Public Enemies

20092009
RR
2h 20m

Johnny Depp in Public Enemies (2009)

FBI agent Melvin Purvis (Bale) sets his sights on American gangster John Dillinger (Depp) and others in an attempt to curb a rampant Chicago crime spree during the 1930s.

Play trailer2:33

Action Biography Crime

The Feds try to take down notorious American gangsters John Dillinger, Baby Face Nelson and Pretty Boy Floyd during a booming crime wave in the 1930s.The Feds try to take down notorious American gangsters John Dillinger, Baby Face Nelson and Pretty Boy Floyd during a booming crime wave in the 1930s.The Feds try to take down notorious American gangsters John Dillinger, Baby Face Nelson and Pretty Boy Floyd during a booming crime wave in the 1930s.

Director
- Michael Mann
Writers
- Ronan Bennett(screenplay)
- Michael Mann(screenplay)
- Ann Biderman(screenplay)
Stars

See production, box office & company info

See more at IMDbPro

Awards
- 1 win & 14 nominations

Videos6

Public Enemies

Public Enemies: Crime Technology

Featurette 2:23

Public Enemies: Crime Technology

Public Enemies: Character profiles

Featurette 3:04

Public Enemies: Character profiles

Public Enemies: Actual locations

Featurette 2:40

Public Enemies: Actual locations

Public Enemies: London Premiere

Public Enemies: London Premiere

Public Enemies: Press Conference

Public Enemies: Press Conference

Photos203

Marion Cotillard in Public Enemies (2009)

Johnny Depp in Public Enemies (2009)

Johnny Depp in Public Enemies (2009)

Johnny Depp in Public Enemies (2009)

Johnny Depp and Christian Bale in Public Enemies (2009)

Michael Mann in Public Enemies (2009)

Johnny Depp in Public Enemies (2009)

Johnny Depp in Public Enemies (2009)

Christian Bale in Public Enemies (2009)

Billy Crudup in Public Enemies (2009)

Christian Bale and Billy Crudup in Public Enemies (2009)

Michael Mann in Public Enemies (2009)

Director
- Michael Mann
Writers
- Ronan Bennett(screenplay)
- Michael Mann(screenplay)
- Ann Biderman(screenplay)
All cast & crew
See more cast details at IMDbPro

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The difficult 1930s is a time of robbers who knock over banks and other rich targets with alarming frequency. Of them, none is more notorious than John Dillinger, whose gang plies its trade with cunning efficiency against big businesses while leaving ordinary citizens alone. As Dillinger becomes a folk hero, FBI head J. Edger Hoover is determined to stop his ilk by assigning ace agent Melvin Purvis to hunt down Dillinger. As Purvis struggles with the manhunt's realities, Dillinger himself faces an ominous future with the loss of friends, dwindling options and a changing world of organized crime with no room for him. —Kenneth Chisholm (kchishol@rogers.com)

celebrity criminal manhunt great depression ends with biographical notes mafia 307 more

Taglines
- America's Most Wanted
Genres
Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)
- Rated R for gangster violence and some language
Parents guide

Trivia
Although Billie Frechette was never given a "third degree" interrogation by the FBI, as shown in the movie, the FBI agents did, in fact, perform similar tactics on Helen Nelson (the wife of Baby Face Nelson), Alvin Karpis, and a John Dillinger associate in Chicago named James Probasco. In the instance of Probasco, he ended up falling to his death from a upper-floor window. Offically, it is believed he committed suicide in order to avoid further interrogation. However, some historians believe that the FBI agents interrogating Probasco attempted to make him talk by hanging him out of a window, and that they lost their grip on him.

Goofs
The Billie Holiday songs heard on the radio were not recorded until the late thirties, long after John Dillinger's death. She had recorded only two songs before the time of the film, Your Mother's Son-in-law and Riffin' the Scotch, neither of which are heard in it. (When Dillinger died in July 1934 Holiday was a little-known cabaret singer in New York, so it's unlikely a live show of hers would have been broadcast anywhere, let alone as far from her home base as Chicago.)

Quotes
John Dillinger: I was raised on a farm in Moooresville, Indiana. My mama died when I was three, my daddy beat the hell out of me cause he didn't know no better way to raise me. I like baseball, movies, good clothes, fast cars, whiskey, and you... what else you need to know?

Crazy credits
The title of the movie is not shown until the end credits.

Connections
Edited into The Rotten Tomatoes Show: Watchmen/Shuttle/12 (2009)

Soundtracks
Guide Me O Thou Great Jehovah
Sung by members of the Indian Bottom Association Old Regular Baptists
Courtesy of Smithsonian Folkways Recordings

Top review

7/10

Decent film with room for improvement

Public Enemies is a crime drama based on the true story of the infamous bank robber of the 1930's, John Dillinger. Johnny Depp does an outstanding job playing the main character, but I don't feel that this is his best performance. Perhaps it is a lacking script that causes the unimpressive characterization. Christian Bale plays the FBI agent chasing Dillinger with fervor. His betrayal seems a bit dry and lackluster. The story is interesting and well paced, but there is slightly too much time put into the setup and not enough in the execution of the plot. The action sequences are quick and the machine gun shoot-outs are mind blowing. Overall, I left the theater feeling that this was a decent film with room for improvement. It is worth a watch, especially if you like the period portrayed. I give this movie 7 stars for a just-above mediocre production. I hope this review was helpful. -MovieJuice

helpful•13

1

MovieJuice
Mar 26, 2018

Release date
- July 1, 2009 (United States)
Countries of origin
- United States
- Japan
Language
- English
Also known as
- Xalq dushmanlari
Filming locations
- Oshkosh, Wisconsin, USA
Production companies
See more company credits at IMDbPro

Budget
- $100,000,000 (estimated)
Gross US & Canada
- $97,104,620
Opening weekend US & Canada
- $25,271,675
- Jul 5, 2009
Gross worldwide
- $214,104,620

See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

Runtime
2 hours 20 minutes
Color
- Color
- Black and White
Sound mix
Aspect ratio
- 2.35 : 1

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