anyone who visit drive in in the 1950s and 60 and and 70 and must have see a film or two by american international picture and a distributor that resemble 1980s giant cannon film . wherever movie goer venture and aip would be right there to supply the late en vogue title in the 50 come horror movie like voodoo woman and the undead while in the 60 be frankie avalon annette funicello beach comedy and biker flick like the glory stomper while and into the 70 and aip churn out grindhouse level trash like cannibal girl and sugar hill . dillinger and release in 1973 and be one of the more highbrow aip effort that capture the true spirit of drive in film making while it be one of those uneven and over the top flick that satisfy the mass thirst for entertainment and craftsmanship and common sense be damn . on the whole and dillinger be typical for it era represent entertaining and worth a couple of hour and but certainly not memorable . heavy on action and short on both act and historical fact and dillinger be a fair effort by screenwriter director john milius ( magnum force ) but certainly leave room for improvement in his extensive career . the 109 minute dillinger epic for aip scope follow the quest of fbi midwest chief melvin purvis and play by academy award winner ben johnson . purvis be the investigator who seek revenge for four fbi agent kill in a 1933 kansa city ambush that help gangster frank nash to escape justice . at large be the men who supposedly plot that breakout and include expert bankrobber john dillinger ( warren oates ) and pretty boy floyd ( steve kanaly ) and and psychopath baby face nelson ( richard dreyfus ) . dillinger eventually join force with floyd and nelson and take along homer van meter ( harry dean stanton ) and harry pierpont ( geoffrey lewis ) . he also hook up with billie frechette ( michelle phillips ) and a prostitute of french and indian extraction . while take place over several month in 1933 4 and dillinger be basically a chase film and with purvis entourage look to run down and kill off the men want by j. edgar hoover . dillinger have a documentary feel and listing date and place while johnson supply loose narrative a purvis . milius keep an honest depression look and use authentic fashion and car and weapon and and building while he also sprinkle around black and white photography and stock footage of gangster shootout . the film be never boring and move at a quick and if haphazard and pace . the action scene be dillinger strongpoint and edit competently by fred feitshans jr in his last professional effort . thousand of blank ammunition round must have be use to make this film and not to mention pound of explosive . this film be certainly not for the squeamish and with people get shot and drop dead all over the place . the violence and while gratuitous and bring some understanding of the mayhem that organize crime dump on american life . this film never transcend it exploitation status and however and because the needed writing just isn not there . john milius and somewhat overrate a a filmmaker and place way too much emphasis on action . the action scene ( mostly blood fill shootout ) be impressive and comparable with any major crime film of it era and include 1967 bonnie and clyde . but we simply do not get to know much about dillinger and his gang member a people while the vital relationship that develop between dillinger and frechette be barely touch upon and with the pair meeting in a bar during one scene and cavorting a lover just ten minute afterward . melvin purvis also seem to wander in and out of the storyline and become a prominent figure only when milius need to keep the film from unravel . all too often and the film take on a shoot em up persona when it character could have be explore in detail . aside from this and the picture main crime be ignorance of historical fact . while many say that dillinger be just a film and it film such a this one that create fable and make them permanent . those with knowledge of gangster history will point out that john dillinger be not the last of his ring to die and a milius screenplay and the film documentary style encourage u to believe . in fact and dillinger die before baby face nelson and homer van meter while he also be say not to be carry a gun on the night of his death and nor do he have billie frechette in tow . while these inaccuracy might make for high drama and there be no reason why milius couldn not have stay with the fact and write a great story around them . warren oates performance a dillinger be quite good and although he sometimes look unconvincing . oates be humorous and nicely portray how dillinger become consume by his large than life image in the american press while however and we never really feel the menace he invoke in his lifetime . ben johnson give some life to purvis and suave but rather flat . michelle phillips brings emotion to the billie frechette character and it really too bad that milius screenplay do not flesh out her relationship with dillinger . we never learn what draw her to a cold blood killer and other than the stereotype of an easy go girl who be attract to men of danger . the support role with kanaly and dreyfus and stanton and lewis and and a briefly appear cloris leachman and be acceptable for such talent . a a piece of 1970s exploitation and dillinger appear doom to retail bargain bin and which be exactly where i pick up mgm dvd release for $ 4 . 99. the film be nicely present in widescreen ( a must for drive in flick ) with subtitle in french and spanish . dillinger theatrical trailer be supply a a lone extra . largely forgotten except by gangster movie fan and drive in enthusiast and the film doesn not really call for much else in way of supplementary material . for fan of the genre and it certainly worth check out . out of 4roving reviewer www . geocities . com or paul_johnr .