BONNIE AND CLYDE - ESSAY

ANALYSE THE REPRESENTATIONS OF GENDER IN BONNIE AND CLYDE. HOW DO KEY ELEMENTS OF FILM FORM ENHANCE THESE REPRESENTATIONS?

Bonnie and Clyde is directed by Arthur Penn, expressing his own take on the real life story of Bonnie and Clyde; a couple who would go round the country robbing stores together. Within this essay I will be discussing how the auteur Arthur Penn, utilises key elements of film form to enhance his own representations of gender within 1930's, whilst also linking to these representations in the 1960's. 

With Arthur Penn's vision, he created Bonnie and Clyde to represent a 'new wave' of Hollywood films that would in turn, abolish the Hays code and present something new within Hollywood. He places the spectator to sympathise with the antagonists of the story, which had previously been banned due to the regulations of the hays code. He presents Bonnie and Clyde to have a non marital relationship, with the power distinction slowly deteriorating as the film progresses; criticising those who believe in a patriarchal society. This gender distinction however, is prominent towards the start of the film, where Bonnie and Clyde talk in the restaurant. Although Penn uses multiple shot-reverse-shot's to express how they should be on equal level, he uses the Mise-En-Scene to capture the 'purity' behind Bonnie, and the 'villain' behind Clyde. Bonnie is seen wearing a bright white dress, which often connotes a sense of innocence and purity as she has not been 'swayed' into a life of crime as of yet. This completely juxtaposes Clyde, as he is seen wearing a black suit and a black tie, express a dark side and a sense of mystery behind Clyde's character. 

Arthur Penn can be seen as an Auteur here, as he uses costume to emphasise the differences between Bonnie and Clyde, and how Clyde is meant to be seen as the more dominant of the two genders. Furthermore, Clyde states to Bonnie when he sees her wearing a clip in her hair: "I don't like that, change it". Bonnie's performance after he states this, suggests a sense of conformity as she swiftly changes her appearance to please Clyde: which is typical of a woman in both the 1930's and 1960's. Clyde maintains a strict elongated posture, whilst Bonnie almost cowers in her food as though she is submitting to the 'male' dominance that Clyde possesses. This makes the spectator understand how Penn places Clyde as the dominant figure of the two, but also criticising society and how Bonnie is forced to conform to a man's judgement. This links back to society when Arthur Penn created this film, as new feminist movements were set in place and the population became more open to new ideas. This prompt Arthur Penn to guide Bonnie to have a complete change in ideals and characteristics, which is very prominent in the scene where Bonnie is in the car with Blanche. 

The scene in which Clyde, Buck, Moss, Blanche and Bonnie escape the police due to an error by Blanche, She becomes hysterical and Bonnie yells at her and changes her whole character from a calm and controlled woman, to an erratic devient who completely contradicts the notions of women at the time. Bonnie seeks no help from Clyde when she shouts: "It would have saved us a lot of trouble if you got shot". Blanche then seek's shelter within Buck as the camera zooms into Blanche's face buried deep within Buck's arms. This expresses how Blanche attempts to be a subservient woman to the societal expectations at the time, and seeks comfort in a 'male' figure. In contrast, Bonnie completely subverts the societal expectations of women at the time and shouts at Blanche with a deep booming voice. When Clyde tells Bonnie to 'put it out', Bonnie immediately tells him to stop the car to speak to him; giving herself power within the couple and destroying any patriarchy previously presented. The mise-en-scene is also very important within this scene as Bonnie's white dress is starting to get dirty; emphasising this new change, whilst Clyde's clothes are getting lighter in colour; expressing how he is falling for Bonnie. Arthur Penn presents himself as an Auteur again as he uses the distinction between Bonnie and Blanche as a way of presenting different types of women at the time. This was important in the 1960's as the patriarchy began to abolish, alongside the social norms for gender. Therefore, he place's Blanche as an antagonist as she attempts to maintain this patriarchy, as this is the 'traditional 1930's way'. 

A very important scene in which gender is represented is the scene where Bonnie thinks about her family, and reflects on the choices she has made. The scene begins with a sepia filter on the camera, as though this is almost a dream-like scenario. Bonnie has now joined Clyde and is fully dressed in black; expressing how there is no way of her life going back to the way it used to be. The black colour of the dress can also connote a funeral, as though she is at her own funeral as the path she is on only leads to one ending. This very stylised cinematography helps the spectator understand how this is Bonnie's inner thoughts and visions, and her dream to be with her family once again. Bonnie wrestles with the ideals of: being an independent woman or desiring for love from her family. This links to when her mother rejects Clyde's alleged 'marriage proposal', as her inner self is almost telling her to pursue her own path and not be in the shadow of a man. This presents a huge gender distinction as Bonnie believes that she has to be independent in order to live free. This only brings Bonnie and Clyde closer together, as she realises the importance behind being with Clyde; even if her inner self tells her no. This makes the audience sympathise with her, as she is swayed by the desire she has for Clyde and does not think clearly. Therefore, she destroys any power distinction between the two genders as they both believe that they can only function with the other by their side. This links back to Arthur Penn as an Auteur as he deals with the gender issues here and how women are meant to be perceived at the time compared to men. He criticises these ideas by having Bonnie become a stronger character to Clyde within this scene. 

In conclusion, it can be said that Arthur Penn presents himself as an Auteur, due to the way he responds to the events in his society for the spectator to understand the hidden messages behind the film. He uses key elements of film form to further express his ideals to the spectator, whilst also criticising those who believe in 'traditional' views of life. He compels the spectator to align with Bonnie and Clyde, to destroy the traditional views regarding the Hays Code and it's alleged 'importance'.