Review of Bonnie and Clyde (1967) by Filipeneto — 08 Aug 2021

This movie is considered a classic because it is very realistic and violent. It's one of those must-see films for film students, movie buffs or specialized critics. However, it is a film largely forgotten by the general public, and is rarely shown on TV, even on specialty channels.

Directed by Arthur Penn, the film addresses the criminal trajectory of Bonnie Elizabeth Parker, a young married woman, and her lover Clyde Chestnut Barrow. In real life, they had a short existence, in the mid-30s, but they roamed a good portion of the Midwest, where they robbed banks, convenience stores, gas stations, etc., totaling more than a hundred robberies and were about twenty people were killed (as the film shows, they avoided gratuitous violence and preferred to avoid confrontations and shootings). The film wastes no time and, in the first few minutes, reveals to us the sudden, even improbable, way in which they both meet and fall in love.

However, one of the problems with the film is that it actually continues to create myths around the bad guys, just as the press at the time did. They're charming, they're charismatic, they're almost heroes, and there doesn't seem to be anything wrong with robbing banks in this movie. To make everything even more dubious, the production chose for the protagonists two beautiful actors, who are nothing like the real thugs. Indeed, the film tells a pleasant story, yet it is not historically rigorous, nor does it accurately report what they did.

The cast is led by two good actors: the beautiful and blonde Faye Dunaway is very good, charismatic and elegant, and makes in this film one of the works that immortalized her as an actress, and the same can be said of Warren Beatty, who gave life to Clyde, with commitment, professionalism, energy and passion. In fact, the work of the two actors is impeccable, and the way they work together, the intense chemistry that emanates from them when they're together, is something powerful. Do they give us an idealized view of the bad guys? Yes… but they are extremely competent for the task and are doing what they are asked to do. The film also features Michael Pollard, Gene Hackman and Denver Pyle, all of whom are high quality additions, who put a lot of effort into their characters. For me, only Estelle Parsons spoils the scene with her irritating, histrionic character, always screaming, or crying like a repentant Magdalene. I honestly can't understand how the hell she won the Oscar with this movie!

Technically, it is a film with several interesting aspects to consider, starting right away with an excellent cinematography, full of realism, without excessive embellishments and exaggerated artifices. The sets are good, they are within what I expected to find; I loved the cars used in the film, and the way the film takes advantage of them. In the same way I also liked the landscapes, which show us an arid and desolate view of the American Midwest, devastated not only by the difficulties of the Great Depression but also by a severe drought, the “Dust Bowl”. The visuals, specials and sound effects work very well, particularly in the action scenes, and that scene where the shootings destroyed the bandits' car is truly anthological. The only thing I didn't like, although I understand and think it fits well with the film, the way it was thought out and executed, is the soundtrack, with all those banjo solos.