Rating: 
Summary: One of Tom Hanks best movies
Review: A great story about a young genius, who lead a life of crime, immorality, and forgery. The story dramatize and exaggerates the forgeries scandals of Frank W. Abagnale, between the ages of 16 and 21. Key actors Leonardo DiCaprio and Tom Hanks depicted the hunted and the the hunter eventually leading to his capture. The chase ranged over the countries of France, Sweden, and the United States. Abagnale would do time for his crimes, but in the end Abagnale would use his intelligence and skills to help the government and corporations identify fraud, check fraud, and innovate new payment systems, as a career.
Rating: 
Summary: Too Superficial for Spielberg
Review: Steven Spielberg is THE director for making films on profound, human topics ("Schindler's List", "Saving Private Ryan"). This time he tried a comedy based on a true story -- about a notorious cheque forger, Frank William Abagnale Jr., who got to the list of FBI's most wanted men in 1960's while still in his teens.The film starts gloriously -- the opening titles are one of the best I've ever seen, accompanied by John Williams' trademark first-class music. The magic works a little bit longer but ultimately fails. Don't get me wrong. "Catch Me If You Can" is a decent piece of entertaining cinema. But it looks like Spielberg was trying to apply some of his typical mix of melodramatic flair and deep undertones to the film (family values and so on) and went just half-way. Too serious for a pure comedy, too light for a deeper substance. Actors do not disappoint, though. Leonardo DiCaprio turns in an all-round performance, worthy of the Golden Globe nomination he got for playing Frank Jr. Tom Hanks slowly but surely is typecasted as a bulky good guy (after "Road to Perdition"), portraying FBI's Carl Hanratty. And Christopher Walken almost steals the show as Frank Abagnale, Sr. (well-deserved British BAFTA award for supporting actor). Well-cast was also the French actress Nathalie Baye -- her English is justified by French descent of her character. Yeah. Catch this film if you want. An average movie goer should not be disappointed. However, if "Minority Report" and even "A.I. The Artificial Intelligence" had you thinking and you hope for more, be warned.
Rating: 
Summary: Fraud, charm, Walken and the real return of DeCaprio
Review: "Catch Me If You Can" is a genuine throwback, made with a light touch and finger-snapping charm, featuring Leonardo DiCaprio, finally, in a movie star performance. If he hits a down note as 1960s con artist Frank Abagnale I'd like to see it. Director Steven Spielberg, too, gears back his tendency to pile on the portent, although there are few scenes of thick soup drama that seem to jar us out of our enjoyment. Mostly, however, "Catch Me" is an easybreezer about a kid who finds the one thing he does well, does it with extraordinary ease, and eludes the entire FBI mail fraud division for years while he does it. The highest-concept script floating around Hollywood couldn't tell a better tall-but-true tale. Frank Abagnale was a kid of above average smarts with a slick, quick-thinking businessman for a dad (Christopher Walken) and a mannered, spoiled French mother (the estimable Nathalie Baye). When Frank Sr. gets tagged by the IRS, his wife swiftly sours on him and gets a divorce. That sets up a scene where, on the spot, Frank Jr. has to decide where, and with whom, he'll live, and Frank Jr. bolts, beginning a five-year run of check fraud unlike anything before or since. The movie better explains the mechanics of just how Frank Jr. rips off Pan-Am Airlines, his chosen victim for the stunning no-questions-asked treatment afforded pilots at the time. Later, he becomes a doctor in Georgia, then a lawyer in Louisiana, where his run nearly ends when he gets involved with a rich girl (Amy Adams) and decides to marry. On Frank's "tale" is FBI agent Carl Hanratty (Tom Hanks) a straight-arrow investigator with a better taste for magnetic ink than human relations. Hanks personally asked for the role, and he makes a nice, determined foil. "How else do you think this is going to end?" is his standard line to Frank. A kinship develops, the kind of kinship between two acknowledged, lonely professionals on opposite sides of a business, and when the game comes to a final close, Carl goes a mile -- and further -- for Frank when most "kinder" agents would have let the chips fall where they may. Frank Jr. also tries to keep a tenuous connection with his father when he can, and Walken, in a few scenes, essays a broken, disillusioned man just about as well as an actor can. Frank Sr. barely hides his seething under the polish of his false optimism; Walken, as usual, gives his lines an ever-changing, jazzlike cadence; his performances are mysteries all themselves. He's beautiful in this movie. And look at DiCaprio! So cautious in both "The Beach" and "Gangs of New York," Leo seems to have refound the confidence the groove he flaunted in his early career. The role suits him -- DiCaprio still looks like a boy, so playing young is easy -- and it may, in fact, turn out to be one of his best roles. DiCaprio, because of his face and voice, will always struggle with movies on the other side of the track; better he should play to his good looks and his easy-to-smile demeanor. Frank Abagnale is a Cary Grant/Jimmy Stewart kind of guy, and DiCaprio can be their heir, should he want the mantle. "Catch Me If You Can" is a hell of a start.
Rating:
Summary: A Perfect Marriage Of Film And Flick...
Review: Spielberg has done it again...After the entertaining but overrated 'Minority Report' he has brought us one of his most effortlessly fun films in a long time. I caught myself grinning from ear to ear many times throughout the movie...DiCaprio turns in his finest performance since 'What's Eating Gilbert Grape' & 'The Basketball Diaries'...Even though the story is based on a true story/autobiography of Frank Abagnale, Jr., it all seems like some crazy Hollywood plot that's just too irresistible not to love. As for the rest of the cast, Tom Hanks is (as always) thoroughly reliable as the G-man set on catching Abagnale; and Christopher Walken steals every scene he exists in as dad Frank Abagnale Sr., Frank Jr.'s impetus and inspiration for his outlandish check fraud spree.Like father, like son indeed. Martin Sheen and Jennifer Garner make delightful appearances in key scenes and John Williams' score is top notch, perfectly catching the snappy-cool kitsch of the 60's in every note...It's all a refreshing mix of everything we've come to fall in love with the movies. The only negative is that some may be taken aback by the laccadaisical pacing, expecting some action set piece to pop up - and thank God there weren't any to be found...
Rating:
Summary: Stylish and fascinating but characters not endearing
Review: Spielberg's movies just continue to be visually spectacular. Every detail is perfect in this period piece, from cars to hair, etc. There is a real gracefulness to the flow of the characters from scene to scene. It is fluid, like dancing, even when the characters are on the run. The subject matter is fascinating. I don't know how much the story was embellished for the movie, but if even a fraction of it is true, Frank Abagnale, the infamous counterfeiter, should be as legendary as Butch and Sundance. What is fact is that Abagnale stole over $4 million during the 1960s using counterfeit checks. He was a pioneer in fraud, and as a reformed thief, he has been a pioneer in fraud detection and prevention. I'm inspired to read Abagnale's autobiography of the same name. The reason I only give the movie four stars is that it won't be something I watch even annually. While it is an excellent film, the characters are not endearing and I do not identify with their struggle. That's as it should be. For Spielberg to make this movie more heart-tugging would have meant resorting to cliched plot devices that are thankfully not part of his repetoire.
Rating:
Summary: My New Favorite Movie
Review: I saw this movie around Christmas and I fell in love with it. I saw it once and I just had to go again. It instantly became my favorite movie. I love how a lot of the movie is actually true! I think it is amazing and Leonardo plays a great role. I would give this movie 2 thumbs up! It would be good for mature teens up to grown adults. It is wonderful movie and I would reccomend it anyone.
Rating:
Summary: 6 stars
Review: This is one of the best movies of 2003, it is very funny. But it also shows many other things. I loved this movie, I think it diffenetly worth buying.
Rating:
Summary: One of The Best Films of 2002
Review: Catch Me If You Can, based on the experiences of a real life con artist, is a more light-hearted affair than one would expect from Steven Spielberg. I would agree to an extent with the Amazon reviewer who claimed this film to be "shallow", but then I think that was the whole point. Spielberg's big successes over the last decade have been the likes of 'Schindler's List' and 'Saving Private Ryan'; very thought heavy, serious films, I think on this one he just wanted to relax and make a movie that would entertain. And there's nothing wrong with that, after all, doesn't he deserve to more than anyone else? It is the films three leading performances that make the film such a joy to watch. Leonardo Di Caprio very much suits the role of the conman Frank Abagnale and delivers a better performance than he does in 'Gangs of New York'. The underrated Christopher Walken is also superbly witty as Abagnale's father, and as FBI agent Hanratty, Tom Hanks is as brilliant as ever. And to top it all off, there is a cameo from the beautiful Jennifer Garner. I have to admit, the film did start very lightly, and I thought this movie was going to be a real flop, but thankfully I was proved wrong. After fifteen or so minutes, it really got going, and stayed at that level for the rest of the film. Most of the joy from the film came from watching Abagnale perform and get away with feigning as someone he isn't. I would say that this was my favourite movie of 2002, and I preferred it to Spielberg's last film 'Minority Report'. As with the alien in ET, and the soldiers in 'Saving Private Ryan', 'Catch Me If You Can' yet again explores the director's recurring theme of characters longing to be home.
Rating:
Summary: one of the best movies i've seen in the longest time!
Review: this has to be one of my favourite movies of all time now. this was such a good movie! and the fact that it was based on a true story made it even better. the acting was great. leo dicaprio was better then i expected. tom hanks was great :)
Rating:
Summary: Society as a factory of criminals
Review: In this film Steven Spielberg wants to entertain us with a simple plot, a simple situation, a great chase around the world. He wants to entertain us with two characters who are highly attractive. The young man who becomes a criminal because his father is harrassed by the IRS and whose wife is stolen away by his best friend can easily become a symbol of fighting back, resilience, rebellion, intelligence against a system that tries to crush all those who may be antisocial, or just appear to be antisocial. The second character of the cop who is chasing this young man is just as attractive. Divorced, having lost wife and daughter, abandoned and isolated in his personal life, living the life of a hermit, of a monk of the law against crime, he easily becomes a father substitute to the young man and chases him with real paternal care and even maybe love. This relation between the criminal and the cop is amazingly reassuring. The young criminal becomes a hero because he attacks the economic system and is more intelligent than the businessmen and CEOs of this system. The cop becomes a hero because he is not viciously chasing a criminal he is ready to kill if necessary, but he chases him to protect him against his own desire to fool the system, and to give him the opportunity to really become « social » by using his talent and his intelligence against the criminals who attack the system. This will lead me to the conclusion on this point : this film is in a way a denunciation of the economic and political system that tries to destroy its opponents by all means available, including in their private life, due to a total lack of ethics on the side of the proponents of this system. Why does our system produce such a phenomenal highjacking of intelligence into crime ? But the film also has another interest. Leonardo Di Caprio reveals himself as able to impersonate many characters and personalities in this film and this is the proof that he is improving and developing. He is able to become, in the near future, a good and even great actor, provided his body and face are put aside and his acting talent is emphasized. That is all the more important because he is getting old and will no longer be able to play the handsome and lovable teenagers he has played so often. He is entering the real profession : he is enabled by this film to show that he can act with his soul and not only with his body. Dr Jacques COULARDEAU, University of Perpignan
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