#113 Catch Me If You Can

I caught my friend Mike smirking at me this evening when I told him that I was enjoying watching Catch Me If You Can on DVD. When I asked him what was so funny, he said, "Well, you're talking about Spielberg without being cynical." Sadly, that's what it's come to with my childhood heroes Steven Spielberg and George Lucas. Aside from Minority Report, I can hardly look at their recent work without cringing. Imagine my surprise when Catch Me If You Can turned out to be such a well-told film. For the first time in as long as I can remember Spielberg keeps it simple. There are no special effects and hardly any action for that matter - just two characters struggling their way through their fascinating lives. Most importantly he keeps his film school gimmicks to a minimum. Keen eyes will still be able to spot these flourishes. In one scene a Gump-esque dollar bill rides the draft from Leonardo Dicaprio's escape window. It glides under the gap beneath a closed door and across the sightline of Tom Hank's FBI Agent who is in pursuit. At that moment Hanks knows his quarry is long gone. He doesn't even need to enter the bedroom to see the curtains blowing in the wind. Catch Me If You Can is proof that Spielberg still has the capability to capture movie magic without beating audiences over the head with his wand.