ORIGINAL GANGSTERS

I admire “Bonnie and Clyde” as much as the next film buff, but Patrick Goldstein’s designation of it as “the first modern American film” is highly arbitrary and fails to consider the cultural context in which the film was made (“Blasts From the Past,” Aug. 24).

“Bonnie and Clyde” was preceded by Hitchcock’s “Psycho” (1960), Frankenheimer’s “The Manchurian Candidate” and Kubrick’s “Dr. Strangelove” (1964). There was also “A Hard Day’s Night” (1964), which although made in England was directed by Richard Lester, an American.

All of these films were as modern in their own way and--more important--as influential as “Bonnie and Clyde.”

C. JERRY KUTNER

Van Nuys

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In “Bonnie and Clyde,” Warren Beatty was apparently able to portray a murderous gangster without hesitation, yet he worried, according to co-writer David Newman, that playing a homosexual would make him “terribly unsympathetic” with his public.

Apparently, it’s all right to inspire the youth of this country toward a string of bank robberies, but heaven forbid that a confused man be shown finding solace in the arms of another.

NORRIS MANNING

Los Angeles

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“Bonnie and Clyde” without the genius of costume designer Theadora Van Runkle would have been just another gangster film. When she created the look for the characters, this consummate artist ignited a world fashion trend with her authenticity and vision, never before seen on film.

NORMA CARNAHAN

San Pedro

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I agree with fans who find “Bonnie and Clyde” a daring, fascinating film but, as a writer and researcher, I am disturbed by its lack of accuracy.

Several key events in the lives of the outlaw couple were omitted or inaccurately portrayed; many events were completely invented. For instance, there was no “C.W. Moss.” Clyde was neither homosexual nor impotent and the couple neither met nor died under the circumstances shown.

Although many screenwriters sacrifice accuracy for a better “story,” I believe that Robert Benton and David Newman sacrificed accuracy for expediency. The true story of Clyde Barrow and Bonnie Parker is a much different one, though just as much a “daring, disturbing tragicomedy.”

MYRA CLARKE

Downey

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Warren Beatty’s usage of the English language deserves commendation.

Warren: “. . . apocrypha . . . hyperbolize . . . homage.”

Warner Bros. moguls Benny Kalmenson and Jack Warner: “[expletive] . . . [expletive] . . . god----, god----, god----, god----, [expletive].”

So much for excreta power language compared to Warren’s king’s English. We also know that he can, with impressive elan, refer to Hegel, Ruskin, Hugo et al without being a “pseudo-intellectual,” and that is no easy accomplishment in certain habitats.

NED MANDERINO

Los Angeles