Dillinger Is Dead (1969)

good back-story, and good acting

Pretty good movie overall. First half was nothing special but it got better as it went along.

Tells a fascinating and unsettling true story, and does so well, without pretending to have all the answers.

One of the most extraordinary films you will see this year. Take that as you want.

Sometimes a day in somebody's life can be interesting to watch, only the most artistic filmmakers can explore with their own kind of artistry & entertainment. Even if it makes sense or not from how you see it. Marco Ferreri did with Dillinger Is Dead (1969). Rather telling a simple story about a gas mask designer who tries to make dinner as he ends up discovering what is to be the infamous gangster's gun and plays with his women & watches Spanish trip footage as to recall (with a mysterious ending), he shows us something different that we would not normally watch or understand as it processes - using an oldies soundtrack throughout the whole film for which has minimal dialogue and getting playful with his storytelling. Michel Piccoli is the main highlight of this rare art-house classic because whatever he does during this film is interesting. It is also one of cinema's lost treasures since it was never shown in America until 2008 with surprisingly good acclaim, my reaction to seeing Dillinger Is Dead was pretty good - resulting to say unlike most films have those topics being explored during daytime life. One tune I liked listening to in the film was Patty Pravo's "Qui e là" (meaning "here and then" in Italian), it really has a catchy feel-good beat besides its lyrics dealing with freedom and sounds so sixties because this film was made from the 1960's. Anyway in conclusion, say what you want about the film but it is a surprising discovery for lovers of art-house cinema and would enjoy spending an evening like nothing else.My Rating: 5/5

I've been a fan of this website since the days when most movies had 2-3 reviews, and those were from people who could discern good from bad. It's been sad to see how things have deteriorated to the point where if a reviewer doesn't enjoy an objectively decent movie it gets a 1-star rating, and fanboys give all sorts of dreck 10 stars. It's to the point where I no longer trust the ratings on this site. With that preamble, or apology, if you will, out of the way I wholeheartedly and without reservation gives this movie 1 star. There are so many interesting, lyrical, involving Italian movies, from Two Women to 8-1/2 to Rome:Open City to The Bicycle Thieves, among many others. And I've seen plenty of self-involved Italian crapola over the years, esp M Antonioni's mostly unwatchable output. But this takes the proverbial cake. It starts with a guy in an industrial setting being read to by a co- worker. In the first five minutes, before the credits even roll, I bet half the audience was already regretting going to the theatre to watch this. Then the guy goes home and cooks dinner for about an hour. It's as though Ferreri was daring viewers to walk out. I never thought I would see a movie that rivals the worst of Canadian Film Board-subsidized garbage, but I was wrong.

"Dilinger è morto" is an artistic performance,it represents the beginning of Ferreri abstract cinema, in everything personal. The everyone spirit voyeuristic here is more stimulated and the spectator is carried away with the actions of Glauco, the chief character. At the home beginning from his job of industrial designer, he finds only loneliness and boredom; infact his wife stuffes herself sleeping tablet; the maid, in her bedroom, dreams with eyes wide her italian folk singer idol; the dinner is on the table and it is cold maybe like Glauco's mood. But this time he reacts and decides to cook something of good and while is looking for necessary ingredients he finds a gun wrapped up a page of news paper dated 23 july of 1934, and bringing the killing of american gangster Dilinger news. This is the beginning of the end, or rather, of the end of this life. Ferreri is excellent in his cynic narrativity and he is able to make us laughing of the more tragic events.

An excellent movie, experimental in its unusual construction of an apparently very simple plot, edited in a really original and clever way, till its paradoxal and genial end. Not a movie for everybody's tastes, apparently not much happens in it, except a couple of decisions made by main character Michel Piccoli... but if you like what they call the European cinema (not Hollywood money-machine stupid blockbusters) you shall not miss this one! A five stars rating!