Public Enemies (reviewed by Chuck)

2.5/4 stars

From http://bestbuy.partner.commonsensemedia.org/partner/bestbuy/682683?h=488

Parents need to know
Parents need to know that this 1930s-set crime drama starring Johnny Depp as infamous bank robber John Dillinger is full of very realistic violence that some will find hard to take. Gun battles are frequent and intense, and characters suffer gory wounds and die. A woman is beaten during an interrogation scene; other characters are shot down in cold blood. Although there's not too much in the way of sexual content (aside from one somewhat steamy love scene with no nudity) or language (there's one use of "f--k," plus a smattering of other salty words) for an R-rated film, the movie's focus on the differences and similarities between cops and crooks yields complex role models and messages. Some law enforcement officers are depicted as corrupt and cruel, while others are dedicated, dignified, and diligent; similarly, there are cold, calm professionals among the film's criminals, as well as hair-trigger sociopaths. Expect lots of period-accurate smoking and drinking.

Synopsis
In 1933, John Dillinger (Johnny Depp) began a 14-month crime wave that started with his release from prison and ended with his death on the streets of Chicago. Hailed by the public as a modern-day Robin Hood -- or at least a charismatic criminal who struck back against the banks that many Americans blamed for the Great Depression -- Dillinger was a celebrity in his day, as was Melvin Purvis (Christian Bale), the lawman that J. Edgar Hoover set on Dillinger's trail. As Dillinger and Purvis are both driven to extremes by outside forces, their kill-or-be-killed hunt plays out.

The ClearPlay Experience
2+ hours of gangster mayhem, with some cat and mouse and a nude-free love scene left me... well, rather bored until near the end. Generally speaking, R-rated movies viewed on ClearPlay with the highest filter settings have a tenancy to be jumpy because skipped inappropriate scenes or cuts that mesh parts together that some times don't flow well, which surprisingly wasn't the case with Public Enemies - this movie is naturally disjointed, which was quite disappointing. This is one of the cases where truth really is stranger than fiction.

Public Enemies (Rated R) - with ClearPlay shields set at maximum - has a common sense rating of PG-13. ClearPlay leaves you with enough blood-free violence to allow pretty much anyone in the PG-13 demographic free to enjoy watching this gangster flick. If bank robbing and automatic weapon dog fights are a concern for yourself or younger viewers, it would be a good time to review the real stroy of John Dillinger and to keep in mind that the shoot outs in Public Enemies are probably not much of a stretch from what really happened when Dillinger robbed from the rich and didn't give to the poor.