Dillinger (1973)

User Rating:

6.7/10   

Director:

John Milius

Writer:

John Milius (written by)

Release Date:

20 July 1973 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Biography | Crime | Drama

Tagline:

...he was the gangster's gangster.

Plot:

John Dillinger and his gang go on a bank robbing spree across the midwest, but one G-Man is determined to bring him down.

Plot Keywords:

FBI | Gangster | 1930s | Celebrity Criminal | Tommy Gun

Awards:

Nominated for Golden Globe.

Cast

Warren Oates	...	John Dillinger
Ben Johnson	...	Melvin Purvis
Michelle Phillips	...	Billie Frechette
Cloris Leachman	...	Anna Sage
Harry Dean Stanton	...	Homer Van Meter
Geoffrey Lewis	...	Harry Pierpont
John P. Ryan	...	Charles Mackley (as John Ryan)
Richard Dreyfuss	...	Baby Face Nelson
Steve Kanaly	...	Pretty Boy Floyd
John Martino	...	Eddie Martin
Roy Jenson	...	Samuel Cowley
Read Morgan	...	Big Jim Wollard
Frank McRae	...	Reed Youngblood

Runtime:

107 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White | Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Norway:16 (video rating) | UK:18 | West Germany:18 | New Zealand:R16 | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Finland:K-18 | Singapore:PG | Sweden:15 | USA:R | Norway:(Banned) (1973-2003) (cinema release)

Filming Locations:

Ardmore, Oklahoma, USA

Company:

American International Pictures (AIP)

Trivia:

After Melvin Purvis shoots down "Pretty Boy" Floyd, he goes up to the fallen outlaw and asks "Are you 'Pretty Boy' Floyd?" to which Floyd responds "I'm Charles Arthur Floyd." That was the real exchange between the outlaw and the G-Man when Floyd was brought down on October 22nd, 1934. Like "Baby Face" Nelson, "Bugsy" Siegel, and "Scarface" Al Capone, Floyd hated his famous nickname and would never acknowledge it. So when Purvis kept asking him if he was "Pretty Boy", he kept responding with his full name until he was nearly dead and Floyd finally acknowledged the nickname to Purvis before dying.

Goofs:

Factual errors: As with most biopics, some historical details have been altered for the sake of the narrative.

Quotes:

John Dillinger: All my life I wanted to be a bank robber. Carry a gun and wear a mask. Now that it's happened I guess I'm just about the best bank robber they ever had. And I sure am happy.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "All in the Family: Edith's Conversion (#4.9)" (1973)

Soundtrack:

Red River Valley

shooting in abundance!

i recently saw the dvd print on dillinger, now available from amazon.com, released by mgm home video. on amazons web page they describe the picture quality as washed out looking, too much browns etc. however i owned a 16mm print of this title in widescreen in the 1970s. the picture quality was the same as the dvd. the dvd being sharper. i believe american-international made this picture with this sepia tone to make it look like the 1930s. one of their other releases a bullet for pretty boy released about the same time had the same look to it. the film itself is an action buffs dream come true. shooting in abundance, bloody shootouts throughout. john melius first film and a true action classic, even though it glorifies dillinger as invincable, warren oates plays it to the hilt. possibly his best performance. if you like lots of gunplay this is your cup of tea. respectfully, yours at the movies joe rinando.