Bonnie and Clyde:Friend or Foe?

Bonnie and Clyde definitely function as anti-heroes in the 1960’s film.  From the get go, the audience is encouraged to sympathize with both parties, especially Clyde. His boyish ways make him likable, and he most certainly does not look like a criminal, but more like a regular businessman. This harmless guise is what makes it easier to sympathize with him. He doesn’t strike the audience as being the sharpest crayon in the box, but the fact he’s childishly honest about his bank-robbing endeavors makes him pretty forgivable. It is easy, for women in particular, to sympathize with Bonnie as well. I can’t think of a woman who hasn’t fallen for the “bad boy” antics and lifestyle before, and Bonnie is drawn right in to the illusion of an outlaw. She brings charm to the table, and her touch of class and welcoming southern personality make it hard to see her as a bad guy. She tries to let everyone they encounter know that she and Clyde are no different than any other citizen.

         However, this sympathy does get compromised occasionally. When Clyde’s brother and wife are shot, the sympathy does start to fade simply because we don’t want to see anyone in the gang hurt, especially under the impression that Bonnie and Clyde are functioning as sort of Robin Hood figures, working for the greater good. The fact that they do feel guilt and remorse after killing people makes them forgivable. Off the cuff, their sympathy was also slightly compromised with their mocking of the Texas Ranger, from the standpoint that most of us respect law officers, however it is only minor, because as seen in True Grit, Texas Rangers have a bit of a stigma.

Their heroism shines through because the idea is that they have the same enemy as the whole country, the banks. Historically, we know many citizens loathed the banks, and in this essence Bonnie and Clyde function as vigilantes for the management of funds, taking the money away from the banks on the basis that they aren’t fit to handle it. It makes sense this would align with the era of the sixties, another era of unrest in the country.