Black Mass

Summary

“We all need friends. Even Jimmy… even you.”

A few years back, I saw the preview for the film Black Mass starring Johnny Depp. The subject of the film was the Boston based Irish mobster and F.B.I. informant James “Whitey” Bulger. Interested in the subject I read the book on which the film was based. The book itself was a very dry read, but informative. This makes sense considering that the book was written by the newspaper reporters that burst open the story of Whitey Bulger’s protection via the F.B.I. wide open. After reading the book, I basically moved on and forgot to ever check out the film. The picture had received middle-of-the-road reviews, but the newspaper men who wrote the book praised it for basically getting the story correct. Warner Bros. made the surprising choice of bringing the film to 4K UHD, so I checked it out the other night.

As the picture begins, Kevin (Jesse Plemons) meets with the FBI to discuss his work with Winter Hill Gang crime boss James “Whitey” Bulger. The picture flashes back to 1975. Kevin impresses Jimmy Bulger when he fights three guys while working as a bouncer at a bar. Unbeknownst to Kevin, one of those guys was Jimmy’s cousin. Jimmy has Kevin drive him and another man out to a secluded spot along the shore. Kevin is worried he will be killed, but actually Jimmy wants to administer a beating to the other man in the car. Kevin starts working for Jimmy. F.B.I. Agent John Connolly (Joel Edgertin) grew up with Jimmy’s younger brother, Massachusetts Senate President Billy Bulger (Benedict Cumberbatch.) John has just moved back to Boston and he talks with Billy about his brother Jimmy and the White Hill Gang. He warns Billy that Jimmy is wading into dark waters and may need a friend. In a meeting with Jimmy, John warns him that the Angiulo family plans to have Jimmy murdered. John wants an alliance between himself and Jimmy to take on the Mafia. He wants to leave Southy and Jimmy untouched, while eliminating the mafiosos and making a name for himself in doing so. In order for this to work, Jimmy must become a protected informant. In 1981, after the death of his child, Jimmy expands his business and begins killing competitors and those who might turn evidence against him. While Jimmy expands his criminal enterprise, John Connolly goes over the line to continuously protect Jimmy from law enforcement. Connolly’s actions eventually lead to the deaths of other informants.

Black Mass is a decent film. The script gets most of the details right, the cinematography and period details are first rate, and Johnny Depp turns in a better than average performance. Unfortunately, something feels slightly off about the picture and I would attribute that to two things. First and foremost, the dialogue conveys the general beats of the story in the conversations of the characters, but there is a spark that is missing there. This actually makes sense for those of us who read the book. The book upon which the film was based had very little dialogue. It read almost like a history book or like a long journalistic piece. Therefore, I can only imagine that the screenwriters had very little to base the dialogue upon, and it shows. This does not have the lived-in quality that Scorsese’s Goodfellas had, for example, because Scorsese wrote that screenplay with author Nicolas Pileggi and consulted with the actual wise guy upon which the film was based to make the picture feel authentic. Scorsese grew up around those types and it comes across in every frame. That does not happen here. The screenplay writers were not from Boston (Jen Butterworth was from London, and Mark Mallouk was from Los Angeles via Kansas City.) That comes across. There is something inherently false in the ways in which the characters talk with one another, which leads directly to the second problem. The cast of the film all seem to be pushing for Al Pacino levels of scene chewing. Typically reliable actors fall into the trap of playing every emotion at its most heightened version. Heightened delivery of the hollow lines exacerbates the issues with the script, and destroys the ability of good actors to come across as the characters onscreen. I never felt completely engrossed in the characters and removed from the fact that these were actors I was watching. Director Scott Cooper definitely has talent as evidenced by his other films, and it is possible that this was a case where for some reason the editor only strung together the most visceral takes of each scene, but this film is definitely flawed by the direction of the actors. I won’t rag on any specific actor’s performance, but I think most audience’s will pick up on what I am talking about.

On the good side – the film does capably explain exactly how Whitey Bulger was immune for his crimes for so many years. The period details are excellent and the film is very well shot. I think the cinemography by Masanobu Takayanagi is excellent overall. The score by Tom Holkenborg, a very talented composer who has worked on George Miller’s more recent Mad Max films amongst others, is also reliably good. Johnny Depp is really enjoyable in the role of Whitey Bulger, imbuing the role with an appropriate shade of darkness. His performance may not be totally “convincing” in the sense that I still knew I was watching Johnny Depp perform, but it worked better than many of the other performances in the film. I also thought Benedict Cumberbatch’s performance in the picture as Billy Bulger was appropriately subtle. 

Overall, Black Mass is a decent film that has all the elements that could have made it a great film. A polish of the dialogue by a true Southy may have pushed it across the finish line.

Video

Black Mass is interesting in terms of how it was shot versus how it was released theatrically. It was shot on 35MM film on Panavision anamorphic cameras. The digital intermediate for the edited film in its theatrical release was in 2K. As I have mentioned before, this is a stumbling block for fans of the 4K format, because the 4K release of a 2K film will still be somewhat less impressive than a true 4K UHD from a 4K intermediate (or from a true 35MM negative!!!) The 4K uptick is still more impressive than was possible on the original Blu-ray release, showing off the film’s digital intermediate in an uncompressed version, but fans will probably question whether the uptick is worth the upgrade. I would say, that fans of the film are probably quite enamored by the cinematography of Masanobu Takayanagi for the picture and may want to spend the extra money to see it at its best The HDR brings the best out of the film, and if I did not know that it came from a 2K intermediate, I probably would have no bias against the visuals whatsoever. I would think that this will be the definitive way to experience this film moving forward, but… the fact that there is 35MM film of this may mean that one day in our lifetime it could receive another uptick. Stranger things have happened.

Audio

Black Mass originally shipped on Blu-ray in 2015 with a DTS-HD MA 5.1 track, and Warner has kept that same track. While I would have enjoyed an Atmos overhaul, the original 5.1 sound design is very good. The compositions by Tom Holkenborg are a highlight of the film and sound great. All of his work comes through very well, and the dialogue is crystal clear. Fans should not be dismayed by this track.

Supplements:

• The Manhunt for Whitey Bulger
• Black Mass: Deepest Cover, Darkest Crime
• Johnny Depp: Becoming Whitey Bulger

Overall Scores:

Video: 4.5

Audio: 4.5

Special Features: 3

Overall – 3.5/5

Black Mass is neither a great film nor a terrible movie. The script tells the story of Whitey Bulger’s rise and fall accurately, but the dialogue rings hollow. Johnny Depp delivers a solid performance, but director Scott Cooper draws out heightened performances from everyone involved which exacerbates the issues with the screenplay’s dialogue. This is the case of a decent film that had all the makings to be a great film. Set your expectations accordingly. For fans of the picture, the 4K UHD release looks and sounds great, but only really offers a visual uptick for the extra price.

The film can be purchased at www.moviezyng.com.