Catch Me If You Can
Steven Spielberg, USA, 2002o
Frank W. Abagnale is a master of deception. Before his 21st birthday, he was successful not only as a doctor and lawyer, but also as a co-pilot of a major airline. Through clever check fraud schemes, he has also come into a fortune of several million dollars. FBI agent Carl Hanratty has had him in his sights for some time and sets himself the task of catching Frank. However, the latter is always one step ahead of him and has fun throwing small baits to his pursuer so that the hunt continues.
Catch Me if You Can never takes itself or its subjects too seriously, and contains more genuinely funny material than about 90% of the so-called "comedies" found in multiplexes these days. It also helps that in his two leads, Leonardo DiCaprio and Tom Hanks, Spielberg has actors who are capable of switching effortlessly between drama and comedy. The result is an enjoyable, although not ambitious, holiday outing.
James BerardelliSpielberg macht Unterhaltung in seiner reinsten und besten Form. Komisch aber nicht platt, geistreich aber nicht kompliziert, mit Tempo aber nicht hektisch, visuell beeindruckend aber nicht formverliebt, ironisch ohne zu verspotten, nachdenklich aber nicht gedankenschwer.
Michael HaberlanderGalleryo
