Big 2015 Films: Black Mass Back in the early-noughties Johnny Depp was viewed as one of the greatest actors ever. Heck, had he kept up with astute career decisions he could rival DiCaprio in the "How have they still not got an Oscar?" stakes. Unfortunately, thanks to a run of career choices dominated by the success of Captain Jack Sparrow it's been over a decade since his last objectively exciting, non-derivative performance, reducing him to being that actor everyone hurriedly ignores, ashamed to admit they actually used to like him. That changed, momentarily, in 2015 - he may have kicked the year off in the risible Mortdecai (don't even), but we eventually saw Depp take a break from gurning to play Whitey Bulger. Now Black Mass as a film isn't anything special - it's your typical gangster "epic" told over years, with a slight twist on the cop side of things - and Depp's performance is oddly cartoonish alongside the rest of the cast (a big fault is the over-the-top make-up), but I'd be lying if it wasn't the most interesting thing he's done since Finding Neverland. As I said in my main review though, this is likely to be short-lived; 2016 brings us Alice Through The Looking Glass and Pirates Of The Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales Hits the year after, meaning we can bank on a lot more silliness before he ever has a chance of getting that Oscar.
