So when i was telling some local friends about what I had to say about Leo in Romeo and Juliet some of them were like "dude, that's a bit harsh" so i figured I would create some balance by showcasing a film that I though Leo did a better-than-average job.
I know that yesterday I said that most of Leo's films are good in spite of him rather than because of him and I still believe that today. I sill believe that most of Leo Dicaprio films would be just a little bit better if they were say, Matt Damon films instead. However, Leo's portrayal of Frank Abagnale was pretty good and if i think about it, it is difficult for me to imagine anyone else playing this role. He did well and the film is very entertaining most likely because he never had to shout and accidentally have his baby voice crack (jeez that annoys me.) Ok, I am starting to be mean again. Let's get back on track
Catch me if you can is a true story about how Frank Abagnale, a son of a poor but honest family in New York who wanted a better life than his parents had. He realizes at a very young age that he is very good at lying and is able to con people out of money due to his ability and confidence.
This eventually escalates into having a number of high paying, high profile jobs such as lawyer, doctor, and the main one that is focused on is his stint as an airline pilot of Pan-Am where he successfully manages to cash millions of dollars in bogus payroll checks that he makes himself.
Frank is extremely intelligent and likely could have achieved all of these things had he just decided to do them, but like most con-men, he prefers the shortcut route and is smart enough to evade the authorities time and time again. If this seems like spoilers I apologize but trust me, there is a lot more to this film than what I am stating here.
Tom Hanks plays the role of Carl Hanratty, an unusual FBI agent who relentlessly pursues Frank all around the world. However for the most part, Frank is always a step or two ahead of Carl.
The story is more compelling to me than most films because I love a great story that also happens to be based in truth. They elaborate from time to time but I wouldn't get too hung up on that. There are some inaccuracies but Spielberg insisted that the film would be as accurate as possible and even real-life Frank Abagnale testifies that a vast majority of the film is extremely accurate, particularly in the portrayal of the cons.
The main reason why i featured this is because I feel a little bit bad from time-to-time about how harsh I am on Leo. He just annoys me in a lot of his roles, that's all. However, while I don't think his performance is exceptional in this one, he shows that he is worth the money that he is paid and of course, the studios probably didn't mind the $300 million that this film managed to make overall. See this one if you are one of the few people that haven't.