Bonnie and Clyde (1967)

User Rating:

8.1/10   

Director:

Arthur Penn

Writers:

David Newman (written by) &
Robert Benton (written by)

Release Date:

13 August 1967 (USA)

Genre:

Biography | Crime | Drama | Romance | Thriller

Tagline:

"The strangest damned gang you ever heard of. They're young. They're in love. They rob banks."

Plot:

A somewhat romantized account of the career of the notoriously violent bank robbing couple and their gang.

Plot Keywords:

Robbery | Crime Spree | Bonnie And Clyde | Violence | Newspaper

Awards:

Won 2 Oscars. Another 17 wins & 22 nominations

Cast

Warren Beatty	...	Clyde Barrow
Faye Dunaway	...	Bonnie Parker
Michael J. Pollard	...	C.W. Moss
Gene Hackman	...	Buck Barrow
Estelle Parsons	...	Blanche
Denver Pyle	...	Frank Hamer
Dub Taylor	...	Ivan Moss
Evans Evans	...	Velma Davis
Gene Wilder	...	Eugene Grizzard

MPAA:

Rated R for violence.

Runtime:

112 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Canada:A (Nova Scotia) (original rating) | Brazil:14 | Norway:16 (1968) (cut) | Norway:(Banned) (1967 - 1968) | West Germany:16 (re-rating) | West Germany:18 (original rating) | USA:Approved (certificate #21395) (original rating) | USA:M (re-rating) (1969) | USA:R (re-rating) (2007) | Canada:14A (Manitoba) (re-rating) (2008) | Canada:AA (Ontario) | Canada:PG (Manitoba) (original rating) | UK:15 (re-rating: 2008) | New Zealand:M | Canada:14A (Nova Scotia) (re-rating) (2008) | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Finland:K-16 | Ireland:18 | Italy:VM18 | Norway:15 (re-rating) | Portugal:M/16 | Singapore:PG | Sweden:15 | UK:18 (video rating) | UK:X (original rating) | Iceland:16

Filming Locations:

Dallas, Texas, USA

Company:

Tatira-Hiller Productions

Trivia:

The family gathering scene was filmed in Red Oak, Texas. Several local residents were watching the film being shot, when the filmmakers noticed Mabel Cavitt, a local school teacher, among the people gathered. She was chosen then and there to play Bonnie Parker's mother.

Goofs:

Continuity: Inside the car, when Blanche and C.W. go to buy some food, she lights a new cigarette with the butt of the other. In the following shot the butt has disappeared.

Quotes:

[during a robbery, a bank guard pulls a gun on Clyde. He responds by shooting the hat off the guard's head]
Clyde Barrow: Next time, I'll aim a little lower!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Big Fish (2003)

Soundtrack:

Foggie Mountain Breakdown

(Top 10 choice) Superb job done by all involved.

Besides being an enormously entertaining movie, "Bonnie and Clyde" was an important 1960's landmark film in a couple of ways. Its violent ending helped to hasten the end of the old Hayes code, which had been a severe restrictor of artistic freedom; and it helped shape the '60's image of the anti-hero. For these things it received a good deal of condemnation as well as commendation.

The picture is a melange of artistic license and historical accuracy. The recreation of the Depression-era look is superb. (It's done in an unostentatious manner, however. One feels it rather than particularly noting it.) While some liberties are taken with the story, a reasonable amount jibes with the facts. But certainly there is some romanticization here. And of course the real Clyde Barrow and Bonnie Parker were not nearly as attractive as Beatty and Dunaway.

The acting by the two principals is top-notch, as well as that of most of the rest of the cast, especially Gene Hackman (the first film I ever saw him in) and Estelle Parsons.It's not generally recognized that actors Denver Pyle, Dub Taylor and Gene Wilder contribute to the movie's success. Technically as well as artistically everyone from director Arthur Penn on down deserves praise for making what I think is one of the finest movies ever made, without qualification. It seems we all reserve the warmest spots in our hearts for favorite films of our youth. This is one of mine.

And you'll love Flatt & Scruggs' "Foggy Mountain Breakdown" too.