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Dillinger

  • 1973
  • R
  • 1h 47m
IMDb RATING
6.9/10
6.3K
YOUR RATING
Ben Johnson, Warren Oates, and Michelle Phillips in Dillinger (1973)
John Dillinger and his gang go on a bank robbing spree across the Midwest, but one G-Man is determined to bring him down.
Play trailer2:23
1 Video
45 Photos
Dark ComedyTrue CrimeActionBiographyCrimeDrama

John Dillinger and his gang go on a bank robbing spree across the midwest, but one G-Man is determined to bring him down.John Dillinger and his gang go on a bank robbing spree across the midwest, but one G-Man is determined to bring him down.John Dillinger and his gang go on a bank robbing spree across the midwest, but one G-Man is determined to bring him down.

  • Director
    • John Milius
  • Writer
    • John Milius
  • Stars
    • Warren Oates
    • Ben Johnson
    • Michelle Phillips
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    6.9/10
    6.3K
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • John Milius
    • Writer
      • John Milius
    • Stars
      • Warren Oates
      • Ben Johnson
      • Michelle Phillips
    • 81User reviews
    • 47Critic reviews
    • 58Metascore
  • See production info at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 1 nomination total

    Videos1

    Trailer
    Trailer 2:23
    Trailer

    Photos45

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    Top cast25

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    Warren Oates
    Warren Oates
    • John Dillinger
    Ben Johnson
    Ben Johnson
    • Melvin Purvis
    Michelle Phillips
    Michelle Phillips
    • Billie Frechette
    Cloris Leachman
    Cloris Leachman
    • Anna Sage
    Harry Dean Stanton
    Harry Dean Stanton
    • Homer Van Meter
    Geoffrey Lewis
    Geoffrey Lewis
    • Harry Pierpont
    John P. Ryan
    John P. Ryan
    • Charles Mackley
    • (as John Ryan)
    Richard Dreyfuss
    Richard Dreyfuss
    • Baby Face Nelson
    Steve Kanaly
    Steve Kanaly
    • Pretty Boy Floyd
    John Martino
    John Martino
    • Eddie Martin
    Roy Jenson
    Roy Jenson
    • Samuel Cowley
    Read Morgan
    Read Morgan
    • Big Jim Wollard
    Frank McRae
    Frank McRae
    • Reed Youngblood
    Ann Ault
    • Mary
    • (uncredited)
    Jules Brenner
    • Wilbur Underhill
    • (uncredited)
    David Dorr
    • Leroy
    • (uncredited)
    Roland Bob Harris
    • Ed Fulton
    • (uncredited)
    George O. Heath
    • John Dillinger, Sr.
    • (uncredited)
    • Director
      • John Milius
    • Writer
      • John Milius
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews81

    6.96.3K
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    Featured reviews

    7alexanderdavies-99382

    A good leading role for Warren Oates.

    "Dillinger" is one of the best films from Warren Oates. He is better known as a character actor, supporting player and a fine one at that. Occasionally, he was given the lead. The film has great action and Warren Oates bears a striking resemblance to the real life bandit, John Dillinger. Ben Johnson is terrific as the F.B.I agent who is on Dillinger's trail. A minor classic.
    ccthemovieman-1

    Another Good Dillinger Movie, With A Reservation

    Like his predecessor in this role (Lawrence Tierney), this John Dillinger - Warren Oates - also looks the part. Oates is a rough-looking ugly mug and convincing in the lead role. Speaking of mugs, also included in this gangster flick are a few other criminals of the era: Baby Face Nelson and Pretty Boy Floyd.

    Ben Johnson, meanwhile, is interesting as Melvin Purvis, the FBI who tracks down the famous Public Enemy Number One. Johnson also narrates in part of the film.

    Oates does a fine job of playing Dillinger. Unfortunately - remember this is the '70s, a decade in which the "anti-hero" was a full bloom - the film tends to make this crook into a sympathetic figure. The screenwriters tell us, "Hey, folks, see this criminal really wasn't a bad guy! Gve him some slack!" Yeah, right.

    A few minor acting notes: Cloris Leachman gets third billing, but only has a small role at the end as the famous "Lady In Red." Michelle Phillips, who made a name for herself as a member of the Mamas and Papas singing group, did a nice job of acting, better than I would have expected.

    I have seen three versions of "Dillinger" and all of them are good, including this one.
    7helpless_dancer

    Gimme all the dough!

    One of my all time fave actors played the gun toting thug to the hilt. Also, Ben Johnson was excellent as the obsessive detective dedicated to bringing the hellraising criminal to justice. He did cheat a tad but got the job done with no tears being shed for the hoodlum. Very good action film: I'll never forget the huge cringe I gave when the getaway car ran over a woman and dragged her beneath it for a ways. This was Oates doing some of his best work.
    7ca_skunk

    Funny, But Hilariously Inaccurate

    The scene at the beginning of the film where the old man at the gas station treats Homer Van Meter with such contempt is hilarious.

    Billie Frechette is shown firing a gun at the feds in one scene; it didn't happen. The end credits say she died a spinster; she was married twice. Harry Pierpont was wounded in an attempted escape from death row; three weeks later he was still unable to walk (he'd been shot four times), so they carried him to the electric chair, strapped him in, and threw the switch.

    Pretty Boy Floyd was wounded running from the farmhouse, but the wound wasn't mortal. When Purvis asked him about Kansas City, Floyd let go such a stream of profanity that Purvis had Agent Herman Hollis shoot him with a Thompson. Hollis had fired one of the rounds that hit Dillinger (although not the fatal one), and he and another agent died while mortally wounding Baby Face Nelson in November of that year.

    The scene outside the Biograph is ridiculous. It was scalding hot, which is why Dillinger and the two women went to an air-conditioned theater. The movie shows everyone in overcoats, including Dillinger. He had on an open-collared shirt and a white straw hat. Purvis didn't shoot Dillinger at all; the fatal round was fired by an agent brought up from Texas.

    I do, however, love the line about Handsome Jack Klutas (who, by the way, attended college, but had no "college degree"): "I knew I'd never take him alive. I didn't try too hard, neither." That scene, of course, never happened. Purvis wasn't even there when Klutas was killed.
    8Tim-130

    A fine film...

    I watched this for the first time in years after picking up the Widescreen DVD in the bargain bin. As a youngster, I remember many of these films for the bloodletting. How we used to talk them up afterwards. Often I'm disappointed after watching it many years later. 'Hey, that's not how I remember it. Well, 'Dillinger' isn't one of those films. This is a fine film, in fact, it's probably the number 2 film, behind 'Bonnie And Clyde' from that time that portrayed the Depression Era robbers. Warren Oates is excellent. He didn't get the chance very often to play the lead, but this was an excellent chance for him to bust out a little. And there are lots of recognizable actors in smaller roles. But this is Warren nearing his peak. It's as exciting as I remember, actually better then I remember. Well paced with a couple of slower interludes, that towards the end are kind of framed together. If you get a chance watch this film. You'll be pleasantly surprised. Oh and this DVD has the original 'We're In The Money' opening credits, plus it has the diclaimer at the end after the feature is over. I gave it a 7 out of 10.

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      J. Edgar Hoover protested this film being made and demanded that changes be made to the script to depict the FBI in a better light (see below). Shortly before his death he recorded a disclaimer to the film; it can be heard (spoken by an imitation voice) after the closing credits. The film depicts John Dillinger being shot outside the Biograph after he pulls his gun; in fact, Dillinger never pulled a gun that night. The FBI decided they were going to kill Dillinger rather than attempt to take him alive; they announced their presence, he turned to run, and was shot six times in the back.
    • Goofs
      Notes at the end of the movie claim that Melvin Purvis shot himself with the gun he killed John Dillinger with. In fact, the gun used to self-inflict his fatal wound was given to him by his colleagues at the FBI when he retired in 1935, the year after Dillinger was shot.
    • Quotes

      [repeated line]

      Homer Van Meter: Goddamit! Things ain't workin' out for me today!

    • Crazy credits
      After the closing credits a verbal renouncing of gangster films written by FBI chief J. Edgar Hoover is heard: he was scheduled to read it for the film, but died before it started production. Hoover's text is read at the film's close by voice actor (Paul Frees) decrying the film and calling it a source of corruption for children.
    • Alternate versions
      Two different versions with different main title music exist_ The original version features the song "We're in the Money" being played while snap shots of homeless and poor people are shown on the screen. The alternate version has the same visuals but with a simpler instrumental cue (called "Theme from Dillinger" on the soundtrack LP).
    • Connections
      Featured in Breakaway (1990)
    • Soundtracks
      The Gold Diggers' Song (We're in the Money)
      (uncredited)

      Music by Harry Warren

      Lyrics by Al Dubin

      Sung during the opening credits

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    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • November 8, 1973 (Hong Kong)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Languages
      • English
      • Spanish
    • Also known as
      • Jagd auf Dillinger
    • Filming locations
      • Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA(Nightclub for Purvis engagement party; Purvis meets lady in red; Biograph Theater scene where Dilliger dies)
    • Production company
      • American International Pictures (AIP)
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Budget
      • $1,000,000 (estimated)
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      • 1h 47m(107 min)
    • Color
      • Color
      • Black and White
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.85 : 1

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