It's not hard in hindsight to see the appeal of this piece for Steven Spielberg, with its quick witted protagonist who cons his way around big companies with bluff and charm - like Spielberg famously did at Universal in the late 60s - and who, like Spielberg, is haunted by his parent's divorce, who seeks out elder mentors and who just wants to be loved.
Frank Abagnale is probably has some sort of narcissistic mental condition, like a lot of con artists - he's definitely not all well in the end. That's not really explored here, apart from blaming mum and dad, which is probably a good thing. Leo di Caprio is excellent in the role though, as is Christopher Walken as his father. Good work too from Amy Adams as the girl who may or may not be his one true love. Tom Hanks' FBI agent annoyed me - he was just an overweight Tom Hanks in a hat, with occasional character notes thrown in i.e. he is estranged from his family.
The production design and costumes are great though less fresh now we see it all the time on Mad Men. The tone is jaunty and there is some really clever writing - I loved all the cons, and technical details about cheques and his escapes. It does go too long and there were lots of bits where you felt it could be cut eg Jennifer Garner's cameo (though this was charming and well done), Ellen Pompeo's cameo.
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