Review of Dog Day Afternoon (1975) by Kim B — 24 Aug 2016

If you have been a fan of any Al Pacino role and you have not seen Dog Day Afternoon, you have not yet experienced all that Al Pacino can offer. Dog Day Afternoon is by far Al Pacino's best work, and yes, I've seen The Godfather films. Sidney Lumet's 1975 feature Dog Day Afternoon showcases a depth of Al Pacino that I was unaware existed. Also starring John Cazale, Dog Day Afternoon explores the debilitating feeling of being torn in two directions by the world around you. The crisis one may confront by not being able to live their identity pushes Al Pacino's Sonny to rob a bank in order to get the money for his lover's sex-change operation. Gritty, true, and soul-crushing, Lumet proves his directorial force while bringing out the best in Al Pacino to illustrate the depths one will go through to save himself by saving those around him.

On a hot summer day in Brooklyn, New York, Sonny (Al Pacino) and Sal (John Cazale) set out to execute their plan to rob the Chase Manhattan Bank. After weeks of mulling over their plans, coordinating delivery times, casing the outside and learning the best times to attract the least amount of attention, they finally enter the bank. Sonny is at a time of extreme desperation in his life. He is in a listless marriage to his wife and two kids, and he desperately wants to rob enough money from the bank to afford his partner Leon's (Chris Sarandon) sex change operation so the two may live together full-time. Sal, the understated partner in crime, a listless man seems to have no direction in his life and is easily brought into the scheme by the promise of riches from the heist. The bank manager and teller staff agree to not interfere with the robbery, even helping the downtrodden robbers as best as they can. Thinking it will be a quick in and out affair, Sonny and Sal are rushing through the job until they realize that there is little money in the bank, as a majority of the money was taken out of the bank that same afternoon. Before they can escape, a call comes in from the police department that they have the bank surrounded. What began as a robbery quickly develops into a hostage situation as Sonny sees his plans foil all around him. Eventually, feeling sorry for the men who continuously vow not to hurt anyone, if they even could, a kinship develops between Sonny, Sal, and the bank employees. Now seeing the only way out as a jet out of the country in exchange for the safe release of hostages, Sonny unwillingly turns into a captor continuously negotiating the release of hostages and listing demands. At the depths of his own despair, Sonny prepares for the worst while hoping that he can still manage to make a life out of the mess he had before he ever stepped into the bank.

This is one of those films that you watch and you hardly realize there are any other actors in it besides Al Pacino, he steals the show that much. Within the first 10 minutes, you could see the nuance brimming over the top of Pacino's characterization of Sonny. The most incredible part of this film, which also shows the directorial prowess of Sidney Lumet was that by the 10-minute mark, the duo had already entered the bank. A film that jumps into the action so early in the film also falls victim to poor pacing, especially considering that this is a film that takes place largely in one place. The pacing was never a problem in Dog Day Afternoon; each wrenching minute that elapsed emerged the audience even deeper into the mindset of Sonny and the desperation he was experiencing. I am a huge fan of films that take place in one setting, and I never thought I would like one more than I liked 12 Angry Men, also by Sidney Lumet, (obviously it's time for me to watch even more of his films) but Dog Day Afternoon takes the crown of best one setting film, in my book anyway. One setting films are so hard to do well, oftentimes, they come off stiff or too theatre-like, but Lumet knew what he was doing behind a camera leaving audiences with the best in the genre. You feel the desperation of Pacino's portrayal in such a way that stays with you days after viewing. Dog Day Afternoon is a standout, more than earning all of its critical acclaims. What a miss for Pacino from the Academy that year!