Catch Me If You Can

In the first decade of the millennium, Steven Spielberg immersed himself in his running man trilogy; films that included “Minority Report” and “AI”. In “Catch Me If You Can”, Spielberg again proves himself a master director.

This is the true story of Frank Abagnale, played by Leonardo DiCaprio. As a youth, he seems to have a happy, normal enough family. Then his parents get a divorce and he runs away from home. To support himself, he becomes a thief, one of the most successful in American history. He eludes the police and the FBI, headed by Carl Hanrady (Tom Hanks) for decades, posing as a jet pilot, a doctor and a lawyer, amongst many other professions.

While DiCaprio is terrific, the standout performance is Christopher Walken, who plays Frank Abagnale, Sr. We learn early on that he is an unsuccessful con-man who is being investigated by the IRS for tax fraud. He even takes his son on a con with him. One of the most heartbreaking scenes takes place in the middle of the film, when Frank Jr. is on the run and tracks his father down. He begs him to stop him from running, but his father is so crushed by the hand he’s been dealt that he tells his son, “You can’t stop.” It’s a heartbreaking scene, but a terrific one.

In “Catch Me If You Can”, Spielberg gives us a cat-and-mouse film in which we care deeply about the both the cats and mice.