Rating: 
Summary: An Outstanding Film
Review: i saw this film the very first day it was out in theaters. i absolutely loved it!!!!! everything was great. the people, the music, the time period, the costumes!!!! it was wonderful. i recently purchased the dvd. i would highly recommend it to anyone!!!!!! i think it is a film that evryone can relate to in their own sort of way. it's a great story with a great ending. if you really enjoy the movie you can go out and buy the movie pictorial book, and original book as i did. this is a great movie and i hope that anyone who reads this review goes out and rents it. it is worth so much more than its sale value. two thumb up!!!! an outstanding cast of actors!!!!!!!!
Rating:
Summary: The best action movie in YEARS!
Review: It was neat to see Frank Jr. with all those
pretty Flight attendents. Also some of the action had
reminded me of those orginal James Bond movies of that time period. (What Memories.)
Rating: 
Summary: Fluffy, but Still Worth "Catch"-ing
Review: Like 1999's "The Talented Mr. Ripley," Steven Speilberg's breezy "Catch Me If You Can" tells the story of a young man who enjoys life's riches through an identity that's not his own. Leo DiCaprio is Frank Abagnale, Jr., a teenager who spends the mid-1960s posing as an airline pilot, a doctor, and a lawyer--all the while cashing checks around the world that ring to the tune of $2.5 million. His quick wit and suave demeanor are apparently enough to make unsuspecting strangers believe at face value anything Frank says. Hot on his tail, however, is an FBI agent (Tom Hanks, in a supporting role) who's determined to nail Frank and end his streak of ruthless deception. DiCaprio fits into his role like a pair of well-worn jeans and seems more confortable with his material than he did in Scorcese's "Gangs of New York." Productionwise, "Catch Me If You Can" is also a success, as it captures the flavor and texture of the 1960s admirably through its colors and fashions. I just wished the film would dig a little deeper into Frank's background which could shed some light as to why he decided to be a juvenile con man. Sure, we know Frank's parents divorced (Christopher Walken, who plays Frank's dad, earned his Oscar nomination, by the way), but not all kids with mommy/daddy issues turn into sophisticated criminals. And, at 2 hours and 20 minutes, "Catch Me If You Can" gets a bit long-winded and could use some trimming. To be honest, this movie doesn't represent the cream of Speilberg's crop, and it pales a bit in comparison to the far more engaging "Minority Report," also released in 2002. As for the DVD itself, I don't understand why it needed to have 2 discs. The movie and the bonus material (which consists mostly of glossy featurettes) could have fit into one DVD. Despite this, the film's lighthearted spirit and agreeable tone make it still worth "catch"-ing.
Rating:
Summary: A lost opportunity to have made a great movie
Review: This was a good movie but it could have been so much better. I enjoyed this film and actually bought it because the story was so compelling. It was a movie I had looked forward to for months, having read the book and heard of Frank Abagnale's amazing story of deceipt and fraud arround the world while still a teenager. Amazingly, Speilburg and company flubbed it, spending entirely too much time on Abagnale's family dynamics and his parent's marital problems and not nearly enough time just telling the incredible story of this young man's adventures. There was so much fodder here for a wonderful movie that I was very surprised how average the end product was. Decaprio, for my money, never got the right balance of calculating intelligence and nerves of steel of the real Frank Abagnale. Decraprio's Abagnale was all luck and pluck. A casting of someone like Matt Damon would have been far better. The movie's greatest flaw was it's meandering into the fictional and distracting story line of Abagnale's parent's marriage. All said, this was still an entertaining movie with good actors and a talented director. It is just sad that since it is likely that this story will be told on film only once and has been a long time coming that it did not live up to it's potential.
Rating: 
Summary: Di Caprio/Spielberg Is Winning Combo
Review: CATCH ME IF YOU CAN (2002), starring Leonardo Di Caprio, Tom Hanks, and Christopher Walken, directed by Steven Spielberg, is a jaunty crowd pleaser. It's based on the true story of con man Frank Abegnale who, as a teen ager, passed himself off as a lawyer, a doctor, and an airline pilot. Di Caprio fits the role well, and the setting of the 1960's is wonderfully captured in the film's letter-perfect art direction and period songs on the soundtrack. Walken was nominated for a Best Supporting Actor Oscar for his role as Frank's father. And don't miss the terrific opening credit sequence, which will remind you of Saul Bass' memorable title sequences from so many 1950's and 1960's movies.
Rating:
Summary: Great Entertainment- Ben N. At The Movies
Review: catch me if you can is one of the years most entertaining films its funny, smart, and just plain exciting leonardo dicaprio gives out one of his best performence's as Frank Abagail and Tom Hanks is as good as ever Steven Speilberg has proved himself again to be one of the best directors of all time if you want a good movie get catche me if you can great plot great acting and the costume desgns are great to in my opinion this movie should get 2 academy awards for best actor leonardo dicaprio and best costume designs anyways this wont ley tou down get it tomorrow on dvd Movie Critic-Ben Newberry
Rating:
Summary: Catch Me: Subtexts Handled Supremely Well
Review: It is not often that I get to see a movie that has so many preconceived ideas eminating from other and similar films as well as an effective use of nostalgia carefully mixed with psychological undertones. CATCH ME IF YOU CAN brings to mind Tony Curtis as Ferdinand Waldo Demarra of THE GREAT IMPOSTER. However, in Curtis' case, his quest for identity was vaguely undefined as he sloughed his skins more for the sheer joy of it than for any other ostensible purpose. Leonardo DiCaprio made it clear early on that his own quest was based on a need to restore his moral universe, one in which was threatened by the dissolution of his parents' marriage. DiCaprio, as Frank Abagnale,Jr, idolized his parents. When they danced, the joy in his eyes was unmistakable. It was when they stopped dancing, that the world of marital discord intruded. Christopher Walken, as Frank's con man father, gives a powerful performance as a smooth talking yet ineffective businessman whose only success in life was to have married a desirable Frenchwoman some twenty years earlier. It is Walken's constant harping of his landing her that, over the years, became the central mantra for his son's life. In the young Frank's eyes, his mother became a symbol of all that was noble and beautiful, and if it were a lack of money and success that doomed his father to lose her, then it became his own mission in life to reconnect them. All of the scams that Frank Jr. pulled off are seen not as to enrich his own wallet, but to act as the glue to reestablish the natural order of things. DiCaprio's most touching scenes are the most easily overlooked. In a restaurant, he is dressed as a co-pilot, treating his father to a fancy meal. During the conversation, in front of his father's astonished eyes, he casually pushes the keys to a brand new Cadillac parked just outside. "Take them, Dad," he pleads, "won't Mom be impressed." There are many scenes like that which allow Frank to make it clear that his crimes of theft and forgery mask a talent that under different circumstances might have allowed him to be in the flesh those fake uniformed superficial entities that now register in the mind as the prototypical demi-gods that ruled the television screens of the 60s. Tom Hanks, as FBI agent Carl Hanratty, registers as a sort of combination of pseudo-father figure whose respect Frank wishes with a more than subtle undertone as Frank's Dr. Richard Kimble to Carl's Detective Gerard. But unlike that fugitive, this one plays his escapes with style and a sense of not wishing to blend in. Where Dr. Kimble sought work as dishwashers, Frank Abagnale flew only in the highest stratospheres of our cultures. Not only did he want the job of pilot, doctor, and lawyer, he wanted their badge and uniform too. This connection of Carl Hanratty as father-confessor and father-surrogate slowly accrues its own kinetic energy until by the film's end, the bond between Frank and Carl was at least as strong as the one that Frank tried so hard to forge with his own father. By the time the closing credits roll, Frank shows that the simple respect that one human being can feel for another can be enough to turn around a life that for a few short years seemed headed for a tragedy that this film thankfully avoided. CATCH ME IF YOU CAN is one of the most entertaining films of the year that in its own way points out the need for people to connect in a manner not unlike that Jimmy Stewart posited in IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE.
Rating:
Summary: Good character study but still very entertaining
Review: The Spielberg canon can pretty much be divided into two categories. On the one hand, there is the escapist, fantasy Spielberg (ET, Close Encounters, Indiana Jones, Jurassic Park), where the movies are enormously entertaining but leave the viewer without any real insights. On the other hand is the more recent serious Spielberg (Schindler's List, Saving Private Ryan) which present serious topics & stunning character studies, but are at times so intense and raw as to be unwatchable. The second category forced the film industry finally to acknowledge Spielberg as one of the great filmmakers of his time, rather than a commercially successful lightweight. After finally being taken seriously, Spielberg faced the new challenge of making a film which bridged the categories, one that was both entertaining and thought-provoking. He has largely succeeded with "Catch Me if You Can." To me the film was largely a study of the character of two men, the elder and younger Frank Abagnale. The father (in one of the best performances by Christopher Walken I have ever seen) imparts to his son the philosophy that "if you act successful, you will be perceived as successful." Despite a lifetime of defeats and setbacks, Abagnale Sr. always keeps his chin and plays the part of a man who has the upper hand in life. Appearance is everything. Abagnale Jr. takes this philosophy to its logical extreme. Play the part, and you will become the part. As long as he had the nerve to be deceive people into thinking he was a pilot, a doctor, or a lawyer, then that was exactly what he was, despite having no skills (although he did pass the bar exam) in those fields. It is interesting that the movie viewer is almost encouraged to indulge in moral relativism and root for Abagnale Jr. as he practices this massive deception, as well as massive fraud. Will basically lying to every person he meets, Abagnale Jr. also embarks on a fraudulent check scheme of an almost unimaginable scale, passing nearly $2.5 million in bad checks. But one is left with the impression that it isn't a crime until you get caught, especially if the crime is executed with such virtuosity. The one character in the film who sees Abagnale Jr. for the criminal he is, is Carl Hanratty (Tom Hanks), who is portrayed a bloodless pedant bereft of any humor. The one man who represents authority, and is able finally to bring an end to Abagnale Jr.'s crime spree comes off as being rather unsympathetic to the viewer. You can't help but hope that Abagnale Jr. doesn't get caught. The chase that unfolds is absolutely fascinating, and the sheer nerve that is displayed is awe-inspiring. I suspect that most of us have an inner con man that is fighting to get out, but we are too chicken to risk the consequences. Enjoy "Catch Me if You Can," and let your inner con man live vicariously through the film.
Rating:
Summary: Fantastic Movie!
Review: Leonardo de Caprio and Tom Hanks with Steven Speilburg directing. Need I say more? this is the best cast any film could offer. This is a really upbeat, funny movie with a fantastic plotline and great acting. The interactions between Tom Hanks and De Caprio in their phone calls are hilarious! It is very exciting and wonderful to watch De Caprio, as Frank Abigalle, go from airports to law and to medical school just before turning 18! He has many affairs with the women he meets, and his charm is undeniable. he doesn't need to even blink an eye or lift a finger to catch a girl's (or woman's) attention. This film also is proof that Leonardo da Caprio is actually one of the most UNDERrated actors of our time. Here, he completely erases memories of the disastorous Titanic film, which will be a relief for most of us. one complaint: the only downfall of the film is the part where Frank Abigalle meets Brenda while he works as a doctor in a hospital. Brenda, I think, is rather irrelevant to the story, and she doesn't alter the storyline at all. And that part takes up quite a bit of the movie. But nonetheless, this is a great movie, one which will make you want to watch it over and over again. it is full of charm and humor! ENJOY! P.S. let's hope another movie with this cast will be made.
Rating:
Summary: Best Movie of the Year!
Review: Tom Hanks and Leonoardo DiCaprio are at their best in this true tale of the life of Frank Abignale. This movie appeals to all the senses. It will make you laugh, cry, and feel like no movie before. I would recomend it to anyone for it is a movie that no one could dislike. It should definitely be labled a "must see."
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