Made in 1945 this take on Public Enemy #1 John Dillinger is a hard hitting, tough gangster flick. During the Second World War there was an unwritten rule amongst the Hollywood hierachy about not producing gangster films so as not to show America to the rest of the world in a bad light. So it was left to the small
production studio Monogram to deliver this version of the infamous crook, near the end of the war. The Gangster film was back with avengence.
Dillinger shows the familiar story of the gangster biopic, as he starts off as a small fry - sticking up a store for a few bucks and quickly getting caught red handed. In prison he joins a hard bitten gang of experienced robbers and his own rise in rank and staus to public enemy #1, as he and the gang rob banks around the country.
Real life bad boy Lawrence Tierney (best known for his role as Joe the boss in Reservoir Dogs) plays the lead with a ruthlessness and tough guy exterior. A charmer with the ladies but a brute when it comes to buisness he is perfectly cast. Unlike other versions of John Dillinger this film portays him very much as a boo-hiss villain which suits the film but was unlike the real life 'Robin Hood' like bank robber who the public admired. Here crossing him in any way is a mistake as he holds on to a grudge like The Statue Of Liberty holds on to her torch.
The rest of the gang is a collection of ugly mugs and rogues who pepper many noirs/gangster flicks including Marc Lawrence, Eduardo Cianelli and Elisha Cook jnr (that's him in my avatar). All give able support.
A violent film that still has cause to shock an audience. This is probably the least factual portrayal of Dillinger but as an entertaining B-movie with noir visuals and a brisk running time it works well.
May 7, 2010
