Tagged: Directed by Michael Mann
“Pretty Boy” Floyd’s Death in Public Enemies
80 years ago today, Depression-era outlaw Charles Arthur Floyd was shot down by federal agents and local police in a farm outside East Liverpool, Ohio.
Channing Tatum as Charles “Pretty Boy” Floyd in Public Enemies (2009).
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Channing Tatum as Charles “Pretty Boy” Floyd, charismatic but violent Depression-era outlaw
Clarkson, Ohio, October 1934
Film: Public Enemies
Release Date: July 1, 2009
Director: Michael Mann
Costume Designer: Colleen Atwood
Background
After dedicating the majority of my life to researching the Depression-era crime wave that saw guys like John Dillinger, “Pretty Boy” Floyd, and Alvin Karpis roaming the American countryside with the support of the public and the rage of the government, I was elated when I learned that Bryan Burrough’s masterful docu-novel Public Enemies was finally being turned into a film. I wondered how a two-hour movie could capture the intricacies of each colorful individual in each of the various gangs over a two-year period, and I assumed that – like Burrough – director Michael Mann would focus primarily on Karpis, the lone survivor of the original batch of Public Enemies. Continue reading
The Death of John Dillinger – 2009 Style
Johnny Depp as John Dillinger in Public Enemies (2009).
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Johnny Depp as John Dillinger, doomed Depression-era bank robber
Chicago, July 1934
Film: Public Enemies
Release Date: July 1, 2009
Director: Michael Mann
Costume Designer: Colleen Atwood
Background
While 1973’s Dillinger took a “just the facts” approach to retelling the life of bank robber John Dillinger (albeit with very exaggerated facts), Michael Mann’s Public Enemies painted the farmboy-turned-criminal as a more mythical figure. This seems to be the trend in recent years.
Forty-some years ago, the cinematic John Dillinger and Clyde Barrow were depicted as Robin Hood-type folk heroes who were cornered by relentless authorities and shot without warning. Continue reading
Heat – Neil McCauley’s Gray Double-Breasted Suit
Robert De Niro as Neil McCauley in Heat (1995).
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Robert De Niro as Neil McCauley, professional armed robber
Los Angeles, Spring 1995
Film: Heat
Release Date: December 15, 1995
Director: Michael Mann
Costume Designer: Deborah Lynn Scott
De Niro’s Costumer: Marsha Bozeman
Background
A person’s characteristics are always made plainly visible by his or her attire. Clothing gives signals that all coordinate with the person’s background, lifestyle, socioeconomic status, occupation, and personality.
In Michael Mann’s noirish 1995 masterpiece Heat, Robert De Niro and Al Pacino face off, sharing the screen for the first time (their roles in The Godfather Part II were in completely separate timelines, as you well know). De Niro plays Neil McCauley, a professional armed robber who remains cool-as-a-cucumber but can be remorselessly ruthless, and Pacino stars as LAPD Lt. Vincent Hanna, the erratic detective tasked with taking him down.
If all a person had to use were images of De Niro in the film, wearing a largely-cut gray suit and an emotionless stare while carrying a state-of-the-art firearm, it would be crystal clear that he was a hardened criminal, respected and feared by both friend and foe, but burdened with a fatal weakness yet to be determined. Continue reading
Dillinger’s Blue Jailbreak Suit in Public Enemies
Johnny Depp behind-the-scenes as John Dillinger in Public Enemies (2009).
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Johnny Depp as John Dillinger, Depression-era bank robber
Indiana, September 1934
Film: Public Enemies
Release Date: July 1, 2009
Director: Michael Mann
Costume Designer: Colleen Atwood
Background
Once again, the best shots of Dillinger’s attire in this scene from Public Enemies are from production shots, as Michael Mann’s choice of a handheld camera and extreme close-ups just show close details. However, unlike the previous Public Enemies post, Dillinger was nowhere near the incident being portrayed on film.
While Dillinger did indeed engineer the breakout of his prison buddies from the Michigan City Penitentiary on September 26, 1933 – eighty years ago yesterday – he was nowhere to be found on the day in question. Was he being smart by avoiding the situation? Was he scared?
Neither. He was in jail himself.
About a week earlier, Dillinger had managed to smuggle three .45-caliber pistols, likely the gang’s favorite Colt semi-automatics. On September 26, Harry Pierpont and Charley Makley found the marked box with the guns inside. They dug them out and, with eight other yeggs, managed to get out of prison. Unlike the film adaptation, it was relatively bloodless with no fatalities. Some of the prisoners were quickly rounded up and either killed or returned to prison, but the nexus of the Dillinger Gang: Pierpont, Makley, Russell Clark, Walter Dietrich, and John “Red” Hamilton, were now back together again. The only problem was Dillinger himself. Continue reading
Dillinger’s Brown Suit in “Public Enemies”
Johnny Depp behind the scenes as John Dillinger in Public Enemies (2009).
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Johnny Depp as John Dillinger, Depression-era bank robber
Tucson, January 1934
Film: Public Enemies
Release Date: July 1, 2009
Director: Michael Mann
Costume Designer: Colleen Atwood
Background
Seventy nine years ago today, on January 25, 1934, noted Midwest bank robber John Dillinger was arrested by a group of small-town cops in Tucson, Arizona. The arrest was notable as the Chicago police had been leading police efforts against the bandit for several months, to the point of assigning an elite team of detectives – dubbed the “Dillinger Squad” – the single task of finding Dillinger.
Public Enemies used photos of Dillinger during his arrest and subsequent interviews to recreate the dark three-piece suit he wore throughout the ordeal. Unfortunately, he ditches his coat and tie early on in the scenes, leaving only a few glimpses in the film and behind-the-scenes photos to get an idea of the full picture of the suit. Continue reading
Collateral – Vincent’s Suit
Tom Cruise as Vincent in Collateral (2004).
Vitals
Tom Cruise as Vincent, professional freelance assassin
Los Angeles, January 2004
Film: Collateral
Release Date: August 6, 2004
Director: Michael Mann
Costume Designer: Jeffrey Kurland
Tom Cruise’s Costume Designer: Kendall Errair
WARNING! Spoilers ahead!
Background
A year before he jumped up and down on Oprah’s couch, Tom Cruise played a role no one saw coming: a world-weary, cold-blooded, and ruthless paid assassin. In the film, Cruise’s assassin, Vincent, kidnaps a taxi cab driver named Max (played by Jamie Foxx) and forces him to chauffeur him to his various assassinations. Tension grows as Max realizes he is likely to be Vincent’s final kill of the night.
For his look in the Michael Mann flick, a modern take on Cary Grant’s famous North by Northwest suit was developed for Cruise’s character. The choice is an interesting contrast: in North by Northwest, Grant’s character is supposed to be an innocent nobody being chased by assassins… in Collateral, Cruise plays an assassin tormenting an innocent nobody. Continue reading
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