Public Enemies poster

Public Enemies (2009)

Film · 2h 20m · Rated R

Crime, Drama

Depression-era outlaws and federal agents clash in a brisk, gritty, and suspenseful game of cat and mouse.

Pulpy. A full-attention watch at a brisk pace. Emotionally it is heavy. Based on true events.

Streaming on YouTube (free).

Public Enemies parents guide

No surprises for an R: moderate sex and nudity, and strong violence.

Scare
Not scary
Jump scares
None noted
Gore
Light gore
Some blood or injury, briefly.
Violence
Strong violence
Violence is frequent or intense.
Sex and nudity
Moderate
Moderate means a sex scene or nudity on screen, even brief, or sexual violence that is described or implied but never shown.
Language
Moderate
Some strong profanity, a few f-words.

How we rate: an AI reads what is known about each title and tags it 0 to 3; we check the tags against a hand-rated set and correct them by hand when readers tell us. Estimates, not a scene-by-scene review. Spot a mistake? Tell us.

Three questions

How gory is Public Enemies?
Light gore and strong violence.
What is Public Enemies rated, and is it OK for kids?
Rated R, and it earns it: moderate sex and nudity, strong violence, and some strong language. Not one for kids.

What is Public Enemies about?

Depression-era bank robber John Dillinger's charm and audacity endear him to much of America's downtrodden public, but he's also a thorn in the side of J. Edgar Hoover and the fledgling FBI. Desperate to capture the elusive outlaw, Hoover makes Dillinger his first Public Enemy Number One and assigns his top agent, Melvin Purvis, the task of bringing him in dead or alive.

Does it have a happy ending? (spoiler-safe)

No. Brace yourself.

Cast and crew

Directed byMichael Mann
StarringJohnny Depp, Christian Bale, Marion Cotillard, Jason Clarke, Rory Cochrane, Billy Crudup

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Uses the TMDB API; not endorsed or certified by TMDB. Intensity, content, tone and pace tags are CouchRot's own.