Black Mass
James ‘Whitey’ Bulger (Johnny Depp), a boy out of Boston’s South Side and brother to state senator Billy Bulger (Benedict Cumberbatch) would arrive in the 1970’s and 80’s as one of the most infamous and violent criminal masterminds wanted by the FBI; however, before he was a wanted man, Bulger was actually an informant to the FBI and fellow Southie agent John Connolly (Joel Edgerton). Outlining some of ‘Whitey’s’ more memorable stops along the way, this is the story of his rise to power and eventual fall. 
Directed by Scott Cooper, the ensemble weight of this piece is a massive bunch although in actuality each of the individual parts are deceptively light; appearances from Kevin Bacon, Peter Sarsgaard, Rory Cochrane, Jesse Plemons, Dakota Johnson, Corey Stoll, Julianne Nicholson, the list goes on, are all important but still quite superficial. Meanwhile the relationship between Depp, Edgerton, and Cumberbatch does go further but doesn’t entirely dig perhaps as deep as possible; instead, large gaps of time are left open in the narrative leaving the audience to fill in their own blanks; and, while Depp melts into the skin of Bulger all too seamlessly, it still remains somewhat of a mystery as to how the monster was made. Nonetheless, still the frontrunner for this week’s biopic race, Black Mass is worthy of your attention and rated R.