"Bonnie and Clyde" delivered a slap to moviegoers' sensibilities in 1968, a time when when most realistic violence was found on nightly newscasts, not in cinemas.
The film could have hit another row of hot buttons with its original script, in which Clyde, Bonnie and "dumb stud" C.W. engaged in a menage a trios, satisfying Barrow's bisexual passion. The filmmakers settled for impotence and a blow job from Bonnie.
In the extras for the new "Bonnie and Clyde" DVD, star-producer Warren Beatty says, "In truth, we didn't have trouble with the violence. There was killing and there it was. We didn't prettify killing.
"It was the juxtaposition of comedic stuff with violent stuff that was different."
Creative consultant Robert Towne ("Chinatown") says the movie's reputation for excessive violence came in part because of director Arthur Penn, who reluctantly took on the movie.
"He had a real understanding of what had not been done with the use of violence," Towne says of Penn. "And a desire to push the envelope."
Warner Home Video's rerelease of "Bonnie and Clyde" brings the counterculture-friendly gangster movie back in style. The images look fresh, with no tarting up. The stereo audio faithfully delivers the gunshots, squealing tires and banjo pickin'.
The "Bonnie and Clyde" Blu-ray is out this week and was used for this DVD review. The HD DVD version is scheduled for April 15 (in accordance with Warner's state policy of delaying remaining titles in the flat-lined format). On DVD, the movie comes in an "ultimate" edition
and a standard version. All of the presentations have the same video extras.
Beatty does an intro to the three-part documentary on the film and participates enthusiastically. Perhaps we have him to thank for the lack of any promo materials marching in front of the film. Put in the disc; the movie starts. What a concept. This is a classy home video.
The content in the docu "Revolution! The Making of Bonnie and Clyde" doesn't quite fill out the promise of its title, as the movie in the final estimation was a big studio Warner Bros. production -- albeit one that had an indie spirit and a loose leash while on location.
Beatty tells of arguing with Jack Warner over the film, which the studio czar disliked. Warner pointed to the lot's famed water tower, reminding the young star that it had his name on it. Beatty shot back that it had his initials. "That was a good moment," the actor says.
Faye Dunaway, MIA as an interviewee on Paramount's recent DVD rerelease of "Chinatown," turns up here in good spirits and with plenty to say about her breakthrough film. Beatty didn't want her in the part at first, but knew that director Penn would. Her North Florida roots brought some southern credibility to the ensemble.
Part 2 of the docu focuses on the movie's fashion sense, which had a big impact here and overseas. Dunaway recalls going to Europe to promo the movie, and seeing "a sea of people all looking like me, with the beret on." Beatty allows that the real Bonnie and Clyde did make an attempt at dressing fashionably.
Michael J. Pollard, looking a bit like Popeye these days, notes that in reality, Bonnie's sister was the hottie.
Gene Hackman is another cheerleader for the film that made him famous. He calls working with Beatty, Dunaway, Pollard and Estelle Parsons "the ultimate actors experience." He tells of shooting in southern Texas, where a local informed him that Buck Barrow never would have worn the hat the actor had on. "He was his cousin." The movie was shot about three decades after the gang did its killing, so memories were still vivid there.
Beatty points out that one thing the actors and artists on the film had in common was they felt "a little insulted" by the movie industry. That feeling returned on Oscars night, with "everyone" nominated but only Parsons and cinematographer Burnett Guffey winning. (Guffey apparently was freaked out by the movie's low-light scheme, anathema to drive-in exhibitors.)
The docu's third part includes a study of the famed "ballet of death" scene, in which Bonnie and Clyde get theirs in a hail of bullets. Beatty's and Dunaway's bodies were packed with squibs. "You had to take all of the hits," Dunaway says of the little explosions. The scene was done twice, with an unusual amount of coverage from a quartet of cameras.
A so-so History Channel docu wanders through the real tale of the Depression-era punks, including a big prison breakout that didn't make it into the movie. Anyone interested in more about these killers might want to grab a copy of the exciting read "Public Enemies: America's Greatest Crime Wave and the Birth of the FBI, 1933-34," which is going for cheap these days.
Don't miss Beatty's assured wardrobe tests, included as a separate extra. They're matched up with some great period music, another touch of class from this fine DVD.
This sounds great. Anyone seeing this film for the first time now without the ancillary material might wonder what all the fuss was about. But it was groundbreaking cinema at the time for some of the reasons you've touched on.
Did any of the interviews credit Pauline Kael for helping to make this film?
Posted by: L.A. Observer | March 28, 2008 at 01:08 PM
Hey Observer: Yes, the "Bonnie and Clyde" DVD covers the negative reviews, how the film flopped in its first week, and how it was basically withdrawn from distribution.
New Yorker critic Kael is credited with writing a review that saved the film and gave it new life. One major critic retracted his negative review after reading Kael's piece.
thanks for the comment.
Posted by: Glenn | April 06, 2008 at 11:11 PM