Crime drama

Dillinger (1973): Cast & Plot

Name: Dillinger
Genre: Drama, Crime, Action
Released: 1973-07-20
Duration: 1 h 47 min
Cast: Warren Oates, Richard Dreyfuss, Steve Kanaly, Ben Johnson, Harry Dean Stanton

Dillinger is a 1973 crime drama directed by John Milius, starring Warren Oates as John Dillinger, Richard Dreyfuss and Steve Kanaly. It runs 1 hour 47 minutes.

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Released: July 20, 1973
Runtime: 1h 47m (107 min)
Director: John Milius
Genres: Drama , Crime , Action
Original language: English
Studio: American International Pictures
After the credits: No No extra scene

The story

What Is Dillinger About?

The premise of Dillinger without spoilers. The whole story is in the plot summary further down.

After a shoot‑out in Kansas City kills five FBI agents, the Bureau targets notorious bank robber John Dillinger. His daring robberies make him a folk hero; after escaping jail he joins Pretty Boy Floyd and Baby Face Nelson, becoming Public Enemy Number One. The G‑men launch a manhunt, turning the chase into a high‑stakes game across the Midwest.

Dillinger Themes & Keywords

· 50 tags

reference to arizona
public enemy number one
panties
upskirt
year 1933
year 1934
armed robbery
prostitute
great depression
bank robbery
1930s
gangster

+38 more

based on true story
arizona
arizona desert
tucson
character name as title
john dillinger character
fbi federal bureau of investigation
bank
gang
g man
mobster
jail
rural setting
hit by a car
father son relationship
brother sister relationship
blood splatter
explosion
nun
escape from prison
press
airplane
dancing
spanish
badge
singing
scream
river
shotgun
american
alarm
slapped in the face
swing
jail cell
little boy
musician
soldier
bridge

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Cast & crew

Dillinger Cast & Characters

Warren Oates leads the cast as John Dillinger, with Richard Dreyfuss as Baby Face Nelson and Steve Kanaly as Pretty Boy Floyd. Directed by John Milius; 14 actors are credited in all.

Director John Milius

Warren Oates as John Dillinger
Richard Dreyfuss as Baby Face Nelson
Steve Kanaly as Pretty Boy Floyd
Ben Johnson as Melvin Purvis

Also Starring in Dillinger

· 10 more

Harry Dean Stanton Homer Van Meter
Geoffrey Lewis Harry Pierpont
John P. Ryan Charles Mackley
Roy Jenson Samuel Cowley
Michelle Phillips Billie Frechette
Frank McRae Reed Youngblood
Cloris Leachman Anna Sage
Read Morgan Big Jim Wollard
John Martino Eddie Martin
Ann Ault Mary (uncredited)

From the director

More from John Milius

More films directed by John Milius, best-rated first: The Wind and the Lion, Big Wednesday, Conan the Barbarian and Red Dawn.

Full filmography

Plot

Dillinger Plot Summary

What happens in Dillinger from start to finish, spoilers included, with a timeline of 14 key events. The opening is below; the full summary is a 3-minute read.

Spoilers ahead

Melvin Purvis is driven to take down the most notorious criminals of the Great Depression, a time when bank robbers have become folk heroes to a public distrustful of financial institutions and the law. Facing a wave of high-profile crimes, Purvis vows to personally hunt down the men he deems responsible, including John Dillinger and his volatile gang, among them Pretty Boy Floyd and Baby Face Nelson, as well as the more elusive figures in Dillinger’s orbit such as Homer Van Meter, Harry Pierpont, and Charles Mackley. The pursuit intensifies as Purvis makes clear to fellow agent Samuel Cowley that vengeance is personal and that he is prepared to push beyond standard methods when necessary.

Full summary

The whole story of Dillinger, scene by scene

Read the full summary