New Hollywood: Bonnie and Clyde (Arthur Penn, 1967)

Research and write about how Bonnie And Clyde is a product of the contexts in which it was produced:

Despite Bonnie and Clyde’s attitudes towards realism the film still has subtleties of the French New Wave style. Warren Beatty (Clyde) who took the role of producer was interested in the French New Wave and therefore originally approached directors of this movement for the film. This influence would be present throughout the entirety of the production of Bonnie and Clyde and would influence Penn’s conception of the of the film. The film uses techniques from French New Wave for the characteristics of the characters as well as utilising fast cuts and changes in music to spontaneously shift the tone. There are similarities between Bonnie and Clyde and the French New Wave film Jean-Luc Godard’s Breathless as they both feature anti hero protagonist’s who are arrogant and rebellious. Both protagonists are very masculine and have a sexual facades, where their characteristics of confidence and brutality (which attracts the audience) are the very flaws that lead to their downfall. This presents a clear link between Bonnie and Clyde and the contexts in which it was produced aa the film took influence from multiple different aspects within other productions.

Bonnie and Clyde’s inspiration from the French New Wave can be shown through the films biographical genre and humanistic characteristics. This is similar to Francois Truffaut’s first full length film was ‘The 400 Blows’ which was a deep autobiographical film which’s style is recognisable in his later films as humanistic. The inspiration that Bonnie and Clyde took from Truffaut’s style shows it as being a product of the contexts in which it was produced.

David Newman was a screenwriter from America who’s career with Robert Benton expanded from the late 60s to the early 80s. Both of them worked together for the screenplay for Bonnie and Clyde which increased the demand for them in Hollywood. David Newman was awarded an Academy Award, the National Society of Film Critics Award, New York Film critics Award, and three Writers Guild of America Awards for multiple screenplay including Bonnie and Clyde. Robert Benton was a screenwriter and director who won many awards for both writing and directing. Benton wrote many screenplays and won multiple awards including the Best Original Screenplay for Bonnie and Clyde. Newman’s and Benton’s screenplay presents Bonnie and Clyde as a product of the contexts in which it was produced due to the influence that they had on the overall product.

The decline of Hollywood came to an end because of two prominent factors, the invention of TV and antitrust actions. Major film companies relied on purchasing theatres for decades which would only show films produced by the company that owned it. However, legal action resulted in studios being forced to release their ownership on their theatres. This had a dramatic effect on Hollywood as companies started releasing and revising employees contracts. The individuality of the firms disappeared with the redo of their creative teams and led to fewer films being made but with larger budgets. This had a significant effects on the production of Bonnie and Clyde as the film had a far wider release through many different cinemas instead of those just owned by the studio. Additionally the studios producing less films but with higher budgets allowed for Bonnie and Clyde to have a larger budget.

Bonnie and Clyde has a clear influence from direct cinema as it pushes against the grain offering harder and more edgy stories contrasting with Hollywood’s ‘happy endings.’ Towards the late 1980s Americas industry for independent cinema began to grow in a few ‘major American cities’ and then became a far stronger presence in Americas public culture. Independent films are often distinguishable from films produced by a large production company as their style and their content present the filmmaker’s artistic vision and not the production companies vision. Bonnie and Clyde took influence from the style of independent cinema as it followed the artistic vision of Arthur Penn as well as Warren Beatty showing it as being a product of the context in which it was produced.