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Driving a car from the 1930s is, of course, not the same as driving a car from 2009. While filming "Public Enemies" in town last year, Chicago native Randy Ryan discovered that the hard way-and nearly ran over Christian Bale.
"[The filmmakers] said, 'Can you drive that car?' I said, 'Yeah, I can drive it,'" recalls Ryan, 42, who grew up in Rogers Park and now lives in L.A. "I'd never driven it before. But we drove in the scene, and I almost hit him. . He was very gracious about it."
While the movie almost meant a minor disaster for Bale, "Public Enemies" has meant much better things for Ryan and River North resident Roger Welp-who both play FBI agents in the John Dillinger biopic-and for the city itself.
Director/co-writer Michael Mann's film, opening July 1 and starring Johnny Depp as Dillinger, Bale as FBI Agent Melvin Purvis and Marion Cotillard as Dillinger's girlfriend Billie Frechette, has pumped nearly $47 million into the local economy, according to the Illinois Film Office. Thanks to last week's red carpet local premiere, the film also stands as one of the rare times Chicago has hosted the world's first screening of a blockbuster film. That meant a chance for Ryan and Welp to be among stars in the middle of a Hollywood-style premiere.
"It was very surreal to me," says Welp, 38, of finding out he'd get to walk the red carpet. "It was more like, 'Where are we going? Oh, we're really doing this? Really?'"
Landing small roles in a huge movie like this is big for both actors. Ryan, who hasn't lived in Chicago since he was 13 but owns a dog named Wrigley and comes back often to visit his mom and friends, has previously appeared in brief roles on "Law and Order," "Third Watch" and "Sex and the City." Welp, who grew up in Southern Indiana and has lived in Chicago for 15 years, trained at the Piven Theatre and has been featured on the Chicago-set series "The Beast."
For the actors and the film's hometown setting, the premiere was just the icing on the cake. In addition to filming in Wisconsin and Indiana, "Public Enemies" shot in Chicago for 36 days from late March to late June 2008, filming at locations including Roosevelt University, Union Station and the historic Biograph Theater, where legendary bank robber John Dillinger was gunned down in 1934.
Ryan says walking down the street was like stepping out of a time machine. "Not only were the windows changed, but [so were] the whole display cases for three or four blocks. Every storefront window, both sides of the street," he says. "These are details that you won't pay attention to in the movie but subconsciously make it so much more authentic."
Chicago Film Office director Rich Moskal agrees, recalling how Mann’s crew, while shutting down Lincoln Avenue from Fullerton Avenue to Altgeld Street for seven nights in April, redressed windows, replaced streetlights and used cable car tracks laid over sheets of rubber cobblestone to antiquate the appearance of Chicago streets. The filming at the Biograph, he says, had a particularly glamorous feel.
During downtime, Welp remembers eating with the cast at nearby Clarke's Bar (2445 N. Lincoln Ave.). "We'd eat at Clarke's instead of getting the food that the studio would provide because it was so good," he says. "Even Christian ate there."
Ryan also says the actors, including Depp and Bale, often played poker while not shooting ("Friendly bets," says Ryan, dismissing notions of any $10 million pots with the stars) and had weekends off while Depp retired to his home in France. During that time the cast enjoyed "a lot of Cubs games, a lot of Rush Street," Ryan says.
While filming, plenty of locals gathered around the set to sneak a peek. Ryan says Depp's demeanor with fans shows the Oscar-nominated actor deserves his adulation. "I saw him stand out there in the rain and sign autographs," says Ryan. "He said, 'I'm going to stay out here until people leave.'"
This caliber of filming doesn't happen terribly often in Chicago, which still can't boast as many locally shot films as New York or L.A. Welp, a commodities trader by day, says he hopes "Public Enemies"-and its high-profile local premiere-draws more filmmakers here. Regardless, Ryan says, this is a big moment for his hometown.
"I think the idea of gangsters and Chicago go together like peanut butter and jelly," he says. "The fact that [the film] screened here was a tremendous honor for me as a Chicagoan, and I think it’s the perfect place for it to premiere.” Agreed.
Matt Pais is the Metromix movies and music producer. mpais@tribune.com
