The Eclectic Choice: Dillinger

Dillinger (1973)
dir. John Milius

With Public Enemies (2009) coming out this summer, I thought it would be good to point out a real gem that covers the same territory. This time around Warren Oates plays our quintessential criminal and heads a great cast that includes Ben Johnson, Harry Dean Stanton, Richard Dreyfus and Cloris Leachman as the woman in red.

With a fun jail break, some great energy by Oates and real thrills, Milius made his big screen debut with this highly underrated movie. Johnson gives a stand out performance as well playing Melvin Purvis, a man who seeks two things, good press and John Dillinger. Falling somewhere between Bonnie And Clyde (1968) and Badlands (1973) with its technique and picturesque landscapes, this film also contains some riveting violence, in the vein of Peckinpah, that can still take you off guard, even by today's standards.

A must own, even though it's a bare bones DVD. It really should have a special edition Blu-ray with Milius giving a gravelly commentary on the life of one of our history's most colorful criminals.