17 Years Later, Johnny Depp’s Overlooked Action Crime Thriller Is Officially Free on YouTube

Michael Mann’s crime thriller *Public Enemies*, starring Johnny Depp as bank robber John Dillinger, is now free to watch on YouTube. The film follows Dillinger’s final months in 1934 as FBI agent Melvin Purvis, played by Christian Bale, pursues him, and explores how gangsters became public figures while federal law enforcement sought greater authority.

Based on Bryan Burrough’s non-fiction book, the film focuses on Dillinger’s legend during the Great Depression, when banks were widely unpopular and the FBI was establishing itself as a national force. Depp plays the outlaw with restrained confidence, while Bale portrays the personal toll of Purvis’s work; the ensemble also includes Marion Cotillard, Giovanni Ribisi, Carey Mulligan and Channing Tatum.