Black Mass (2015)

 

**This post contains spoilers**

The Story- Flanked and supported by his enforcers Kevin Weeks (Jesse Plemons), Steve Flemmi (Rory Cochrane), John Martorano (W. Earl Brown), FBI agent John Connolly (Joel Edgerton), and FBI agent John Morris (David Harbour), Irish mobster James “Whitey” Bulger (Johnny Depp) builds a criminal empire in Boston during the 1970s and 1980’s. Bulger’s relationship with his brother William (Benedict Cumberbatch), the President of the Massachusetts Senate, brings some peace to his life. 

Connolly tangles with his superior, Charles McGuire  (Kevin Bacon) over restrictions for Whitey’s rampages, but a bigger problem threatens to expose Connolly’s dirty tactics. Whitey’s seemingly invincible shield is threatened, when Assistant US Attorney Fred Wyshak (Corey Stoll) returns to Boston, fiercely determined to put a stop to Bulger’s tyranny.

My Thoughts- Whoa, that’s really Johnny Depp! That was my reaction to the first Black Mass trailer years ago. It’s not just the makeup, or the thinning white hair, Johnny Depp truly takes a dedicated approach to becoming Whitey Bulger. The voice, the mannerisms, the leering, the cold stares, and Depp does a good job of being a convincing cold blooded and narcissistic killer with sociopathic tendencies. Of course, it’s obvious Depp exaggerates every now and then to play up the tough guy side of Bulger, but he still reels it in just enough so his overall performance isn’t too hammy or ridiculous.

Depp also shows the more normal and human side of Bulger. During scenes and interactions with his brother, William or “Billy,” his mother (Mary Klug), his girlfriend, Lindsey Cyr (Dakota Johnson), and their son, Douglas (Luke Ryan), there’s a slight chance for believing Bulger was capable of being a good guy. That, and Bulger apparently had a soft spot for helping elderly women, namely Mrs. Cody (Jamie Donnelly). But you’re quickly reminded Bulger was an evil and scummy man throughout the movie. Bulger’s cruelty cancels out the possibility of him being a deeply flawed person, with the potential to turn his life around, if he just made some serious changes.

A number of scenes to confirm that Whitey Bulger wasn’t a good bad guy, or a sort of Robin Hood figure, and he surely wasn’t misunderstood. One big scene involves Bulger viciously murdering Deborah Hussey (Juno Temple). There’s also the creepy scene, where Bulger intimidates John Connolly’s wife, Marianne (Julianne Nicholson), another example of Bulger being a petty bully. 

When you see how John Connolly operates, it’s easy to notice just how phony and full of crap he truly is, a man only concerned with feeding his own ego. It’s not a surprise Bulger and Connolly formed a duo. They’re both narcissists, egomaniacs, and pathological liars in their own ways, so of course they’ll form a bond as a well oiled machine for all the wrong reasons. 

Joel Edgerton delivers a strong performance as Connolly. Edgerton is effortlessly convincing, as the flaky FBI agent, who actually believes in his own BS, and there’s no denying that Connolly basically worships Bulger. 

The foundation for Connolly’s loyalty is rooted in Bulger looking out for him as a kid, and Whitey was a hero of sorts for Connolly. Did Connolly take things too far by looking the other way and enabling Bulger to run roughshod through Boston? Of course he did, but you can understand why he did it, and why his need for respect and validation from Bulger was ultimately his undoing.

So Whitey makes a final goodbye call to Bill, then the story fast forwards to Whitey’s arrest in 2011 after the long manhunt, and that’s it? A flat and dull ending for a story that’s loaded with material. I understand they had to condense things, otherwise Black Mass might’ve had a runtime almost hitting four total hours. But there’s no real suspense or drama leading up to the big ending. 

If you don’t know anything about Bulger’s life, you can still easily see where everything is going, when the walls start closing in, and the final series of events ends with a dry whimper. There’s a scene towards the end, where Connolly is heartbroken, and complaining about Whitey using him, when it’s clear lengthy jail sentences are coming. I laughed out loud, because Connolly is trying to play the victim, when he was fully aware of what he was doing.

I circled back around to Black Mass again after reading Whitey: The Life Of America’s Most Notorious Mob Boss, by Dick Lehr and Gerard O’Neill. To be clear, Black Mass is not based on this book. Black Mass is actually based on Black Mass: The True Story Of An Unholy Alliance Between The FBI And The Irish Mob, also written by Dick Lehr and Gerard O’Neill. 

I can understand leaving stuff out or exaggerating certain events and characteristics for entertainment purposes, or to try and help the movie move at a faster pace. But I’m kind of surprised they didn’t mention Teresa Stanley and Catherine Greig, ESPECIALLY Greig. No appearances from Whitey’s girlfriends after things fell apart with Lindsey Cyr. Stanley and Greig played big roles in Whitey’s life, with Stanley eventually talking to authorities, and the fallout from that, including Stanley being shunned and ostracized by Bulger’s family.

Catherine Greig was Whitey Bulger’s loyal ride or die support system. Hell, you could’ve made an entire movie about Bulger and Greig hiding out in Santa Monica for over a decade, freely living the golden years of their lives as retirees, using Charlie and Carol Gasko as aliases. 

Black Mass is a fast tracked and microwaved version of Whitey Bulger’s story. This is a movie that’s supposed to be about an “unholy alliance” between one of the more memorable and ruthless crime bosses using the FBI to strengthen his reign of terror.

The enormity of Bulger’s real life story is something that should’ve packed a more powerful punch. There’s still more meat on the bones for Bulger supposedly being the secret weapon to take down the Italian mafia and Gennaro “Jerry” Angiulo (Bill Haims) in Boston, and how much did Bill Bulger really know about his brother’s life of crime? But Black Mass goes with the routine step by step rise and fall approach to storytelling for a crime lord, concluding with a dull and lifeless ending.

Still, it’s almost impossible to ignore Black Mass’ impeccable ensemble cast, led by an outstanding performance from Johnny Depp. Dakota Johnson and Corey Stoll also made strong impressions with only a handful of appearances and limited screen time. 

Corey Stoll nails Fred Wyshak, the “bulldog,” who flat out refuses to tolerate Connolly’s buffoonery. The scene, where Wyshak meets Connolly for the first time is loaded with so many little nuances. How Wyshak waits for Connolly to lower his guard before tearing him apart, and how Wyshak didn’t fall for Connolly’s smooth talking and his schemes, rejecting a pair of Red Sox tickets and a drink at a bar. His eyes and the look on Corey Stoll’s face tells the whole story: Wyshak immediately sees right through Connolly’s persona, and Wyshsk knows he’s someone, who can’t be trusted. 

Black Mass had the potential and all the ingredients to be a great film, but it’s still a solid biopic. There’s more than enough brutal violence on the crime drama side of things, and the cast is loaded with noteworthy performances. Walking the fine line for embellishing facts and how things played out in real life (e.g. how Whitey murdered Brian Halloran broad daylight), and trying to balance both sides will always be a problem for any kind of biopic. But Black Mass churns out enough positives for mostly successful results. 

Rating- 8/10