Regardless of intentions, Bonnie and Clyde is a classic. It’s one of those films where you may not want to watch it all the time, but you have to revisit it at least once a year. It’s action packed, there’s plenty of comedy — even if it’s dark comedy, and there’s a great story underneath. Oh, did I mention that it has Gene Hackman, Gene Wilder, Warren Beatty, someone named Faye Dunaway (heard of her? just kidding — yowsa she’s beautiful in this film!), Estelle Parsons (Roseanne’s mother, anyone?) and Michael J. Pollard (he’s been in tons of Disney films). These actors and actresses just began the prime of their careers when they starred in this film and what a way to really start your careers!
Never seen the movie? Check it out! Need a movie for your Blu-ray collection? Perfect fit!
Blu-ray and special features make this a STEAL!
Let me just say that I never figured that Blu-ray could make such a difference, especially with an older film. The first taste of difference came when I reviewed A Clockwork Orange and I just couldn’t fathom that someone could actually bring an older film to such high quality standards, such as Blu-ray. As I was proved wrong with that review, I’m doubly proved wrong with Bonnie and Clyde. Not only can you see the difference, but it actually brings out the beautiful cinematography that Burnett Guffey (who won an oscar for this) put together. The visuals were outstanding and made even better by the Blu-ray format. The audio, on the other hand, seemed to lack a bit. Using optical in my reviewing process, I couldn’t obtain 5.1. It only resided in the center and subwoofer. Thinking that my receiver was going wacky, I put in another Blu-ray and it was 5.1. So, I guess the Blu-ray for Bonnie and Clyde for whatever reason wasn’t put into a 5.1 surround sound configuration. I’m not sure the why of that, but it was rather annoying hearing it only through the center speaker and subwoofer.
Audio aside, which can be forgiven by the way, you get a nice set of features packed with this Blu-ray disc. First, you get a nice booklet that is made into the DVD case. There are some interesting bits about the actors and actresses, about the Academy Awards and also a cool telegram from Jack Warner to the production crew giving his full blessing. That, in itself, is pretty darn cool.
Second, the features themselves include a large array of documentaries by the filmmakers and comments from the actors/actresses involved in the film. There is also a very cool documentary from the history channel on the real Bonnie and Clyde. There are silent deleted scenes (WB couldn’t locate the audio for) and theatrical trailers. This is all on one disc, which is amazing. It’s nice to see that a studio is finally using the Blu-ray format for what it was made and meant to be.
They’re young, they’re in love and they kill a lot of people… on Blu-ray
Overall, I think this movie is an instant must-have for any moviegoer or Blu-ray library builder. It’s beautiful, it’s a great movie to begin with and if you’ve never experienced it, then this is the way to do it. To boot, you’ve got some really great special features with it, so there’s really no reason to not own it. Forgive the audio and enjoy the rest, Bonnie and Clyde on Blu-ray is really quite tasty.
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