Taglined, "They're young... they're in love...and they kill people.", Bonnie and Clyde blew open the theater doors of America when it was first released in 1967. It is, without a doubt, the best American film I've seen in a long time. When the movie first begins with sepia tone photographs of the real Bonnie and Clyde and also the Barrow gang, I knew that I was in the hands of a great filmmaker.
Faye Dunaway plays Bonnie Parker. Warren Beatty plays Clyde Barrow. The year is 1930. When we first meet the two, Clyde tries to steal an nearby car that is parked near Bonnie's house. Looking out the window, Bonnie notices the stranger and set her eyes on the young man while staring at him out the window of her home. At first, their relationship starts to develops slowly as we learned that Bonnie works as a waitress in Texas. But the thing is, she doesn't know Clyde's line of work. After witnessing Clyde holds up an general store in town, the two decides to go on the run.
Buck Barrow, (Gene Hackman), and his wife, Blanche, (Estelle Parsons), soon catch up with the two lovers and after several hold-ups and robberies, they start to make a name of themselves. They were the Barrow gang. Clyde was the leader. But even though they thought that knocking off banks were their specialty, the law followed after them, trying to catch them. The law couldn't catch these two even if they were cornered by them. As time goes on however, the two lovers/killers realize that their joyride will soon be over before they know it. They can sense it. They don't when their day will come. But, it will happened.
When first released in 1967, the movie was met with an uproar of controversy when film critics and even movie audiences said that the movie glamorized the couple. Well, I agree to this statement. The movie romanticized their account on what they did during the great Depression. What I saw was basically, two juvenile delinquents trying outrun the law and without giving away the ending, the message soon becomes clear. For a while, the two outlaws were rebels as portrayed in the movie. Similar to other movies like Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid and The Wild Bunch, Bonnie and Clyde tells us an true American story rather than telling us a routine story about two outlaws on the run. It's more than that. The movie does a great job of showing us what violence can do to individuals. It has a very strong moral argument to tell us.
The one thing that did hit me was the beautiful cinematography by Burnett Guffey, who won a Oscar for his photography for this movie. There are a lot of beautiful shots of a wheat field where Bonnie runs around in and another fabulous scene where Bonnie meets her mother and her family. The way that scene is shot shows a dream-like sequence where pure innocence can be lost completely. Director Arthur Penn illustrates a time where people could do whatever they, but were still part of the American system. That kind of representation is really fascinating because during the 1960's, that kind of freedom was cut short by the ongoing Vietnam War. Some critics and movie-goers might think that Bonnie and Clyde is an allegory on the Vietnam War. I have high doubts about that symbolism, but it's true to other movies that came after this one.
Beatty, Dunaway Hackman and especially Estelle Parsons are absolutely amazing in this movie. Their star power is very important and top-notch. Not only because they played believable characters, but they are so fragile in this movie. The fact that they know that their joyride will soon end is something remarkable. It is truly great to see actors playing characters that we care about even though they were criminals. In fact, that's why Bonnie and Clyde works so well. The fact that these characters are so true and young that it's appeal to the audience is something that captures all of us in the movies. Think about it. What would happened if Beatty wasn't Clyde Barrow? What would happened if Dunaway wasn't Bonnie Parker? Without those performers, this movie would not have been made without the direction, the cinematography and the actors themselves.
After seeing Bonnie and Clyde, I started to say to myself that the tail- end of the 60's were very important to American cinema at that time. Movies like this one, and also Blow-Up, The Wild Bunch, 2001: A Space Odyssey and Persona are one of the reason movies said something about us. They can be controversial at first, but the powerful impact of what movies can do do people is something special. It's a shame to say that today's movies are basically niche and contrived with plot devices, predictable endings, weak writing and overstuffed acting. If you were to take out all of today's movies and replaced with movies from the 50's, 60's, 70's and the 1980's, you would definitely see a major contradiction. Many people today would not go to see these movies if it wasn't for the makers.
Over time, Bonnie and Clyde continues to shock audiences with it's portrayal of on-screen violence and glamorized crime matter. But even to an artistic point of view, this movie can be studied for its craftsmanship. It's beautifully told through picturesque photography of the Midwest and its message is one that should be talk about. An amazing piece of vivid movie-making. ★★★★ 4 stars.
Faye Dunaway plays Bonnie Parker. Warren Beatty plays Clyde Barrow. The year is 1930. When we first meet the two, Clyde tries to steal an nearby car that is parked near Bonnie's house. Looking out the window, Bonnie notices the stranger and set her eyes on the young man while staring at him out the window of her home. At first, their relationship starts to develops slowly as we learned that Bonnie works as a waitress in Texas. But the thing is, she doesn't know Clyde's line of work. After witnessing Clyde holds up an general store in town, the two decides to go on the run.
Buck Barrow, (Gene Hackman), and his wife, Blanche, (Estelle Parsons), soon catch up with the two lovers and after several hold-ups and robberies, they start to make a name of themselves. They were the Barrow gang. Clyde was the leader. But even though they thought that knocking off banks were their specialty, the law followed after them, trying to catch them. The law couldn't catch these two even if they were cornered by them. As time goes on however, the two lovers/killers realize that their joyride will soon be over before they know it. They can sense it. They don't when their day will come. But, it will happened.
When first released in 1967, the movie was met with an uproar of controversy when film critics and even movie audiences said that the movie glamorized the couple. Well, I agree to this statement. The movie romanticized their account on what they did during the great Depression. What I saw was basically, two juvenile delinquents trying outrun the law and without giving away the ending, the message soon becomes clear. For a while, the two outlaws were rebels as portrayed in the movie. Similar to other movies like Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid and The Wild Bunch, Bonnie and Clyde tells us an true American story rather than telling us a routine story about two outlaws on the run. It's more than that. The movie does a great job of showing us what violence can do to individuals. It has a very strong moral argument to tell us.
The one thing that did hit me was the beautiful cinematography by Burnett Guffey, who won a Oscar for his photography for this movie. There are a lot of beautiful shots of a wheat field where Bonnie runs around in and another fabulous scene where Bonnie meets her mother and her family. The way that scene is shot shows a dream-like sequence where pure innocence can be lost completely. Director Arthur Penn illustrates a time where people could do whatever they, but were still part of the American system. That kind of representation is really fascinating because during the 1960's, that kind of freedom was cut short by the ongoing Vietnam War. Some critics and movie-goers might think that Bonnie and Clyde is an allegory on the Vietnam War. I have high doubts about that symbolism, but it's true to other movies that came after this one.
Beatty, Dunaway Hackman and especially Estelle Parsons are absolutely amazing in this movie. Their star power is very important and top-notch. Not only because they played believable characters, but they are so fragile in this movie. The fact that they know that their joyride will soon end is something remarkable. It is truly great to see actors playing characters that we care about even though they were criminals. In fact, that's why Bonnie and Clyde works so well. The fact that these characters are so true and young that it's appeal to the audience is something that captures all of us in the movies. Think about it. What would happened if Beatty wasn't Clyde Barrow? What would happened if Dunaway wasn't Bonnie Parker? Without those performers, this movie would not have been made without the direction, the cinematography and the actors themselves.
After seeing Bonnie and Clyde, I started to say to myself that the tail- end of the 60's were very important to American cinema at that time. Movies like this one, and also Blow-Up, The Wild Bunch, 2001: A Space Odyssey and Persona are one of the reason movies said something about us. They can be controversial at first, but the powerful impact of what movies can do do people is something special. It's a shame to say that today's movies are basically niche and contrived with plot devices, predictable endings, weak writing and overstuffed acting. If you were to take out all of today's movies and replaced with movies from the 50's, 60's, 70's and the 1980's, you would definitely see a major contradiction. Many people today would not go to see these movies if it wasn't for the makers.
Over time, Bonnie and Clyde continues to shock audiences with it's portrayal of on-screen violence and glamorized crime matter. But even to an artistic point of view, this movie can be studied for its craftsmanship. It's beautifully told through picturesque photography of the Midwest and its message is one that should be talk about. An amazing piece of vivid movie-making. ★★★★ 4 stars.