With exams over and a month of freedom, many Muhlenberg students
took advantage of their winter break by spending time sleeping, hanging
with friends, and of course, going to the movies. Among 2002’s crop
of holiday movies available for viewing was Steven
Spielberg’s Catch
Me If You Can, starring Leonardo
DiCaprio and Tom
Hanks.
From the funky opening credits cartoon through the scrolling text
at the end detailing what became of the characters, Catch Me If
You Can is an entertaining chase movie that will certainly keep
audiences engaged, despite a running time of over two hours. The plot
of Catch Me If You Can is based on the true-life story of
Frank
W. Abagnale, Jr., a con artist who got to travel, drive expensive
cars, and wine and dine beautiful women in the ‘60s. All of these
luxuries were financed by money Frank acquired from creating false
identities and writing hundreds of fraudulent checks. Among his different
identities, Frank posed as a Pan
Am pilot, a doctor, and a lawyer. Part of what makes this movie
so captivating is the fact that the plot makes conning look so easy,
not to mention glamorous. His ploys never get boring, and although
the scams may appear to be unachievable in reality, Frank executes
them perfectly and believably onscreen.
Frank is hotly pursued by FBI Agent
Carl Hanratty, portrayed by Tom Hanks. Hanratty always seems to be
a step behind Frank, but he doggedly continues his search for the
criminal. Hanks is able to do much with a role that would probably
appear boring and stuffy if played by a lesser actor. As the felon
that Hanks’ character pursues, DiCaprio adequately conveys the youthful
charm of Frank, who is only seventeen when he begins his life of crime.
He is a character that’s hard to hate, and one almost wants to cheer
him on as he pulls off one trick after another. DiCaprio seems to
enjoy this role, and he convincingly appears to be older than he really
is, an asset that probably helped the real Frank Abagnale, Jr. to
succeed in his schemes.
Some of the events in this movie have been “Hollywood-ized”
for dramatic effect, including Frank’s romance with Brenda Strong,
a nurse with whom he works when he pretends to be a doctor. Their
“love” for each other seems a bit forced and unbelievable, but this
does not sour the entire movie. Pacing problems also plague the movie
occasionally, although for the most part, the film rolls right along
at a viewable pace. By the end of the Catch Me If You Can,
Frank’s inevitable arrest seems drawn out, but at no point does the
movie severely drag.
Thanks to a talented cast and skilled directing, in addition to a
captivating storyline, this is one of the better films to come out
this past holiday season. If you haven’t already seen it, catch it
if you can.
