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53-577: Catch Me If You Can is a 2002 American biographical crime comedy-drama film directed and produced by Steven Spielberg and starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Tom Hanks with Christopher Walken , Martin Sheen , Nathalie Baye , Amy Adams , and James Brolin in supporting roles. The screenplay by Jeff Nathanson is based on the semi-autobiographical book of the same name by Frank Abagnale Jr. , who claims that prior to his 19th birthday, he successfully performed cons worth millions of dollars by posing as

106-476: A Pan American World Airways pilot, a Georgia doctor, and a Louisiana parish prosecutor. However, the truth of his story is, as of the 2020s, heavily disputed. A movie version of Abagnale's book of the same name was contemplated soon after it was published in 1980 but began in earnest in 1997 when Spielberg's DreamWorks bought the film rights. David Fincher , Gore Verbinski , Lasse Hallström , Miloš Forman , and Cameron Crowe were all considered to direct

159-598: A Fairytale (2006), and Howard Stern in Private Parts (1997). In 2018, the musical biopic Bohemian Rhapsody , based on the life of Queen singer Freddie Mercury , became the highest-grossing biopic in history at the time. In 2023, it was surpassed by Oppenheimer , based on the life of J. Robert Oppenheimer and the creation of the atomic bomb in World War II. Montrichard Montrichard ( French pronunciation: [mɔ̃tʁiʃaʁ] )

212-491: A Geisha . Spielberg officially committed to directing in August 2001. That same month, Tom Hanks was cast to replace Gandolfini, who had exited due to scheduling conflicts with The Sopranos . The search for Sevigny's replacement as Brenda Strong lasted months, but Amy Adams was eventually cast. Spielberg "loved" her tape, and producer Walter F. Parkes commented that she was "as fresh and honest as anyone we'd seen", which

265-719: A consultant on the film. I've never met or spoken to Steven Spielberg and I have not read the script. I prefer not to. I understand that they now portray my father in a better light, as he really was. Steven Spielberg has told the screenplay writer (Jeff Nathanson) that he wants complete accuracy in the relationships and actual scams that I perpetrated. I hope in the end the movie will be entertaining, exciting, funny and bring home an important message about family, childhood and divorce. Abagnale says he never saw his father again after he ran away from home, but Spielberg "wanted to continue to have that connection where Frank kept trying to please his father; by making him proud of him; by seeing him in

318-413: A division of Disney , and when the project went into turnaround , the rights were again sold to Bungalow 78 Productions, a division of TriStar Pictures . From there, the project was presented to Steven Spielberg at DreamWorks Pictures . According to Daily Variety , executive producer Michel Shane purchased the film rights in 1990 for Paramount Pictures . By December 1997, Barry Kemp purchased

371-538: A fraudulent check from a case he is working on. Frank immediately deduces that the bank teller was involved in the fraud. Impressed, Carl convinces the FBI to allow him to serve the remainder of his sentence working for the FBI Financial Crimes Unit. Frank agrees but soon grows restless doing the tedious office work. One weekend, Frank prepares to impersonate a pilot again and is intercepted by Carl, who

424-401: A good job of staying very, very accurate at the movie. In addition, the FBI agent who Abagnale alleges tracked and later worked with him was Joseph Shea ; Abagnale has said that because Shea did not want his name used in the film, the character was renamed Carl and given the surname Hanratty, based on the football player Terry Hanratty . Despite his claim that Spielberg "stayed very close to

477-475: A local college. Surrounded by eight women as stewardesses, he conceals himself from Carl and the other agents at the airport and escapes on a flight to Madrid . In 1967, Carl tracks down Frank in his mother's hometown of Montrichard , France, and convinces him to surrender to the French police. Frank is immediately arrested and taken into French custody, but Carl assures him that he will get him extradited back to

530-563: A prisoner named Frank Abagnale Jr. , who has fallen ill due to the prison's poor conditions. Six years ago, Frank lived in New Rochelle , New York , with his father, Frank Sr., and his French mother, Paula. During his youth, he witnesses his father's many techniques for conning people, but Frank Sr.'s tax problems with the IRS eventually force the family to move from their house and into a small apartment. One day, Frank discovers his mother

583-469: A rating of 96% based on 203 reviews, with an average rating of 7.90/10. The site's critical consensus reads: "With help from a strong performance by Leonardo DiCaprio as real-life wunderkind con artist Frank Abagnale, Steven Spielberg crafts a film that's stylish, breezily entertaining, and surprisingly sweet." On Metacritic , the film has a score of 75 out of 100, based on 39 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews. Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave

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636-399: A scene in the movie where she's remarried, and has a little girl. That didn't really happen. In real life I never saw my father after I ran away; in the movie they keep having him come back to Christopher Walken in the film. That didn't really happen. ... I escaped off the aircraft through the kitchen galley where they bring the food and stuff onto the plane; and there they had me escape through

689-619: A small role in the film. Filming was scheduled to begin in January 2002, but was pushed to February 7 in Los Angeles, California . Locations included Burbank , Downey , New York City , LA/Ontario International Airport (which doubled for Miami International Airport ), Quebec City and Montreal . The film was shot in 147 locations in only 52 days. DiCaprio reflected, "Scenes that we thought would take three days took an afternoon." Filming ran from April 25–30 on Park Avenue , just outside

742-596: Is a town and former commune in the Loir-et-Cher department , Centre-Val de Loire , France . On 1 January 2016, it was merged into the new commune of Montrichard Val de Cher . During the French Revolution , the commune was known as Montégalité . The town lies on the north bank of the river Cher . 32 kilometres (20 mi) south of Blois , 73 kilometres (45 mi) west of Vierzon and 42 kilometres (26 mi) east of Tours . The countryside

795-480: Is having an affair with Jack Barnes, his father's friend from the New Rochelle Rotary Club . When his parents divorce, Frank runs away. Needing money, he turns to confidence scams to survive, his cons progressively growing bolder. He poses as a Pan Am pilot named Frank Taylor and forges the airline's payroll checks. Soon, his forgeries are worth millions of dollars. News of the crimes reaches

848-449: Is mainly constituted of vineyard, woods, cattle and cereals. The right pronunciation should be « MON-TRICHARD » [mɔ̃ t ʀiʃɑʀ], with a t . One of the explanations that may justify the pronunciation of "t" is the following: Montrichard was supposed to come from the French words "mont" (mountain, hill), "tri" (for three) and "chard" (square) because the town is situated on a hill surrounded on three sides by square towers. The town

901-520: Is mentioned in the 2002 feature film Catch Me If You Can , as the town from which the mother of Frank Abagnale came. Later in the film, Abagnale has set up a high-end printing facility for printing corporate cheques in Montrichard when he is tracked down and arrested by the FBI. The exterior shots of the town, however, were filmed in the Place Royale in the lower town of Quebec City, which

954-641: Is often a balance between similarity in looks and ability to portray the characteristics of the person. Anthony Hopkins felt that he should not have played Richard Nixon in Nixon because of a lack of resemblance between the two. The casting of John Wayne as Genghis Khan in The Conqueror was objected to because of the American Wayne being cast as the Mongol warlord. Egyptian critics criticized

1007-531: Is willing to let him continue with his con, assuring him that no one is chasing him and that it's his choice. Frank returns to work and discusses another fraud case with Carl, who asks him how he cheated on the Louisiana State Bar exam. Frank tells him he studied and passed it. Carl smiles and asks Frank if he's telling the truth, but Frank doesn't answer, instead giving Carl input on a new fraud case. A postscript says that Frank lived for 26 years in

1060-497: The Louisiana State Bar exam, which Frank passes. Carl tracks Frank to his and Brenda's engagement party, but Frank escapes through a bedroom window, telling Brenda to meet him at Miami International Airport two days later. At the airport, Frank spots Brenda, but also plainclothed agents. He realizes she has given him up, then drives away. Reassuming his pilot identity, he stages a recruiting drive for stewardesses at

1113-508: The Midwestern United States with his wife, with whom he had three sons, remained friends with Carl, and made a living as a leading expert on bank fraud and forgery in the FBI. The real Frank Abagnale appears in a cameo as a French police officer arresting his onscreen counterpart. Frank Abagnale sold the film rights to his autobiography in 1980. According to Abagnale, producers Norman Lear and Bud Yorkin purchased

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1166-657: The Neil Simon Theatre on March 11, 2011, and officially opened April 10, 2011. The musical was nominated for four Tony Awards , including Best Musical . Biographical film Biopic scholars include George F. Custen of the College of Staten Island and Dennis P. Bingham of Indiana University–Purdue University Indianapolis . Custen, in Bio/Pics: How Hollywood Constructed Public History (1992), regards

1219-519: The 1977 episode of the television game show To Tell the Truth that featured Frank Abagnale. Segments were shown on December 29, 2002, and January 1, 2003, as promotion. Catch Me If You Can was released on DVD and VHS on May 6, 2003 by DreamWorks Home Entertainment. The DVD was released as a 2-Disc Special Edition and included special features including never-before-seen footage by director Steven Spielberg as well as interviews. As of December 2003,

1272-423: The FBI and Carl begins tracking Frank. He finds him at a motel, but Frank tricks Carl into believing he is a Secret Service agent named Barry Allen . He escapes before Carl realizes he was fooled. Frank then begins to impersonate a doctor. As Dr. Frank Conners, he falls in love with Brenda, a naive young hospital nurse, and asks her attorney father for both her hand in marriage and help with arrangements to take

1325-568: The FBI. Catch Me if You Can deals with themes of broken homes and troubled childhoods. Spielberg's parents divorced when he was a teenager, similar to Frank Abagnale's situation. In the film, Carl Hanratty is also divorced from his wife, who lives with their daughter in Chicago. "Some of my films have had to do with broken homes and people on the run from their sad pasts," Spielberg stated: But there are those strands that got me to say: you know, there's something also about me that I can say through

1378-794: The Moon (1999), Downey as Charlie Chaplin in Chaplin (1992) and as Lewis Strauss in Oppenheimer (2023), Foxx as Ray Charles in Ray (2004), Thompson and Hanks as P. L. Travers and Walt Disney in Saving Mr. Banks (2013), Redmayne as Stephen Hawking in The Theory of Everything (2014), and Murphy as J. Robert Oppenheimer in Oppenheimer (2023). Some biopics purposely stretch

1431-577: The Rings: The Two Towers . The film went on to gross $ 164.6 million in North America and $ 187.5 million in foreign countries, with a worldwide total of $ 352.1 million. The film was a financial success, recouping the $ 52 million budget seven times over. Catch Me If You Can was the eleventh highest-grossing film of 2002; Minority Report , also a Spielberg film, was the tenth highest. On Rotten Tomatoes , Catch Me If You Can has

1484-420: The U.S. Picking back up once more in 1969, Carl takes Frank on a flight back to the U.S. As they approach, Carl informs Frank that Frank Sr. has died. Grief-stricken, Frank escapes from the plane and reaches the house of his mother, who now has a daughter with Barnes. Frank surrenders to Carl and is sentenced to 12 years in a maximum-security prison. Carl occasionally visits Frank. During one visit, he shows him

1537-732: The Waldorf-Astoria Hotel . Production moved to Orange, New Jersey and returned to Brooklyn for bank and courthouse scenes. Shooting also took place at the TWA Flight Center at John F. Kennedy International Airport . Quebec City was chosen for its atmosphere. Place Royale , within Old Quebec , stands in for Montrichard , and the church in the background of the arrest scene is Notre-Dame-des-Victoires . Filming ended on May 12 in Montreal. The original score

1590-458: The casting of Louis Gossett Jr. , an African American actor, as Egyptian president Anwar Sadat in the 1983 TV miniseries Sadat . Also, some objected to the casting of Jennifer Lopez in Selena because she is a New York City native of Puerto Rican descent while Selena was Mexican American . Because the figures portrayed are actual people, whose actions and characteristics are known to

1643-437: The film an average grade of "A−" on an A+ to F scale. Roger Ebert heavily praised DiCaprio's performance, and concluded "This is not a major Spielberg film, although it is an effortlessly watchable one." Mick LaSalle said it was "not Spielberg's best movie, but one of his smoothest and maybe his friendliest. The colorful cinematography, smart performances and brisk tempo suggest a filmmaker subordinating every other impulse to

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1696-509: The film before Spielberg decided to direct it himself. Filming took place from February to May 2002. The film opened on December 25, 2002, to major critical and commercial success, grossing $ 352 million worldwide. At the 75th Academy Awards , Christopher Walken and John Williams were nominated for Best Supporting Actor and Best Original Score , respectively. In 1969, FBI agent Carl Hanratty arrives in Marseille , France , to pick up

1749-401: The film rights after seeing him on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson . Two years later, they sold the rights to Columbia Pictures , who in turn sold the rights to producer Hall Bartlett . Bartlett and business partner Michael J. Lasky hired Steven Kunes to write the screenplay, but Bartlett died before the project found a distributor. The rights were then sold to Hollywood Pictures ,

1802-689: The film rights from Shane, bringing the project to DreamWorks, with Jeff Nathanson writing the script. By April 2000, David Fincher was attached to direct over the course of a few months, but dropped out in favor of Panic Room . In July 2000, Leonardo DiCaprio had entered discussions to star, with Gore Verbinski to direct. Spielberg signed on as producer, and filming was set to begin in March 2001. Verbinski cast James Gandolfini as Carl Hanratty, Ed Harris as Frank Abagnale Sr. and Chloë Sevigny as Brenda Strong. Verbinski dropped out because of DiCaprio's commitment to Gangs of New York . Lasse Hallström

1855-574: The film, were the subject of renewed media reporting in 2021. In 1978, several journalists debunked his claim that he passed the Louisiana bar and worked for Attorney General Jack P. F. Gremillion . Journalist Ira Perry was unable to find any evidence that Abagnale worked with the FBI; according to one retired FBI Special Agent in Charge , Abagnale was caught trying to pass fraudulent checks in 1978, several years after he claimed that he began working with

1908-463: The gender norms that underlie the biopic in his article, "Taking Hollywood Back" in the 2009 issue of Cinema Journal . Roger Ebert defended The Hurricane and distortions in biographical films in general, stating "those who seek the truth about a man from the film of his life might as well seek it from his loving grandmother. ... The Hurricane is not a documentary but a parable ." Casting can be controversial for biographical films. Casting

1961-483: The genre as having died with the Hollywood studio era , and in particular, Darryl F. Zanuck . On the other hand, Bingham's 2010 study Whose Lives Are They Anyway? The Biopic as Contemporary Film Genre shows how it perpetuates as a codified genre using many of the same tropes used in the studio era that has followed a similar trajectory as that shown by Rick Altman in his study, Film/Genre . Bingham also addresses

2014-419: The male biopic and the female biopic as distinct genres from each other, the former generally dealing with great accomplishments, the latter generally dealing with female victimization. Ellen Cheshire's Bio-Pics: a life in pictures (2014) examines UK/US films from the 1990s and 2000s. Each chapter reviews key films linked by profession and concludes with further viewing list. Christopher Robé has also written on

2067-819: The public (or at least historically documented), biopic roles are considered some of the most demanding of actors and actresses. Warren Beatty , Faye Dunaway , Ben Kingsley , Johnny Depp , Jim Carrey , Jamie Foxx , Robert Downey Jr. , Brad Pitt , Emma Thompson , Tom Hanks , Eddie Redmayne , and Cillian Murphy all gained new-found respect as dramatic actors after starring in biopics: Beatty and Dunaway as Clyde Barrow and Bonnie Parker in Bonnie and Clyde (1967), Kingsley as Mahatma Gandhi in Gandhi (1982), Depp as Ed Wood in Ed Wood (1994), Carrey as Andy Kaufman in Man on

2120-759: The story", records show Abagnale was in the Great Meadow Correctional Facility in Fort Ann, New York , between the ages of 17 and 20 (July 26, 1965, to December 24, 1968, inmate #25367), and before that, he was in the United States Navy (December 1964 to February 1965). Six weeks after his release from Great Meadow, on February 14, 1969, he was rearrested in Baton Rouge, Louisiana . He was jailed locally, and in June 1969, he

2173-615: The story, but I am honored that Steven Spielberg, Leonardo DiCaprio and Tom Hanks participated in the making of the movie inspired by my life. It is important to understand that it is just a movie, not a biographical documentary. — Frank Abagnale 's reaction to the film DreamWorks was careful to market the film as "inspired by a true story" to avoid controversy similar to that surrounding A Beautiful Mind (2001) and The Hurricane (1999), both of which deviated from history. The premiere took place at Westwood, Los Angeles, California , on December 18, 2002. Game Show Network has aired

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2226-580: The task of manufacturing pleasure." Stephen Hunter believed DiCaprio shows "the range and ease and cleverness that Martin Scorsese so underutilized in Gangs of New York ". James Berardinelli observed, " Catch Me if You Can never takes itself or its subjects too seriously, and contains more genuinely funny material than about 90% of the so-called 'comedies' found in multiplexes these days." Berardinelli praised John Williams 's film score , which he felt

2279-407: The telling of this kind of lighthearted story. Spielberg also wanted to create a film that sympathized with a crook. He explained: Frank was a 21st-century genius working within the innocence of the mid '60s, when people were more trusting than they are now. I don't think this is the kind of movie where somebody could say, 'I have a career plan.' I know that Hollywood has made a number of changes to

2332-565: The toilet." I thought he stayed very close to the story, but pretty much all of that. He was very concerned about being accurate, first of all because it was the first time he made a movie about a real person living. Second the Bureau had an information officer on the set for all the shooting of the entire film to make sure that what he said about the FBI ... was accurate. ... And then of course, as he later said, "I really got most of my information from those three retired agents" ... So I thought he did

2385-474: The truth. Confessions of a Dangerous Mind was based on game show host Chuck Barris ' widely debunked yet popular memoir of the same name, in which he claimed to be a CIA agent. Kafka incorporated both the life of author Franz Kafka and the surreal aspects of his fiction. The Errol Flynn film They Died with Their Boots On tells the story of Custer but is highly romanticized. The Oliver Stone film The Doors , mainly about Jim Morrison ,

2438-467: The uniform, the Pan-American uniform." In a 2017 presentation for "Talks at Google", Abagnale commented on the accuracy of the film: I've only seen the movie twice. So when the media asked me what I thought about the movie, and what was right and what was wrong, I said: "First of all I have two brothers and a sister; he portrayed me as an only child. In real life, my mother never remarried; there's

2491-407: The video sold 3,20 million copies earning a profit of over 56.3 million dollars. For the film's 10th Anniversary A Blu-ray version was released on December 4, 2012. A 20th anniversary Blu-Ray version followed on October 4, 2022 Catch Me If You Can was released on December 25, 2002, earning slightly above $ 30 million in 3,225 theaters during its opening weekend, in second place behind The Lord of

2544-603: Was "more intimate and jazzy than his usual material, evoking (intentionally) Henry Mancini ". Peter Travers was one of few who gave the film a negative review; he considered the film to be "bogged down over 140 minutes. A film that took off like a hare on speed ends like a winded tortoise." A musical adaptation of the same name premiered at the 5th Avenue Theatre in Seattle , Washington in July 2009, starring Aaron Tveit and Norbert Leo Butz . It began previews on Broadway at

2597-529: Was an important element in the role. Christopher Walken was cast as Frank Abagnale Sr. following Parkes's suggestion. Martin Sheen played Roger Strong, as he had "intimidating presence". Spielberg wanted a French actress to portray Paula Abagnale to stay true to the facts. He asked for the help of Brian De Palma , who was living in Paris, and he did tests with several actresses such as Nathalie Baye . Spielberg had seen Jennifer Garner on Alias and offered her

2650-430: Was composed and conducted by John Williams . The film's soundtrack was released on December 10, 2002, by DreamWorks Records. All music composed and conducted by John Williams unless otherwise stated. Abagnale had little involvement with the film, but believed Spielberg was the only filmmaker who "could do this film justice", despite various changes from purportedly real events. In November 2001, Abagnale said: I am not

2703-602: Was convicted of stealing from a local family and small business in Baton Rouge. Abagnale did dress as a Pan American Airlines pilot for a brief period in the fall of 1970. He was arrested in Cobb County, Georgia , on November 2, 1970. Federal court records associated with his conviction show he cashed only 10 personal checks with a Pan American Airlines logo, totaling less than $ 1,500. The facts behind many of Abagnale's exaggerated claims, and their inclusion or omission from

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2756-1103: Was highly praised for the similarities between Jim Morrison and actor Val Kilmer , look-wise and singing-wise, but fans and band members did not like the way Val Kilmer portrayed Jim Morrison, and a few of the scenes were even completely made up. In rare cases, sometimes called auto biopics , the subject of the film plays themself. Examples include Jackie Robinson in The Jackie Robinson Story (1950), Muhammad Ali in The Greatest (1977), Audie Murphy in To Hell and Back (1955), Patty Duke in Call Me Anna (1990), Bob Mathias in The Bob Mathias Story (1954), Arlo Guthrie in Alice's Restaurant (1969), Fantasia in Life Is Not

2809-448: Was in negotiations to direct by May 2001, but dropped out in July 2001. At this stage, Harris and Sevigny left the film, but DiCaprio and Gandolfini were still attached. Spielberg, co-founder of DreamWorks, offered the job of director to Miloš Forman , and considered hiring Cameron Crowe . During this negotiation period, Spielberg began to consider directing the film himself, eventually dropping projects such as Big Fish and Memoirs of

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