BLACK MASS (2015) ***

Director Scott Cooper’s Black Mass tells the story of how notorious South Boston gangster Whitey Bulger (Johnny Depp) rose to power, thanks to his FBI connections.  Whitey makes an alliance with his childhood friend, John Connolly (Joel Edgerton), who is now an FBI agent, and together, they take down his criminal adversaries.  The way Whitey looks at it, it isn’t snitching.  He’s merely using the Bureau to take out his competition.  When Whitey resorts to murder to keep himself on top, it jeopardizes his arrangement with Connolly and threatens to bring them both down.  

Black Mass is a well-acted, and slick looking crime drama.  While it’s always engaging, it stops short of being completely engrossing.  Even though we’re along for the ride as Whitey ascends to become the kingpin of Boston, we never really learn what makes him tick.  Many times, the film feels like it’s rushing towards its conclusion, and in the process, it shortchanges character development (the death of Bulger’s young son feels almost like a deleted scene that somehow wound up in the movie) in favor of plot development.

Even as far as Johnny Depp gangster movies go, Black Mass comes up a little short.  It’s missing the nuance and heart that made Donnie Brasco a classic and it lacks the thrill ride bravado of Blow.  (I did like the rise to power montage set to The Rolling Stones’ “Slave” though.)  I will say it’s a lot more fun than Public Enemies.  

The performances keep you invested, even when the movie itself feels like it’s on autopilot.  Depp is particularly great as Bulger.  With his gaunt face, receding hairline, and dark shades, he often looks like Hunter S. Thompson’s evil doppelganger.  It’s a truly menacing performance.  He’s especially chilling during a dinner table discussion in which he goes from congenial to killer in the wink of an eye.  I just wish the character itself was better written.  Then again, it’s easy to dismiss the so-so script when you have a supporting cast that includes Benedict Cumberbatch, Kevin Bacon, Peter Sarsgaard, Jesse Plemons, and David Harbour perfectly matched against Depp’s sinister portrayal of an amoral criminal.  

AKA:  Strictly Criminal.