Black Mass (2015)

The true story of Whitey Bulger, the brother of a state senator and the most infamous violent criminal in the history of South Boston, who became an FBI informant to take down a Mafia family invading his turf.

Director:

Scott Cooper

Writers:

Mark Mallouk (screenplay), Jez Butterworth (screenplay)

Stars:

Johnny Depp, Benedict Cumberbatch, Dakota Johnson

6 wins & 24 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Johnny Depp	...	James 'Whitey' Bulger
Joel Edgerton	...	John Connolly
Benedict Cumberbatch	...	Billy Bulger
Dakota Johnson	...	Lindsey Cyr
Kevin Bacon	...	FBI Agent Charles McGuire
Peter Sarsgaard	...	Brian Halloran
Jesse Plemons	...	Kevin Weeks
Rory Cochrane	...	Stephen Flemmi
David Harbour	...	John Morris
Adam Scott	...	FBI Agent Robert Fitzpatrick
Corey Stoll	...	Fred Wyshak
Julianne Nicholson	...	Marianne Connolly
W. Earl Brown	...	John Martorano (as W Earl Brown)
Bill Camp	...	John Callahan
Juno Temple	...	Deborah Hussey

Storyline

Based on a true story of James "Whitey" Bulger, an Irish Mob godfather and a FBI informant who had a "secret trading" deal with his brother, William "Billy" Bulger, a state senator and a Boston public figure, and John Connolly, an FBI agent. They planned to take down theft Italian mob and mafia in Boston, which went awry and things turned massively violent. When the credence for each other began fading out, drug dealing, murders, and extortion started to rise, and forced the FBI's Boston office to confirm that Whitey Bulger was one of the most notorious criminals in US history and also one of the FBI's Ten Most Wanted List criminals.

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Plot Keywords:

true crime | fbi agent | gangster | boston massachusetts | based on true story | 

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Taglines:

Based on the true story of one of the most notorious gangsters in U.S. history

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Genres:

Biography | Crime | Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for brutal violence, language throughout, some sexual references and brief drug use

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official site

Country:

USA UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

18 September 2015 (USA)

Also Known As:

Pacto criminal

Filming Locations:

Harvard Club of Boston, 374 Commonwealth Ave, Boston, Massachusetts, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$53,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$22,635,037, 20 September 2015, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$62,575,678

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$99,775,678

Company Credits

Production Co:

Cross Creek Pictures, RatPac-Dune Entertainment, Grisbi Productions, Le

Technical Specs

Runtime:

123 min

Sound Mix:

Datasat Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Revere Beach in Revere, Massachusetts, just north of Boston, was transformed into Miami Beach for the Miami scenes. Filmmakers added real palm trees to the beach, and dressed up a local pizzeria, to look like a Cuban café.

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Goofs

In the movie, Whitey Bulger recruits his partner, Steve Flemmi, into becoming an FBI informant with him. In real life, FBI agent Paul Rico recruited Flemmi 10 years earlier.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Kevin Weeks: Before we start, I want you to kow something. I'm not a rat. You understand? I want that on record before we start.
DEA Agent Eric Olsen: Okay. You are not a rat. And it's on record. Mr. Weeks, the charges against you, racketeering, extortion, kidnapping, and accomplice to murder, are very serious. Am I correct in stating that you are here today to make a deal with the federal government?
Kevin Weeks: Correct.
DEA Agent Eric Olsen: And am I correct in stating that you are going from trusted confidant to one of South Boston's most ...
[...]

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Crazy Credits

As the actors are listed, pictures and footage of the real people they portrayed are shown.

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Connections

References The Godfather: Part II (1974)

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Soundtracks

Turn to Stone
Written by Joe Walsh and Terry Trabandt
Performed by Joe Walsh
Courtesy of Geffen Records
Under license from Universal Music Enterprises

User Reviews

Good Not Quite Great

Black Mass is a crime drama movie revolving around the true events behind the Winter Hill Gang and the gang's leader Whitey Bulger played by Johnny Depp. The premise for the film was very interesting as it played on Whitey Bulger's connections as his brother, William Bulger, played by Benedict Cummberbatch is a Massachusetts State Senator while one of his childhood friends John Connolly played by Joel Edgerton is an FBI agent. This an amazing premise however it was not fully executed as it focused mainly on Joel Edgerton's character and Cummberbatch's character felt out of place at times. This may have been a more realistic approach however I felt like they could have utilized Cummberbatch's character more in the film as it would have added two assets for Whitey. The Film is divided in three parts overlooking Whitey's almost twenty year reign. However because of this approach it leaves viewers wondering what happened in that time frame and feels as if it was forced to make the movie feel more like the actually events, so spread out. The cinematography and direction of the film is very crisp and sleek which makes the film a lot more enjoyable. The acting all together throughout the film is superb as it holds a stellar cast. I found Johnny Depp, Joel Edgerton,Kevin Bacon and Benedict Cummberbatch to be all great. Depp's performance was electrifying and he should get an Oscar nod but I would not be surprised if he does not get one.

Overall decent film

7/10