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Dillinger | Year: 1973 Directed: - John Milius Actors/Actresses: - Warren Oates - Ben Johnson How to compress the history of gangsters I can't explain it,but like so many other people,I'm fascinated by gangsters.I'll read any book I can get my hands on and I'll watch any movie made about them.One of the first was "Dillinger".It may not be the most accurate film ever made,but at least John Millius tries to make up for it with thrilling action.The plot plays more like the generic "Cop out for revenge" (Purvis hunting down the gangsters responsable for the June 17,1933 shoot-out that left three agents dead) rather than an attempt to tell the life of Dillinger.One of the few perks of the film are some surprisingly accurate portrayals.First there's Warren Oates who has the distinction of being the only actor who played Dillinger,who actually looks like him!Other accurate portrayals inclue Steve Kanaly(from T.V.'s Dallas) as Pretty Boy Floyd and a young Richard Dreyfuss in a psychotic,but accurate version of Babyface Nelson.The most telling part of his character is when he declares "I go in shooting.I kill everyone in sight.I grab the dough.And leave shooting!" That line seems to define the film.Despite it's historical flaws,it's still an entertaining action flick from the "Drive In" era. Explosive and relentless story of prolific bank robber...... Violent, intense and romantic tale of infamous Depression era gangster, John Dillinger by noted action / drama director John Milius is historically inaccurate, but still a very enjoyable gangster film for fans of the genre....and a bonus to now have it available on DVD !! Cerebral actor Warren Oates plays fiery John Dillinger with aplomb, and Ben Johnson is the intrepid FBI agent Melvin Purvis, hot on the trail of America's Public Enemy number 1. Dynamic support cast portrays Dillinger's gang...Harry Dean Stanton as Homer van Meter, Geoffrey Lewis as Harry Pierpoint and John Ryan is Charlie Mackley. Additionally, Richard Dreyfuss is the cowardly killer, Baby Face Nelson and Steve Kanaly plays the "Robin Hood of the Cookson Hills", Pretty Boy Floyd. Milius makes great use of color and monochrome shots (many portions of movie appear to be shot through a sepia colored filter) and racy newsreel look to selected sequences with hard edged jazz score accompanying the visuals. Film covers birth of gang and several high profile incidents including the deadly shoot out at Little Bohemia lodge, plus Dillingers daring escape from Indiana's Crown Point jail....and finally his comeuppance outside the Biograph Theatre in Chicago where he was shot dead by FBI agents. If you like your gangster films fast paced and with machine guns blazing...then this one belongs in your collection !! Interesting footnote: It was argued for years that it wasn't Dillinger shot dead outside the Biograph, but rather a look-alike, petty thief named Jimmy Lawrence. Dillinger was apparently aware of the FBI plot and decided to retire from the bank robbing game for good. During the mid 1970's a letter arrived at a Los Angelas newspaper, together with a photo of an old man, the writer claimed to be Dillinger and the letter apparently contained information about Dillinger that was not freely available...nothing further was ever heard from the writer ! Very good 70s period piece "Dillinger" is not a particularly well-known movie, but it stands up well against other 1970s movies that explored the 1930s (Paper Moon, Bonnie & Clyde). Warren Oates stars as the notorious bank robber, John Dillinger. Oates is a great character actor and its terrific to see him in a starring role. Why he did not become a bigger star is a mystery. The movie does a great job capturing the barren depression-era Midwest. Real-life news reels are mixed in with the action to help make it more authentic. The supporting cast is also fantastic. Harry Dean Stanton is quite funny and Steve Kanaly (later a star of "Dallas") has one of his best movie roles as Pretty Boy Floyd. This is probably the best movie that director John Milius has made (he later made "Conan the Barbarian" and "Red Dawn"). The movie is fast-paced and fun. What is lacks in historic accuracy it more than makes up for with non-stop action. The DVD doesn't have any extras, but I still recommend it. Buy Dillinger at Amazon.com Buy posters at Allposters.com Jamster - the latest ringtones for your phone!  Search with Walhello on the Internet on Dillinger Search with the Priority Search Engine on Dillinger This page in other languages: Suomeksi | Nederlands | Deutsch
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