Catch Me If You Can isn’t a bad film. It’s not a very good film either. Although there are some amusing moments throughout the film (Leonardo DiCaprio pretending to be James Bond, for one), the plot jumps around too much for it all too work. It seems like cleverly scripted set-pieces, held together with some under-done characterisation and weak plot devices.
From the outset, we’re never allowed to connect to Frank (the protagonist of the film): his genius and daring, although apparent from the outcomes that we’re allowed to see, are never truly portrayed. He goes from small-time cheque fraud, to having stolen several million dollars in the space of a few scenes, with no intervening growth really shown. We only really see his early failures, and his great escape scene later on. That’s it.
His pursuit is entertaining in places, but largely empty. Nothing really convincing. It’s about as half-hearted as this review.