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Steven Spielberg directs Leonardo DiCaprio and Tom Hanks in this odd, beguiling caper about a 17-year-old con man (DiCaprio) pursued across the globe by a dogged FBI agent (Hanks) for successfully impersonating a doctor, a lawyer, and a commercial airline pilot to scam banks and companies out of millions of dollars. The biggest kicker: Catch Me If You Can is based on a true story. DiCaprio is terrific in the lead role, playing Frank Abagnale Jr, a teenager trying to earn back all the wealth his father (Christopher Walken) lost defrauding the IRS. As soon as Abagnale learns the FBI is after him, he embarks on a nomadic lifestyle for the better part of two years, never getting too comfortable in any one place.
Spielberg is the perfect director for an epic chase story with a lot of moving parts, myriad locations, and a handful of relationships to give the proceedings weight. Amy Adams is endearing in a key supporting role, playing the young, naïve nurse Abagnale marries during his stint as a lawyer in Atlanta. Jennifer Garner is memorable as a smooth, high-class call-girl who propositions Abagnale in Las Vegas, and Christopher Walken gets the biggest supporting part as Abagnale’s loving but misguided father, a man who never learns his lessons and unwittingly passes some of his worst character traits onto his son.
The heart of the movie, however, is the subtly-built relationship between predator and prey, Abagnale and Hanks’ FBI agent, Carl Hanratty — two lonely men who become the focal points in each others’ lives. There are shades of an adoptive father/son relationship by the end of the film that — while it reportedly stretches the truth — gives the film resonance. The early ’70s production design and wardrobe are fun, and composer John Williams provides a playful, jazzy score.
With Martin Sheen, Nathalie Baye, Elizabeth Banks, and James Brolin.
Oscar Nominations: Best Supporting Actor (Walken), Original Score (John Williams)