Gangster and mob movies have provided some of the most indelible moments in all of
cinema ranging from “White Heat” to “Goodfellas.” It seems almost impossible to add
anything new to the gangster film at this point though and it’s important to note that
director Scott Cooper’s “Black Mass” is inevitably familiar to a number of better ones
that came before. This film is handsomely mounted and provides Johnny Depp, as
career criminal James “Whitey” Bulger, with his best performance in quite some time,
but it doesn’t break new ground within the genre. “Black Mass” is ultimately entertaining
in sections if not incredibly enthralling overall despite the considerable efforts of a first
rate cast.
The film starts with one of Bulger’s former crew Kevin Weeks (Jesse Plemons of
“Breaking Bad”) testifying against him at a police station. Bulger’s transition from small-
time South Boston hood to a most powerful (and dangerous) kingpin is chronicled here
as well as the alliance that is forged between Bulger and former childhood friend and
now FBI agent John Connolly (Joel Edgerton of “Animal Kingdom”). This alliance
brought Bulger within the confines of FBI protection in exchange for crucial information
on his various Italian criminal adversaries. Said arrangement ends up being more of an
assist for Bulger than the FBI when all is said and done leading up to a number of
murders and betrayals instigated by Bulger as he steadily becomes Boston’s number
one underworld enforcer. The material here can’t help but be interesting especially since
it is based on real events adapted from the book “Black Mass: The True Story of an
Unholy Alliance between the FBI and the Irish Mob” written by Dick Lehr and Gerard
O’Neill.
Director Scott Cooper (“Crazy Heart” and “Out of the Furnace”) deserves credit for
assembling such a skilled cast but he’s not an accomplished technical director which
becomes problematic in regards to the pacing. “Black Mass” clocks in at a little over 2
hours but it lacks the visual kinetic charge and sophisticated editing of say “Goodfellas”
and “The Departed” or even Depp’s own 90s gangster classic “Donnie Brasco.” A
number of scenes drag after the initial character introductions and we never get to know
the people that fitfully die off as the story moves along. A number of characters inserted
are mere outlines in which the audience can’t emotionally invest themselves within so
when certain people do die it has less of an impact than it should. Cooper’s camera
becomes a stagnant bystander rather than a roving wonderer in the style of a Scorsese
better suited for such material. The framing of simple shots is underwhelming leading to
a lack of intimacy within the production overall. It’s an attractive and familiar movie in
need of a pulse.
On the plus side though, Cooper finds a bit of an occasional jolt with the casting of Johnny Depp as Bulger whose performance looms large. Mr. Depp is jarring in appearance initially with his bald cap, simulated receding hairline, steely blue contacts and abundance of pale makeup. Sporting a gutteral southie accent and tainted teeth that appear through a sly preening grin he’s James Cagney meets Gollum and I was afraid his monstrous visage would offset the somber film that surrounded him. But this vampirish appearance surprisingly brings out a subtlety in Depp that’s been absent for years. Prone to broader and more whimsical characters as of late like Jack Sparrow, Willy Wonka or Mordecai, it’s easy to forget the earlier and bolder performances Depp gave at a regular clip during the 90s in which he portrayed characters based on real people in films like “Ed Wood” and “Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas.” His take on Whitey Bulger lacks the current superficial tics of his recent work which have been replaced here by a coiled stillness that creates a great tension. This effective amount of underlying menace fuels the performance and occasionally kicks the movie into wilder and unpredictable terrain. Bulger was known to transition from charming to malicious towards those he intended to threaten within a nanosecond and Depp milks these mood manipulations for all they are worth through simple deliberate movement or a mere shifting of the eyes. His magnetic thug turn is truly unsettling without the actor ever having to resort to bombastic scenery chewing. If not quite a career best, which comes down to the confines of the role itself presenting more Bulger the cool legend rather than the actual man, it’s still the best acting Depp has done within the last decade.
On the plus side though, Cooper finds a bit of an occasional jolt with the casting of Johnny Depp as Bulger whose performance looms large. Mr. Depp is jarring in appearance initially with his bald cap, simulated receding hairline, steely blue contacts and abundance of pale makeup. Sporting a gutteral southie accent and tainted teeth that appear through a sly preening grin he’s James Cagney meets Gollum and I was afraid his monstrous visage would offset the somber film that surrounded him. But this vampirish appearance surprisingly brings out a subtlety in Depp that’s been absent for years. Prone to broader and more whimsical characters as of late like Jack Sparrow, Willy Wonka or Mordecai, it’s easy to forget the earlier and bolder performances Depp gave at a regular clip during the 90s in which he portrayed characters based on real people in films like “Ed Wood” and “Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas.” His take on Whitey Bulger lacks the current superficial tics of his recent work which have been replaced here by a coiled stillness that creates a great tension. This effective amount of underlying menace fuels the performance and occasionally kicks the movie into wilder and unpredictable terrain. Bulger was known to transition from charming to malicious towards those he intended to threaten within a nanosecond and Depp milks these mood manipulations for all they are worth through simple deliberate movement or a mere shifting of the eyes. His magnetic thug turn is truly unsettling without the actor ever having to resort to bombastic scenery chewing. If not quite a career best, which comes down to the confines of the role itself presenting more Bulger the cool legend rather than the actual man, it’s still the best acting Depp has done within the last decade.
And he’s ably supported by a terrific ensemble including sly Benedict Cumberbatch as his stately senator brother Billy, Rory Cochrane as his trusted simmering right-hand Steve, and the reliably brilliant Peter Saarsgard in a small but jumpy scene grabbing part as pathetic cocaine afflicted patsy Brian Halloran. NY theatre actress Julianne Nicholson is also excellent as Connolly’s concerned and troubled wife who finds herself threatened by Bulger outside of her bedroom during a dinner party in one of the films creepiest moments. And Joel Edgerton’s alternately strutting and bumbling performance as John Connolly, while not as towering as Depp’s, also contains a number of inspired quirky flashes. He plays his ambitious FBI agent with varied notes of cocky delusion mixed with exasperation when his colleages question Bulger’s motives to his chagrin. He’s a loyal friend to a conniving gangster that hates him and Edgerton shines in scenes where he’s trying to desperately muster words together all at once to convince everyone else of his informative arrangement with Bulger as he himself becomes wary of it.
In the end though nothing can capture the emotional investment Cooper was going for due to the familiar tropes and lazy staging of a well worn genre. This movie will by no means go down as a gangster classic but more a nifty reminder of the great actor that was once and hopefully still can be Johnny Depp. In that regard Cagney would be proud.
