In discussion afterwards Paul reckoned that was partway intentional because it's supposed to be a pastiche on 1930s gangster movies, but to be honest I didn't get that impression at all. It says a lot really that the actual 1930s-era gangster film footage within the film (A Manhattan Melodrama, if anyone's curious :P) was less cliche than the 2009 nod to its origins. I found the script clunky and full of cliches (Baby Face Nelson's "Geddoudda he'e..." only reminded me of that scene in Micky Blue Eyes where Hugh Grant is being taught how to speak American) and even though it was quite nicely shot, it didn't really seem to go anywhere at any particular pace. I didn't feel for any of the characters in the slightest, which in a 'biopic' (of sorts) is surely a bad thing...
Generally it was quite enjoyable - the shoot-outs were dramatic enough, and there were a few tense moments - but I think I might have been expecting more from a film which advertised itself solely on its casting. Which clearly worked to suck me in, as I probably wouldn't have bothered if not for Johnny Depp. I did find the historical elements of the FBI quite interesting, and also J. Edgar Hoover himself, though for an entirely unrelated reason... I might elaborate on that if I feel like it - it's nothing to do with X-Files, before anyone asks. :P
I've been tired and irritible all week. I think the downpours all week haven't helped in the slightest, nor has the fact that we still don't have a functional kitchen light. The washing up has piled up, I'm falling behind on laundry (because I can't put it outside to dry and obviously the heating isn't on to dry towels, etc. on the radiators, though I have been sorely tempted the past couple of days...), and as much as I'd love to blitz my negativity into cleaning or whatnot, I just don't. have. the energy.
TGIF indeed. A quiet weekend hopefully.
*crawls under rock*
