An anxious crowd gathered outside the AMC River East 21 theaters on East Illinois Street Thursday night hoping for a glimpse of Hollywood in Chicago.
It was the Chicago premiere of "Public Enemies," the John Dillinger story, filmed in and around Chicago last year and into 2009, and starring Johnny Depp and Christian Bale.
A native of Indiana, Johnny Depp said he's been facinated by Dillinger since he was a boy. He told the Sun-Times that he thinks people are intrigued by the bad guy figure because he got away with it for a long time.
"He was a man of the people. The banks were the enemies, just as they are now. Funny similarity, huh?" Depp said. ''Plus the government was doing shiftier things than the bank robbers. Hmmm ... that sounds familiar too, doesn't it?''
Bale, who also shot "The Dark Knight" in Chicago, greeted the crowd warmly.
When asked what his first thought of Chicago might be, the Sun-Times' Steve Zucker quoted him as saying, simply, "Big portions."
"Public Enemies'" director, Humboldt Park-native Michael Mann, was also on the red carpet Thursday night. He clearly loved being back home.
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"My mom still lives here, but more than that I love working in this place. I think it's the most vibrant, exciting city in America."
Shhh. That's our secret.
