Dillinger (1945)

48% of users liked it
(1,717 ratings)

Dillinger, the was the ninth effort from the enterprising King Brothers, and their most financially successful film to date. Lawrence Tierney became an overnight cult favorite with his gritty portrayal of maverick bank robber John Dillinger, though top billing is bestowed upon Edmund Lowe as gang… More Dillinger, the was the ninth effort from the enterprising King Brothers, and their most financially successful film to date. Lawrence Tierney became an overnight cult favorite with his gritty portrayal of maverick bank robber John Dillinger, though top billing is bestowed upon Edmund Lowe as gang chieftain Specs. The film traces Dillinger's criminal career from his first petty theft to his spectacular 1934 demise outside Chicago's Biograph Theater (incidentally, this film was banned in Chicago for several years). Anne Jeffreys plays Dillinger's fictional moll Helen, while Elisha Cook Jr., Marc Lawrence, and Eduardo Ciannelli go through their usual crime-flick paces. The film's set piece is an elaborate armored-car holdup, lifted in its entirety from footage originally shot for Fritz Lang's You Only Live Once (1937). Screenwriter Philip Yordan, fresh from his Broadway triumph Anna Lucasta, earned an Academy Award nomination for Dillinger. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Rating, Runtime: Unrated, 1 hr. 10 min.
Directed By: Max Nosseck
Written By: Philip Yordan, Leon Charles
Genres: Drama, Action & Adventure, Mystery & Suspense, Classics

In Theaters: Mar 2, 1945 Wide
On DVD: Jul 5, 2005
Studio: Scott Entertainment

Critic Reviews

Emanuel Levy, EmanuelLevy.Com
A powerful, bleak B-level biopic of the legendary gangster made just a decade after his death.
Jeffrey M. Anderson, Combustible Celluloid
This 70-minute classic from Monogram Studios is the epitome of what they call "lean and mean."

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Featured Audience Ratings

AJ V

I saw this right after seeing the new movie, Public Enemy, and it is so similar that it seems like they just copied this movie exactly.
Stella D

made only 10 years after dillinger's death, it's concise if not always factual. lawrence tierney is menacing in his film debut
Veronique K

the flick which prompts lawrence tierney's overnight fame as the hard-boiled tough guy. now he incarnates into the 30s gritty bankrobber john dilinger to heaten up the silver screen. the story starts off with one trivial event which triggers him into robbing a grocery store on… More
the flick which prompts lawrence tierney's overnight fame as the hard-boiled tough guy. now he incarnates into the 30s gritty bankrobber john dilinger to heaten up the silver screen. the story starts off with one trivial event which triggers him into robbing a grocery store on his own, a female companion's insistent request on drinking another round of beers as well as the contempting remark from a snobbish waiter who dismisses him as "two-bit chieseler"... it draws the contour of his persona, always motivated by the provocation of overbearing pride which could drive him into anything. in prison, he aquires the skill of conning, then he springs his cellmates to partake in their gang. afterwards he substitutes the boss as the no. 1 man to dominate the whole mob. but eventually his ultraviolent tyranny induces the grudge of his mistress who doublecrosses him to obtain the reward sum. the role of dilinger is literarily tailored for tierney whose private life rivals with the tumults in the roles he plays. dilinger is an abitrarily spoilt man whose vindictiveness thrives him but also abolishes him. his vengeful angst pushes him forward to wench the world into his palm, and it also antagonizes himself against others due to his keen disaposals of his potential foemen. this is a flick accelerated by testosterone, featuring some raw bankrobbery scenes in its primitive state, and it's swiftly paced on a man's rising bloom and his flopping doom. and the closure is blended with a sense of absurdity, interwined with the agonic clausphobia to avoid police: great mobster dilinger gets himself caught for attending theater to see a cartoon flick.
Ken S

A damn fine gangster pic
Michael G

A great gangster film.
Byron B

Moves along quickly. Concise and doesn't mess around with a lot of extraneous characters or occurrences. Anne Jeffreys doesn't have a very deep part as Dillinger's moll. The main conflict comes from within the gang as Dillinger's old mentor betrays him when… More
Moves along quickly. Concise and doesn't mess around with a lot of extraneous characters or occurrences. Anne Jeffreys doesn't have a very deep part as Dillinger's moll. The main conflict comes from within the gang as Dillinger's old mentor betrays him when Dillinger takes more control of the gang's actions. Plus the rest of the gang becomes more and more uncomfortable with Dillinger's violent outbursts even as they're impressed with his ability to get things done. This movie does not include a major FBI or police character who mercilessly chases Dillinger and his gang. But several of the same themes of Dillinger's life that are expressed in the new film Public Enemies are here too. I particularly liked how Dillinger was a movie fan and saw Manhattan Melodrama at the Biograph Theater when he was finally cornered by the authorities.