Dog Day Afternoon

"The robbery should have taken 10 minutes. 4 hours later, the bank was like a circus sideshow. 8 hours later, it was the hottest thing on live T.V. 12 hours later, it was all history. And it's all true."

These are the words on one of the original movie posters for Dog Day Afternoon, which tells the true story of what must be one of the strangest botched bank robberies of all time. On August 22nd, 1972, a sweltering summer day in New York, Sonny (Al Pacino) and Sal (John Cazale), whom the studio's publicity describes as "optimistic losers," decide to rob a bank. In and out, easy as can be, that's the plan. Through a combination of bad luck and incompetence, the unfortunate duo find themselves in the middle of a hostage situation in front of television cameras and a gathering crowd that sees them as authentic folk heroes.

When people talk about Seventies Cinema, referring to the strong personal films made by now-legendary directors after the collapse of the studio system and before the rise of the modern blockbuster, they most often mention films like Taxi Driver, Apocalypse Now and the first two Godfather movies. For me, though, the quintessential 1970s movie is Dog Day Afternoon, an effective action picture without much action, a black comedy without much that's identifiable as funny, a movie that—for reasons you can't quite put your finger on—you know could never be made today.

Dog Day Afternoon is a very minimalist picture. Director Sidney Lumet, who comes from the Broadway stage and the live dramas of 1950s television, likes to make films that play like theatre: intense character studies set in small, confined spaces with a minimum of production. A film made today from the same subject matter would likely employ tricky camera angles, quick cuts, a sweeping musical score, and other ornaments designed to manipulate the viewer's emotions... and yet wouldn't be nearly as effective. It's doubtful that Lumet set out to make the definitive "heist"/"hostage situation" film, but Dog Day Afternoon was such a hit (it was eventually nominated for six Oscars, and won one), that it became one, by default.

Points to ponder:

• Sonny's motivation for pulling the bank job is revealed midway through the film. I'm not going to reveal it, though nearly every review does and it's fairly well known at this point, but it gives the film a rather significant subtext. When you find out what it is, think about what it means in the context of the time in which the film was made.
• Another important theme of the film is the role of the news media in reporting and creating the news. It's a thoroughly overused theme these days, and one that is responsible for some of the worst "message" movies ever made, but in the hands of Sidney Lumet it's capable of provoking some real thought. Lumet followed up Dog Day Afternoon the following year with Network, which is generally considered one of the best satires on the news media on film.
• I'm rather fond of Charles Durning's performance as Moretti, the sympathetic NYPD detective who attempts to negotiate with Sonny and Sal. Just something to look out for.
• This was the third and final film in which Al Pacino and John Cazale worked together. The first two, of course, were The Godfather and The Godfather, Part II, in which they played Michael and Fredo Corleone.