"Bonnie and Clyde" revisited

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Inspired by a brief but intense Cannes Film Festival argument between Robert Duvall and We Own The Night director James Gray about the merits of Arthur Penn and Warren Beatty's <Bonnie and Clyde, Toronto Star critic Peter Howell re-examines this 1967 classic and its several bold strokes in particular:

"It would be a serious movie about serial killers, but there would be plenty of laughs. And these outlaws would be seen not as dangerous and evil outlaws, but as sexy young lovers fighting a morally unjust society. There were other innovations: shooting was done mostly on location in Texas, editing was brisk and brutal and the sex and violence was pushed as far as possible. Almost too far: the bullet-strewn finale shocks even by today's bloody standards.

"When Bonnie and Clyde opened in New York after premiering nine days earlier at the Montreal Film Festival, critical reaction almost killed it. N.Y. Times critic Bosley Crowther panned it as "a cheap piece of bald-faced slapstick comedy." Warner Bros. quickly withdrew the film from circulation, but Beatty pushed for its return, aided by a rapturous review by The New Yorker's Pauline Kael."

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Posted by Jeffrey Wells on June 2, 2007 at 3:28 AM

comment #1

Jayne Gacey says ...

Robert Duvall said in Premiere that Apocalypto was the best film in the past 25 years. I have no idea how he comes down on the subject of Bonnie and Clyde, but his taste is somewhat suspect. I live about an hour from him here in Virginia, and he's on the radio occasionally railing against power lines or some such. He's one of the great assholes, and I mean that in the best way.

Posted by Jayne Gacey at June 2, 2007 4:01 AM

comment #2

Josh Massey says ...

I've had the opportunity to meet Duvall on a couple of occasions, and have found him to be warm and always interesting. And I loved Apocalypto too, dammit (though not as much as him, apparently.)

Posted by Josh Massey at June 2, 2007 7:49 AM

comment #3

JD says ...

If you ask me, Gray is right about B&C and Duvall is right about Apocalypto (which Gray might also like, for all I know). I watched B&C again a couple years ago to see if it holds up and it was way, WAY better than I remembered. It's a really subtle, perceptive, even poetic film. Far ahead of its time -- more than any other film, I think it shaped the following decade of American masterpieces -- and truly one of the great American films.

Posted by JD at June 2, 2007 7:56 AM

comment #4

christian says ...

i taught a film class and showed the 19-23 year olds BONNIE AND CLYDE and it still had a great impact. it's certainly the model for american crime films but the juxtaposition has been played out.

i love B&C. every scene is like a different short. plus any film where you see warren beatty, faye dunaway, gene hackman and gene wilder in the same shot...

Posted by christian at June 2, 2007 10:04 AM

comment #5

The Winchester says ...

The common belief that Apocalypto is a good movie confounds me. The movie is terrible. I saw a movie last night about killer sheep that was smarter than Apocalypto. And far more entertaining. And it even had a better point to make.

Posted by The Winchester at June 2, 2007 10:54 AM

comment #6

Ogami Itto says ...

Has Robert Duvall always been this grumpy? About a year or so ago I remember him bitching about HBO's "Deadwood" while he was promoting some made-for-tv western. Didn't like all the cursing or something.

Posted by Ogami Itto at June 2, 2007 11:03 AM

comment #7

Joshua Mooney says ...

I once tried to talk to Duvall about playing Bill Kilgore in "Apocalypse Now." It struck me that we hadn't seen the same movie. Whatever. I love Duvall's work. I stopped trying to figure out actors a loonnnggg time ago. His comments on "Bonnie and Clyde" are striking, though. I'm guessing he simply HATES Beatty for some reason we'll never know. Dunaway was quite amazing as Bonnie. She was, what, 26 at the time? Show me a 26-year-old who can do that today.

Posted by Joshua Mooney at June 2, 2007 1:53 PM

comment #8

OddDuck says ...

Rented Apocolypto the other night, and it's definitely the real deal, a serious movie that shows Mel Gibson is a true filmmaker who's able to imprint his particular vision to the screen. Of course the movie had lots and lots of flaws, like the way he tries to humanize the good tribe in the first fifteen minutes or so (felt like I was watching a CBS sitcom), but still, the movie was great.

Best movie of the past 25 years though? That's just idiotic. It wasn't even the best movie of last year. Cements my opinion that while Duvall is a great actor, he's just probably a curmudgeonly grumpy old man in real life.

Posted by OddDuck at June 2, 2007 2:08 PM

comment #9

JD says ...

Ogami, just so you know, the TV western you're referring to (Broken Trail) was directed by the same Walter Hill who directed the Deadwood pilot. And it was one of the best-reviewed films of 2006. I'm not saying that justifies Duvall's criticism of Deadwood, but Broken Trail's not some trashy TV movie.

As for Apocalypto. I don't think it's necessary that Duvall be "right" about it, OddDuck. Movies connect with everyone differently, but you're suggesting that there's some objective way to measure what the best film of last year (or any other year) really was. That said Winchester, Black Sheep's cinematic ambitions are microscopic compared to Apocalypto's. Apocalypto's not made for the literal-minded jokester crowd (obviously), but it clearly has merit, if only as a showcase for some incredible cinematography.

Posted by JD at June 2, 2007 3:17 PM

comment #10

OddDuck says ...

JD, as someone who thought Miami Vice was one of the better movies of last year, I fully understand, different strokes for different folks. But subjectivity has its limits. There's still room in movieland for what I call "dumb-ass-retarded" opinions. Generally the more sweeping the statement, the more potential it has to be stupid. Now I wouldn't call somebody stupid because they thought Apocolypto the best movie of last year, but the last 25 YEARS? You gotta admit, that claim is exponentially more difficult to defend.

Posted by OddDuck at June 3, 2007 7:17 AM

comment #11

malibugigolo says ...

Bonnie and Clyde is terrible.

Posted by malibugigolo at June 3, 2007 12:42 PM

comment #12

Gaydos says ...

Oh, dear. Not the ballad of Kael and Clyde again. I can't stop myself from posting the link to the piece I did on this a few years ago. I thought I had driven a stake through the heart of this myth, but it just won't die.

http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117888921.html?categoryid=1236&cs=1

Posted by Gaydos at June 4, 2007 12:14 AM

comment #13

christian says ...

that's pretty interesting, gaydos.

it sounds again like the truth is in the center. certainly there was much critical acclaim outside kael, but like it or not, her epic review put her on the map and probably pushed the cultural wave towards B&C. it can't be denied that jack warner did not like the film.

Posted by christian at June 4, 2007 9:46 AM

comment #14

Gaydos says ...

christian: the truth may be in the center, but it's about 100 yards away from what was "reported" in biskind's "easy riders, raging bulls" tome.

once you add up the facts that a) the picture was a solid success, still in theaters when the Kael review came out b) promoted heavily by the studio with an expensive location junket and a launch in montreal which was a spectacular success, c) the ORIGINAL New Yorker review (pre-Kael) was a rave, d) lots of critics raved about the film, including Judith Crist who is almost never mentioned in the retelling of this myth, e) the picture started to catch more attention after the blockbuster opening in London and f) Warren Beatty had a very savvy personal publicist (John Springer) working all the angles from Montreal on, include the "myth" that it had been pulled from theaters and rescued by Kael, as Variety parenthetically noted at the time, you have a story that barely resembles the yarn that's been woven over the decades.

Posted by Gaydos at June 4, 2007 11:09 AM

comment #15

Terry McCarty says ...

Mr. Gaydos wrote in part:
d) lots of critics raved about the film, including Judith Crist who is almost never mentioned in the retelling of this myth,

Since Judith Crist also was a critic for TV GUIDE, maybe there was a concern that she was too MOR to be included in a publicity campaign for B and C?

Posted by Terry McCarty at June 4, 2007 2:59 PM

comment #16

Gaydos says ...

Actually, Crist was one of the most-often cited critics at the time. There were lots of other raves and I only mention her to point out the fallacy of the "Kael lone voice in the wilderness" thesis.

Posted by Gaydos at June 4, 2007 3:02 PM

comment #17

Gaydos says ...

terry mccarthy: I want to thank you for challenging me on Crist. It caused me to go back and look up a little info on the lady and now I'm COMPLETELY depressed. But also reminded that EVERYTHING was different then.

Here's Crist's TOP TEN FILMS OF 1967 and if you can imagine the film critic for TV Guide today coming up with a 2007 list remotely resembling these ten titles, you have stronger imaginative powers than I.

1967

1. Bonnie and Clyde (USA) 2. La Guerre Est Finie (Fr) 3. The Graduate (USA) 4. In the Heat of the Night (USA) 5. In Cold Blood (USA) 6. Ulysses (GB) 7. The Battle of Algiers (It) 8. Falstaff (USA) 9. Father (Hun) 10. The President's Analyst (USA)

Posted by Gaydos at June 4, 2007 3:25 PM

comment #18