Black Mass

3 out of 4 Stars

Black Mass is a straightforward and faithful adaptation of Dick Lehr and Gerard O'Neil's book on the infamous Boston gangster, James "Whitey" Bulger and his partnership with FBI agent, John Connelly. From 1976 to 1994, Bulger and his Winter Hill gang ruled the streets of South Boston with violent intimidation and Irish charm. As Connelly, a childhood chum of Bulger's, takes the credit for taking down the Italian Mafia, Whitey's criminal enterprise grows along with his psychotic tendencies. As the body count grows, so does the suspicion over how deep Bulger has the FBI in his back pocket.

Scott Cooper does a solid job in diverting from the tropes of the Scorsese-styled gangster flick by presenting Boston's criminal underworld with a composed and chilling style similar to Yates' The Friends of Eddie Coyle.  However, the film does veer off into domestic, eye-rolling melodrama reminiscent of Donnie Brasco. Fortunately, the melodrama is overshadowed by the documentary-styled narrative penned by Mark Mallouk and Jez Butterworth along with the crisp and steady cinematography of Masanobu Takayanagi.

Johnny Depp gives a good and non-glamorous performance as Whitey Bulger. Apart from a stake dinner scene reminiscent of Jack Nicholson's flamboyant gangster in The Departed, Depp shies away from a Gonzo-esque performance as he invokes fear with his piercing blue eyes and rough exterior. Australian actor Joel Edgerton swaggers onto the screen as John Connelly with a mix of bravado and paranoia as the FBI agent who made a deal with the devilish Bulger. Benedict Cumberbatch is excellent as Whiteys brother and state senator who tries to look the other way when his brother is in the newspapers. Rounding up the cast are some memorable performances by Jesse Plemons, Peter Sarsgaard, and Rory Cochrane as Whitey's crew.

For publicity leading up to the film, Warner Bros. made Black Mass look like a cross between Heat and The Town, yet the film is calm and reserved to some extent.  Even though there's nothing that really jumps off the screen, the film is a solid piece that combines journalistic inquiry into Boston 's criminal underground.