Bonnie and Clyde

Cards (35)

  • The film is set during the Great Depression, which was a time when people were struggling to survive due to poverty.
  • Bonnie Parker (Faye Dunaway) and Clyde Barrow (Warren Beatty) are two criminals who rob banks and go on a crime spree across America.
  • In the end, they both die in a hail of bullets from police officers.
  • Director
    Arthur Penn
  • Year of Release
    1967
  • Editing
    Dede Allen
  • Clyde Barrow
    Warren Beatty
  • Bonnie Parker
    Faye Dunaway
  • Continuity editing
    A system of cutting to maintain continuous and clear narrative action.
  • Discontinuity editing
    A style of editing—less widely used than continuity editing, often but not exclusively in experimental films—that joins shots A and B to produce an effect or meaning not even hinted at by either shot alone.
  • Elliptical editing
    Shot transitions that omit parts of an event, causing an ellipsis in plot duration.
  • Establishing shot
    Often a long shot or a series of shots that sets the scene. It is used to establish setting and to show transitions between locations.
  • Eyeline match

    a transition between shots in which the first shot shows a person or animal looking at something offscreen and the following shot presumably shows what was being looked at from the approximate angle suggested by the previous shot
  • Montage
    A quick succession of images or impressions used to express an idea.
  • Reverse shot
    A shot in a sequence that is taken from the reverse angle of the shot previous to it.
  • Intertextuality
    The condition of interconnectedness among texts, or the concept that any text is an amalgam of others.
  • The opening shot is an extreme closeup of Bonnie's lips this could suggest romance throughout the film.
  • What historical event occurred during the time of Bonnie and Clyde?
    The Great Depression
  • In the first robbery scene what camera technique was used ?
    Hand held camera technique when it swings round, Clyde's POV.
  • New Hollywood
    Era marked by breaking cinematic taboos and controversy.
  • Cinematography
    • Extreme close ups of Bonnie in the opening scene (lips, eyes) sexualise her and suggest this film will explore her identity. These shot choices also challenge classical Hollywood conventions establishing the film as a ‘New Hollywood’ production.
    Unconventional and creative framing of shots e.g. Bonnie shooting the tyre, the bank teller being shot through the car window.
    Filter in the scene when Bonnie meets up with her mum lends the scene a dreamlike quality – fantasy of how things could be if Bonnie had made different choices.
  • Mise-en-Scène
    Blood – The film was stylised but it did include blood in an uncommon way for Hollywood films of that era-the crimes more realistic
    • Costume – Bonnie’s costumes and styling become more polished as their crime spree continues and her confidence grows.
    • Colour – use of black when Bonnie meets her mother for the last time creates a funereal tone and foreshadows the death of the protagonists.
  • Editing
    Diner conversation- shot reverse shot - simplistic editing and close ups encourages audience to focus on character dynamic- Clyde revealed to be insightful and intuitive- Bonnie to be surprised and impressed.
    Closing scene – shoot out -shot with numerous cameras capturing scene from different angles- certain frames edited with slow motion- not all so that its not overwhelming- creates a disturbing spectacle
    Jump cuts- inspired by French New Wave directors like Jean-Luc Godard and Francois Truffaut show Penn’s Film School background.
  • Sound
    Bluegrass song- Foggy Mountain Breakdown by Earl Scruggs & Lester Flatt -light tone during crime scenes- comedic tone to some moments. Also anchors the film geographically.
    Lack of music in robbery scenes lends them a sense of realism.
    • Loud and explosive gunfire- only sound in the closing scene-emphasises the excesses of attack on Bonnie and Clyde.
  • Representations
    Gender – B starts the film ‘trapped’ inside the home- C is first seen out in the world- reflects gendered norms for the era- rest of the film challenges these roles.
    • Sex – B breaks taboos of the time by initiating intimacy and oral sex is alluded to- very controversial at the time. C's impotence- ‘I aint much of a loverboy”, -also a taboo subject, challenged stereotypes of the masculine virile hero.
    • Class – B and C support the working classes e.g. encouraging the evicted family to shoot at the bank sign, letting the man in the bank robbery keep his own money.
  • Aesthetics
    • Very diverse shot types, varying pace and discontinuity edits - lack of clear patterns -conveys unpredictability of New Hollywood and the film’s protagonists.
    • Influenced by convention challenging French New Wave directors.
  • The rise of New American Cinema of the late 1960s
    Economic breakdown of the studio era
    Audience decline / fragmentation – appeal to younger audiences and ‘art-house’
    • 1967 – audience attendance rises for the first time
    Counterculture of late 1960s - counterculture, civil rights movements, unrest, polarisation.
    Escalation of the war in Vietnam
    New directors - film buffs
    • Aesthetic influence of European arthouse ink. French New Wave
    New technologies- zoom lens, stedicam
    1968 –the new X certificate
  • Institutional
    •Hollywood studios- in decline, less financial risks, films making more by indie studios, encouraged by changes, covered more taboo subjects, experimented with new film-making techniques
    •The film marked a turning point in Hollywood- even tho produced by Warner Bros, lots of control was given to Arthur Penn
  • Specialist
    Arthur Penn’s leftist politics and interests in social justice appears in this film and his earlier work
    • Combining comedy and tragedy whilst working within clear genres
    • Theme – façade vs reality
    • Screenwriters- David Newham-influenced by French New Wave and auteurs of classical Hollywood
  • Historical
    A time of social unrest in America- people challenging governments role in Viet war- especially youths.
    There were race riots- large counterculture developing.
    The film’s anti-authority message reflected this.
  • Opening
    Introduces the two protagonists and their respective roles in society, establishes the genre and introduces some of the taboos that make this film a ‘New Hollywood’ classic.
  • Ending Scene

    Closing scene demonstrates level of violence in the film- creative cinematography and the influence of other filmmakers on Penn.
  • The use of music in the opening scene helps to establish the tone of the film. The song "This Land Is Your Land" plays over the credits, setting the stage for the story of Bonnie and Clyde's adventures across the country. The lyrics of the song reflect the themes of freedom and rebellion that are central to the plot.
  • Clyde Barrow (Warren Beatty) is introduced as a charming man who steals cars. He is shown as being very handsome and charismatic. However, he is also violent and dangerous. His character represents the idea that appearances can be deceiving. Throughout the film, we see him change from a kind person to someone who becomes increasingly brutal.
  • Bonnie Parker (Faye Dunaway) is introduced as an attractive young woman who works at a diner. When she meets Clyde Barrow (Warren Beatty), they begin a relationship which leads them into crime. The opening sequence shows how they meet and fall in love. It also sets up the theme of the façade versus reality.