Catch Me If You Can 2002 (Movie Review)

Dir: Steven Spielberg
Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Tom Hanks
Dur: 2 hrs 20 mins
Genre: Drama
Rating: 3.5/5
PG: Occasional swearing

This is a true story dramatized to an extent I am unaware of, of a young lad who decides to live a life of caprice without spending a pie. The story is intriguing, twisted, brilliant and yet poignant. We follow Frank Agabnale Jr. (Leonardo Di Caprio) on his adventures that take him across borders and out of the hands of the numerous police after him.

Frank, is a bright young lad and shares a very close relationship with his parents. His father’s business begins to suffer after the IRS (Internal Revenue Service) finds something wrong with his business. This blot smears out the joy of the Abagnale family as they begin to lose their possessions. Frank’s mother files for divorce and Frank escapes from home in order to leave behind his troublesome circumstances. He finds himself homeless and penniless, with nowhere to go and nothing to do. He stumbles upon the idea of issuing fake checks and carries his plan to an uncanny degree. Very soon, he has the FBI after him. He cleverly evades all attempts to capture him until finally he is cornered by the FBI hound, Carl Hanratty (Tom Hanks) who pursued him right from the time his case fell into his lap. Carl and Frank develop a kind of relationship despite the fact that they are on opposite ends of the justice spectrum. Frank was barely 19 when he was caught and his game of lies, deceit and forgery brought to an end.


The story line appeared too good to be true. I couldn’t help but marvel at Frank’s genius. Leonardo was excellent. Tom did a great job as Carl. The duos stellar performances really carry the film on. Despite being quite long, the film is engaging especially to interested minds. This drama doesn’t throw up much glitter but delights with subtlety. The story unfolds carefully and surrounds itself with the air of fascination and trickery.  

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