Bonnie and Clyde 1967

     The setting of this film is in 1934 and it’s based on a true story.  Bonnie Parker works as a waitress.  Clyde Barrow is a criminal just released from prison.  They meet by chance in West Dallas, Texas.  Bonnie and Clyde are immediately attracted to each other.  Bonnie is fascinated with Clyde’s criminal past, his matter-of-fact attitude and bravado.  Clyde sees that Bonnie is sympathetic to his gals in life.  Bonnie has never been in trouble with the law but they decide to join forces to embark on a life of crime.  They plan to hold up every establishment that makes money and to have fun.  Banks are the places to get the most money.  They have plenty of guns but they don’t plan on hurting or killing anyone.  They amass a small group of willing accomplices. 

     I have seen this movie before and I recently read Bonnie and Clyde: the making of a legend by Karen Blumenthal.  This book traces the footsteps of Bonnie and Clyde.  It gives new information and lays to rest many persistent myths.  I thought it would be interesting to see the film again after reading this book.  One item I was surprised about is how many cars Bonnie and Clyde stole for their getaways.  Their favorite car was the 1932 Ford Fodor Deluxe.  This car had a V8 engine that could go up to 75 mph.  This was considerably faster than the older and slower cars that the police drove at this time.  Clyde wrote a letter on April. 13, 1934 to the Ford Motor Co. to tell them what a fine car they had produced.             

111 min, Action directed by Arthur Penn with Warren Beatty, Faye Dunaway, Michael J. Pollard, Gene Hackman, Estelle Parsons, Denver Pyle, Dub Taylor, Evans Evans, Gene Wilder.

Note:  Imdb 7.9 out of 10, Roger Ebert 4*, 88% critic 88% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, Metacritic 81 out of 10 with 8 critics 8.6 out of 10 with 87 reviews, Amazon 4.6 out of 10 with 478 reviews.

Special Note:  Filmed in Red Oak, Rowlett, Waxahachie, Denton, Garland, Dallas, Midlothian, Trinity River, Maypearl, Pilot Point, Venus, Lemmon Lake, Ponder, Lavon, Texas.  Albertson Ranch, Triunfo and Warner Brothers Burbank Studios, California.   Warner Brothers has so little faith that this film would be profitable that they offered first-time Producer Warren Beatty forty percent of the gross instead of a minimal fee.  The film grossed over fifty million dollars and Beatty was paid 20 million dollars!!  The estimated budget was $2.5 million.  Gene Hackman noticed a guy standing behind him on the set.  The man said, “Buck would’ve never worn a hat like that.”  The man said, “Nice to meet you, I’m one of the Barrows.  This is the film debut of Gene Wilder.  Director Arthur Penn wanted to make the character of Blanche as hysterical as possible.  This would make Bonnie look cooler?  Originally, Beatty’s sister Shirley MacLaine was set to play Bonnie.  When Beatty decided to play Clyde it would not work for his sister to play Bonnie!!  There are a lot of filming errors in this movie and also factual mistakes.  4* (I really liked this movie)