By Stefanos Evripidou
THIS IS a movie to be seen, if nothing else, for the simple reason that it’s based on the life of a real man who saw more of the world’s vices, joys and downturns before he could clock up 19 eye-blinking, unbelievable years.
Frank W. Abagnale Jnr, played by a tuned-in Leonardo DiCaprio, is a man you really want to meet. Before he was 19, Abagnale had successfully impersonated a pilot, doctor and lawyer for a number of years — while also defrauding the banking world of $3 million ($36m in today’s money…).
Tom Hanks turns in a heartfelt performance as Carl Hanratty, the staid ‘by the book’ FBI agent who in the process of dedicating his life to catching Frank forges the most bizarre and authentic bond between chaser and the chased the big screen has seen in years.
In one of the most convincing roles of his career, Christopher Walken plays Frank’s debt-ridden father with a realism that makes you cringe every time he asks his jet-setting fugitive son: “Where are you going tonight, son? Hawaii? Come on, tell me. Where?”
The film is directed by that master of the feel-good, Steven Spielberg, in a 1960s extravaganza of unknowing female bank clerks, sexy air stewardesses and a long list of people who fall victim to Frank’s trail of deception.
Frank ran away from home when his only idols, his parents, filed for divorce and an insensitive lawyer pressured Frank to choose one or the other. Living alone at 16 brought him into a world where the only way he could survive and make enough money to reunite his parents was to play the game of the big bad world — learning the rules and breaking them without getting caught.
The audacity Abagnale displays is amazing: at 16 most boys are mowing lawns and saving for their first car, but Abagnale is jetting from coast to coast, living in the lap of luxury, and seducing older women with an expert charm that commands the envy of men the world over.
Hanks plays the hunter with more than his usual finesse. You love to hate his character Hanratty, while at the same time he manages to illicit sympathy from the most hard-hearted members of the audience.
Spielberg said of the film: “For me it’s about a struggle to find your position in this world, and it happens to be one of the purest and most unusual struggles I have ever come across. I have never read about or met anyone like Frank. I believe that for many years he was the most successful robber in the history of American banks.”
Other films to look out for in the next six months are The Core, which has its worldwide release on March 28. The question on everybody’s mind in this world-saving action-packed feature is: does Earth have a deadline? The answer, inevitably, lies in the Earth’s core and Dr Josh Keyes has to lead a team of die-hards down there to ensure that the Earth will keep spinning.
Mr Bean lovers will be spitting popcorn as they laugh at Rowan Atkinson’s latest comedy, a Bond spoof called Johnny English. The trailer runs with English assuring his visitor parked at the gate: “Sir, you are now entering one of the safest places in England,” as the grand manor house behind him blows into smithereens.
Younger audiences can look forward to the likeable animated movie The Wild Thornberrys, which has the protection of wildlife as its theme. Children will have the opportunity to enter a Pancyprian art competition, approved by the Education Ministry, on the same topic and win some great prizes.
Catch Me If You Can opens in Cyprus on February 28. It is being brought to Cyprus by Four Star Films.
The Cyprus Mail is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Cyprus. It was established in 1945 and today, with its popular and widely-read website, the Cyprus Mail is among the most trusted news sites in Cyprus. The newspaper is not affiliated with any political parties and has always striven to maintain its independence. Over the past 70-plus years, the Cyprus Mail, with a small dedicated team, has covered momentous events in Cyprus’ modern history, chronicling the last gasps of British colonial rule, Cyprus’ truncated independence, the coup and Turkish invasion, and the decades of negotiations to stitch the divided island back together, plus a myriad of scandals, murders, and human interests stories that capture the island and its -people. Observers describe it as politically conservative.
