we haven't seen before... If it sticks to the reality of the situation, it's simply not gonna happen.

Does it deliver? Yes. Is it a Tarantino yarn? Not remotely. Will you be entertained, to a greater extent? Yes.

I think this year DiCaprio may have Depp on this one.

The icy blue eyes of notorious Boston crime boss James "Whitey" Bulger stare out from the screen in Scott Cooper's "Black Mass" like the gaze of some confident jungle predator calmly lying in wait, holding his ground until the moment he moves in for the kill. And that same coolly calculated composure extends to every aspect of how the actor playing Bulger embodies the role, or rather disappears into it. But if Johnny Depp's mesmerizing performance — a bracing return to form for the star after a series of critical and commercial misfires — is the chief selling point of "Black Mass," there is much else to recommend this sober, sprawling, deeply engrossing evocation of Bulger's South Boston fiefdom and his complex relationship with the FBI agent John Connolly, played with equally impressive skill by Joel Edgerton. Something of an anti-"The Departed" (which was partly inspired by the Bulger case), the movie has an intentionally muted, '70s-style look and feel that may limit its appeal to the date-night multiplex crowd, but quality- starved adult moviegoers should flock to one of the fall's first serious, awards-caliber attractions. Not only that but Benedict Cumberbatch (who plays as a Senator and as Whitey's brother) has given a stellar performance. He is truly a talented person who gives his all in every film/show he acts.

BOTTOM LINE: Johnny Depp deserves an Oscar, if not then at least a nomination. Truly worth watching

In the 70's, the Irish criminal James "Whitey" Bulger (Johnny Depp) is the leader of the Winter Hill Gang in South Boston after imprisonments for many years. His brother William "Billy" Bulger (Benedict Cumberbatch) is a Massachusetts Senator. When the ambitious FBI agent John Connolly (Joel Edgerton) is assigned to investigate the mafia in Boston, he proposes a deal to Whitey, who is a childhood friend, to become an FBI informant; in return, the FBI would neglect any investigation of his gang. They take down the Italian mob with Whitey's information while Whitey becomes one of the most powerful and notorious gangsters in South Boston. But when the prosecutor Fred Wyshak (Corey Stoll) is assigned to Boston, he demands investigation of Whitey despite the interference of Connolly and Whitey becomes one of the FBI's Ten Most Wanted List criminals.

"Black Mass" is another crime film based on the biography of a notorious gangster, this time the criminal James "Whitey" Bulger in South Boston. The impressive performance of Johnny Depp is maybe the greatest attraction of this movie. The story is like many others of notorious American gangsters, with violence, corruption and justice in the end. "Black Mass" never disappoints fans of this genre and the production is careful with the atmosphere in the late 70's and 80's. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "Aliança do Crime" ("Crime Alliance")