BLACK MASS: Johnny Depp Almost Saves an Average Gangster Film

There is a right way and a wrong way to tell a gangster story. Some of the very best have utilized inventive camera techniques, are fueled by impressive acting talent, and are backed by an engaging, well-written screenplay. Black Mass attempts to be something great; yet, when thinking back to it, it’s likely only the acting that will be remembered. The film is riddled with common gangster tropes and underdeveloped characters. But at the same time, it contains one of Johnny Depp‘s best performances in years, a role that will likely gain him some acclaim come awards season.

The True-Life Gangster Story

Scott Cooper‘s film is based on the story of Whitey Bulger, a gangster who once flourished in Boston in the 1980’s along with his team of criminals. What distinguishes Bulger’s story from the many others out there is his partnership with the FBI. While Bulger was at his prime, he was in constant communication with an agent named John Connolly (played by Joel Edgerton in a career-defining role), who would turn the other way on Bulger’s activities as long as he was revealing names and locations of other prominent gangsters in the city.

As such, the partnership was mutually beneficial. The FBI would have an outlet to rid Boston of its most notorious criminals (except for one), and Bulger would have an easy way of putting competing gangs behind bars, leaving more financial gains for himself. As the original book written by Dick Lehr and Gerard O’Neill states, though, this was clearly a “devil’s deal.”

The first real issue I had with Black Mass was with its focus on Bulger himself. I’m not sure if the story that the film is based on focused on Bulger’s earlier career, but it would have been nice to have at least some background into how he became who he is. Not every character needs their own backstory, but in Bulger’s case, it would have been a good way to explain just why he became such a dark character; when meanwhile, his brother Billy (played by Benedict Cumberbatch) works in the Massachusetts senate. Just the relationship between those two could have been interesting enough to have its own entirely separate movie. But the two barely share more than a few words throughout the film.

Black Mass instead starts off with a Goodfellas-like storyline, with a young kid named Kevin Weeks (played by Jesse Plemons) attempting to make a name for himself in Bulger’s gang, and Bulger almost immediately taking a liking to him. Yet, once again, the storyline barely progresses past this initial encounter. The few times that Plemons‘s character showed up, I had almost forgotten that he was in the story. The film even included voice-over in a similar fashion to Goodfellas, presented as those characters later talking to the police and explaining the story to them.

Beyond this, the film’s tone is relentlessly dark, not only with its haunting soundtrack but also with its use of gratuitous violence. Though I appreciate when a film does not sugarcoat what really happens, it often felt tacked on in this case. Clearly, these are the bad guys. We don’t need to see them kill time and time again to understand that. Sometimes, just a simple conversation or a phrase taken out of context can tell more than a dozen acts of violence. At least a film like Goodfellas understood that.

Johnny Depp, the Actor?

It’s well-known that Johnny Depp has struggled with his recent films, not necessarily from lack of performance but mainly from the type of roles that he has picked. He always seemed to prefer the obscure, eccentric characters above all else, and it has often led to ridicule rather than acclaim (such as his role as Tonto in 2013’s underwhelming The Lone Ranger). As Whitey Bulger, though, Depp finally seems comfortable. He may still have the makeup and the hairpiece, but he escapes into the role in a far more compelling fashion. As Bulger, Depp is a confident, strong presence, with venomous tendencies often lurking just beneath his charismatic smile.

One of the best scenes in the film is when Bulger is sitting down to dinner with two FBI agents. He asks one of the agents about the steak that they just ate, and what recipe he used for the marinade. What starts off as a harmless discussion eventually becomes a biting accusation about the agent’s true loyalties. The scene allows Depp to truly express the dangerous unpredictability of Bulger, escalating from a simple question into an angry outburst, and all through a simple conversation about a marinade recipe. It’s scenes like this that I hoped would be more prominent throughout Black Mass, but, as mentioned earlier, such is unfortunately not the case.

Starring opposite of Depp is Joel Edgerton‘s John Connolly, the FBI agent that first comes up with the partnership with Bulger. With a thick Boston accent, the Australian actor is perfect as the corrupt, persuasive agent. His lack of regret about beginning the partnership with Bulger, despite everyone else’s warning, shows that Connolly was truly just the opposite side of the same coin. It may be the role that gets Edgerton more notice in the industry, because, despite some well-known films already to his name, he’s not nearly as much of a household name as someone like Johnny Depp.

Conclusion

Though based on an interesting true-life story, Black Mass is not too terribly unique. Depp, Edgerton, and even Cumberbatch have stand-out performances, perhaps some of their respective bests, but it is still not quite enough to raise the average, oddly-paced film much higher. In a world where gangster movies are a dime a dozen, it takes much more than Cooper’s attempt to stand out.

What are some of your favorite true-story gangster films? Let us know in the comments!

Black Mass opened in American cinemas on September 18, and will open in British cinemas on November 27. For international release dates, check here.

(top image source: Warner Bros. Pictures)