Catch Me If You Can (2002)

July 13, 2022 5:57 AM

Barely 21 yet, Frank Abagnale Jr. (Leonardo DiCaprio) is a skilled forger who has passed as a doctor, lawyer and pilot. FBI agent Carl Hanratty (Tom Hanks) becomes obsessed with tracking down the con man, who only revels in the pursuit. A true story, based on the book Catch Me If You Can: The Amazing True Story of the Youngest and Most Daring Con Man in the History of Fun and Profit [trailer]
posted by Ten Cold Hot Dogs (6 comments total)

Now it seems to be coming together that Frank Abagnale may have even lied about his lies as a con-man.

PBC WTTW - Could this famous con man be lying about his story? A new book suggests he is

Which is abolutely hilarious.
posted by WildMuffin at 11:13 AM on July 13, 2022 [12 favorites]

WildMuffin: The craziest thing about that story is that people have been debunking Abagnale for over 40 years, and yet it still doesn't stick!
posted by Saxon Kane at 1:08 PM on July 13, 2022 [4 favorites]

I read the book in high school when i was considering a career as an international jewel thief and while i don't remember much, I remember that one of his cons was filling out the deposit slips, the blank ones available at the bank, by putting in his own bank account number and then inserting the slip back in the stack. So the unsuspecting customers deposit their paycheck into his account...? Even to a kid that didn't make sense. Maybe I'm remembering it wrong. It's much more believable that he would put on a pilot's uniforn and blag his way onto a plane though.

A similar tale is "The Great Imposter" starring Tony Curtis (1961) about Ferdinand Demara
posted by TWinbrook8 at 2:02 PM on July 16, 2022 [2 favorites]

I feel Leonardo DiCaprio was at the height of his powers in this film. Just charisma to burn, charming his way off the screen.
posted by potrzebie at 8:15 PM on July 16, 2022 [3 favorites]

One of my favorite late period Spielberg. I don't really care if any of it is true and I doubt that Spielberg or his writers did either. It's a fun fantasy and DiCaprio and Hanks are perfectly cast.
posted by octothorpe at 3:53 AM on July 17, 2022 [3 favorites]

The abandoned TWA terminal at JFK was used as a set because it's the correct period, of course. And now it's been turned into a hotel that you can visit. The restoration is pretty remarkable.
posted by JoeZydeco at 1:14 PM on July 21, 2022