Dillinger (1973)

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

Director:

John Milius

Writer:

John Milius

Stars:

Warren Oates, Ben Johnson, Michelle Phillips

Nominated for 1 Golden Globe.

Cast

Complete credited 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

Storyline

After a shoot-out kills five FBI agents in Kansas City the Bureau target John Dillinger as one of the men to hunt down. Waiting for him to break Federal law they sort out several other mobsters, while Dillinger's bank robbing exploits make him something of a folk hero. Escaping from jail he finds Pretty Boy Floyd and Baby Face Nelson have joined the gang and pretty soon he is Public Enemy Number One. Now the G-men really are after him.

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Plot Keywords:

reference to arizona | public enemy number one | panties | upskirt | year 1933 | 

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Taglines:

The Best Damn Bank Robber in the World!

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Genres:

Action | Biography | Crime | Drama

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Spanish

Release Date:

8 November 1973 (Hong Kong)

Also Known As:

Dillinger - Gangsterler krali

Filming Locations:

Tucson Warehouse and Transfer, downtown Tucson, Arizona, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$1,000,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

American International Pictures (AIP)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

107 min

Sound Mix:

Mono Mono (Ryder Sound Services)

Color:

Black and White Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

When John Dillinger talks to reporters while being escorted through the Lake County Jail in Crown Point, Indiana, he shakes the hand of an "anonymous" woman and talks about how he likes the chief of police and the warden. In real life, the woman was Sheriff Lillian Holley who was the the chief of police and the warden of the prison from which Dillinger made his famous "wooden gun" escape.

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Goofs

In the photo montage in the movie is a frontal shot of Warren Oates holding what appears to be a Colt Model 1911 pistol, which should be chambered in caliber .45ACP. The bore of the pistol is far too small. If the pistol is an actual handgun and not something like a pellet gun, it is either a Colt "Ace" model, or a 1911 modified with a conversion kit. In either case the pistol is chambered for .22 long rifle caliber, a highly unlikely choice for a gangster's weapon.

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Quotes

[Pretty Boy Floyd has been shot trying to escape the FBI]
Melvin Purvis: Are you Pretty Boy Floyd?
Pretty Boy Floyd: [gasping in pain] I'm. Charles. Arthur. Floyd
Melvin Purvis: This is for Kansas City, boy.
Pretty Boy Floyd: [in more pain] I wasn't in on that... I swear.
Melvin Purvis: You shouldn't be lying when you're so close to your maker.
Pretty Boy Floyd: [fading rapidly] You must be Purvis.
Melvin Purvis: That's right.
Pretty Boy Floyd: I'm. Glad. It. Was. You.
[dies]

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Crazy Credits

After the closing credits a verbal renouncing of gangster films written by FBI chief J. Edgar Hoover is heard: he was scheduled to read it for the film, but died before it started production. Hoover's text is read at the film's close by voice actor (Paul Frees) decrying the film and calling it a source of corruption for children.

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Alternate Versions

Two different versions with different main title music exist_ The original version features the song "We're in the Money" being played while snap shots of homeless and poor people are shown on the screen. The alternate version has the same visuals but with a simpler instrumental cue (called "Theme from Dillinger" on the soundtrack LP).

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Connections

Spoofed in Charlie's Angels (2000)

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Soundtracks

The Gold Diggers' Song (We're in the Money)
(uncredited)
Music by Harry Warren
Lyrics by Al Dubin
Sung during the opening credits

User Reviews

Fearless. Relentless. Public Enemy #1.

Director John Milius also takes writing credit for this very colorful look at the most famous bank robber John Dillinger(Warren Oates). This story begins in the middle of his criminal career ending in his death at the Biograph Theater. This is a very romanticized tale complete with Baby Face Nelson(Richard Dreyfuss) and Pretty Boy Floyd(Steve Kanaly). Ben Johnson plays FBI agent Melvin Purvis who has an ego to match Dillinger's. Cloris Leachman plays Anna Sage, the infamous Woman in Red. Throw in Michelle Phillips as a girlfriend and Harry Dean Stanton as minion Homer Van Meter and you have the key players in this very colorful and violent movie. Liberty is taken with history for entertainment sake and besides the profanity filled script is not the selling point...the manic gun battles get most of the attention. The gun play is bloody and frequent; some of the roughest ever filmed. For a less colorful, but very interesting version check out DILLINGER(1945)starring Lawrence Tierney.