A brief mention of vending machines in the 2015 Johnny Depp-led film Black Mass has people scratching their heads about why buying soda is so important to the mob.
The movie is a biographical crime drama taking place in 1975 and following Whitey Bulgar, an extremely prolific American mobster in Boston for the Winter Hill gang.
Johnny Depp stars as Whitey, and is joined by a stacked cast including Joel Edgerton, Benedict Cumberbatch, Dakota Johnson, Kevin Bacon, David Harbour, and more.
What Are Vending Machines in Black Mass?
To begin with, it is important to explain why vending machines are important to criminal organizations such as the ones portrayed in Black Mass.
The answer is simple, it was a key method of money laundering.
A vending machine was cash-only and could not trace or prove any transaction made through it. This made them perfect for cleaning money that people like the Mafia got through less desirable means.
At one point, just under halfway through Black Mass, Johnny Depp's Whitley demands Joel Edgerton's John Connolly do him a favor if he still wants their partnership to continue.
He strictly states that he "want[s] all of Angiulo's vending machines out of the old colony," adding how "[he doesn't] care how [he does] it."
The Angiulo mentioned is Gennaro Angiulo, a significant Boston Mafia boss who is an enemy of Winter Hill.
Whitley's request was him trying to remove income from the Mafia–or at least legitimate-looking income. Now, the criminal organization will have fewer ways to wash its illegal cash flow.
While speaking to Boston.com, Kevin Cullen, co-author of Whitley Bulger: America's Most Wanted Gangster and the Manhunt That Brought Him to Justice, offered some additional insight into why vending machines were of interest.
The author revealed that at one point in the mid-70s, namely before Whitey was a big player within the gang, both Winter Hill and the Mafia were fighting over vending machines. While the two parties tried to work together, they ended up "going after the same money," which caused issues.
Whitley's request in the movie might also be a direct reference to those specific events from real life.
As of writing Black Mass is streaming Netflix.
