Bonnie and Clyde (1967)

bonnie and clyde poster 1967
9.5 Overall Score
Story: 9/10
Acting: 10/10
Visual: 10/10

Great, classic film


Movie Info

Movie Name: Bonnie and Clyde

Studio:  Warner Bros/Seven Arts

Genre(s): Action/Adventure/Drama

Release Date(s): August 13, 1967

MPAA Rating: R

bonnie and clyde we rob banks warren beatty faye dunaway

We rob banks

It is the Great Depression, but Clyde Barrow (Warren Beatty) and Bonnie Parker (Faye Dunaway) have new jobs giving them tons of income…they rob banks.  Dangerous and deadly, Bonnie and Clyde have taken to the highways of America with their gang and are out to get what they see coming to them.  Pursued by the authorities, Bonnie and Clyde are becoming legends among the people, but legends often have tragic ends.

Directed by Arthur Penn and produced by Warren Beatty, Bonnie and Clyde was a historic action film.  The movie tells the story of Bonnie Parker (1910-1934) and Clyde Barrow (1909-1934) and their crime run.  The movie was met with production problems and not backed strongly by the studio.  It became one of the top grossing films of the year and won Academy Awards for Best Supporting Actress (Estelle Parsons) and Best Cinematography with nominations for Best Picture, Best Actor (Beatty), Best Actress (Dunaway), Best Supporting Actor (Gene Hackman), Best Supporting Actor (Michael J. Pollard), Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, and Best Costume Design.  The film was selected for preservation in National Film Registry by the Library of Congress in 1992.

bonnie and clyde gene hackman estelle parsons michael j pollard gene wilder warren beatty faye dunaway

Car trips with your family and kidnapping victims are the worst!

Bonnie and Clyde were antiheroes.  They created styles and looks and were “too cool” for their crimes to even tarnish their image.  The film manages to capture this “coolness” and it was at a period of time where counter culture and societal drop-outs were looking for heroes…Bonnie and Clyde were back!

The story primarily just tells the story of the crime run.  It takes liberties for the storytelling, but it also does use a lot of actual events.  The film does so by having a snappy script that does perpetuate the rebel aspect of the characters.  They stick it to “the Man” and are only caught through dirty deeds.  Bonnie is painted as a thoughtful, poet and Clyde is a handsome and charming guy…and it leads to one of cinema’s great, bloody endings.

The cast is good. With Beatty taking the lead a good “Bonnie was needed.  Dunaway wasn’t necessarily the first choices of the highly coveted roles (Ann-Margret, Natalie Wood, Tuesday Weld, Sue Lyon, Jane Fonda, and even Beatty’s sister Shirley MacLaine were in the running for Bonnie).  Gene Hackman, Estelle Parsons, and Michael J. Pollard were scene stealers as the gang running with the criminals.  The movie also features the first film appearance of Gene Wilder as one of people kidnapped by Clyde and Bonnie.

bonnie and clyde ending warren beatty faye dunaway shootout

Wait…they die?!?! No way!

The movie is visually strong.  The film has that gritty ’60s/’70s film look that blends well with the Great Depression story setting.  The final and classic shootout was intended to be reminiscent of the film of Kennedy’s assassination and utilized squibs which were relatively new to amp up the blood bath.

Bonnie and Clyde is a great, classic film which deserves to be sought out.  The movie’s look and style holds up and being set in the past gives it a timelessness that doesn’t always happen for older films.  You go into Bonnie and Clyde basically knowing the story, but the film still manages to surprise and enthrall…robbing banks has never been more fun!

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Author: JPRoscoe View all posts by

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