LeonLouisRicci "Bonnie and Clyde" (1967) a Slick and Influential Hollywood Game Changer was Criticized for Glamorizing Gangsters and Criminals (as if that was something new). Roger Corman's Movie did No such Glamorizing. In Fact, Corman chose to go Quite the Opposite.In expected Fashion, His Movie is Depressing, Disturbing, Cutting Edge, and Sleazy, and has been Accused of Dramatic Debasement for Profit. It was, and it makes it a Stand-Out Cult Movie because of it.Shelley Winters is Perfectly Cast and Lights Up the Screen with Her Demented Character alongside an Early Robert DeNiro as a Drug Addled Glue Sniffer and Heroin Injector. Don Stroud, looking more Handsome than Usual is the Eldest of the Barker Clan and Impresses with a Brooding Brutality. Pat Hingle, as a Depression Era Millionaire, also does Good Work as Corman's Answer to the Decades Hypocrisy.The Violence of the Title, is Slowly Paced, Culminating in a Guns Blazing Shootout Ending. Before that the On Screen Killings and utter Disregard for Human Life is the most Unsettling. Senseless and Sadistic Murders combined with two Early Rape Scenes sets the Stage for Incest, and other Abnormalities.Probably Corman's most Offensive Films, it is Considered one of His Best in some circles. It isn't but shows Low-Budget Skills (synonymous with the Writer, Director, Producer). While none of Corman's Movies came anywhere near the Oscars, He was nevertheless given an Academy Award for Lifetime Achievement.His Eye for Talent is well Documented as is His way of Making Money with Exploitation. Roger Corman was a Walking Film School for Talented Embryonic Filmmakers. Martin Scorsese and Francis Ford Coppola are Proud Graduates.

tomgillespie2002 "Blood's thicker than water," explains Shelley Winters' pious and psychotic Ma Barker. Based extremely loosely on the exploits of Ma Barker and her sons, who went on a crime spree during the 1920's and was chased by J. Edgar Hoover's newly formed F.B.I., director Roger Corman reverses the familiar pre-credits text by stating 'any similarity to Kate Barker and her sons is intentional." The truth is that the real Ma Barker had very little to do with the organisation of her family's criminal activities, but Corman gives her to Shelley Winters who grabs the role and runs away with it. This is a loud, crude, violent film, about a bunch of despicable characters. But Corman does something that is rarely done and delves into the psychology of these gangsters, and, although it's hardly Freud, comes up with some interesting and uncomfortable answers.Leaving her home and husband in Arkansas, Ma Barker and her four sons - the towering brute Herman (Don Stroud), the practical Arthur (Clint Kimbrough), the submissive, bisexual Fred (Robert Walden), and the quiet, drug-addled Lloyd (Robert De Niro) - embark on a petty crime spree on the command of Ma. Herman and Fred find themselves locked away for petty theft, and inside, Fred is dominated by the violent Kevin (Bruce Dern), who joins Ma and her boys when they are released from prison. As their notoriety grows, the family kidnap wealthy businessman Sam (Pat Hingle) and hold him for ransom. When the boys start bonding with the father figure, cracks begin to appear in the gang.On the surface this is just a cheap exploitation film made the master of the quickie, but it has recently received some acclaim for its unorthodox portrayal of its ugly characters. There's more than a hint of incest that runs throughout the film, conveyed in Ma's hyper-sexual activity and Herman's hesitation to leave his mother's breast. It is also often quite disturbing, as the lengths that Ma will go to in order to protect her sons becomes evident as she drowns an innocent young woman who Lloyd rapes. The performances are noticeably excellent too, especially Winters, who gives Ma a vulnerability in her need to have strong men around her, and Dern, who is creepy as the alpha-male whose sexual preferences is somewhat questionable. This is one of the finest examples of Corman's skill as a director, using limited resources to create a genre film that still stands out in a crowded marketplace, never ashamed to embrace it's exploitation roots, but bold enough to dig that little bit deeper.www.the-wrath-of-blog.blogspot.com

Karl Self Although it's always interesting to watch a Roger Corman movie, I couldn't really get with this one. The problem is that the entire movie is laid out in the first ten minutes. Ma Barker is a twisted woman who lives out her mania through her sons, with whom she has incestuous relationships in every sense of the word. A crime spree ensues until it all ends in the long-anticipated bloodbath. Roll credits. Lots of gore but no suspense or development. Shelley Winters acts her butt off but can't salvage the movie. Interestingly, Robert de Niro has his first role here, and surprisingly he's laughable. Actually, maybe not so surprisingly since he has to overplay a hick and finds no place for his method acting. It's amazing that he still managed to evolve into stardom after this rocky start.

PaulyC Shelly Winters plays a wild Ma Barker in this decent Roger Corman directed flick about the Barker gang of the great depression era. Everyone playing Ma Barkers sons, who include Robert Deniro, gives a good performance. Bruce Dern also has a small role as sort of an outside member of the gang. The Barker gang is on the run, lead by their fearless mother. They rob banks and whoever they can get their hands on. There is one particular good scene involving Deniro, complete with his Max Cady accent, where he acts on the advances of a young blonde swimmer who flirts with him while he sits on the dock. Her flirty ways turn to terror as Deniro realizes he tells her some forbidden information and can't afford to let her live. Deniro lost 30 pounds for the role. He also told Corman he could drive even though he didn't have a license. Pat Hingle, a great character actor, as a high profile man who the gang kidnaps to get ransom money is also very good. This film is no "Bonnie and Clyde" but I'm surprised it didn't get more attention. Worth a look.