Discussing and Reviews Dog Day Afternoon (1975) - When Bank Robbery Becomes a Media Circus

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Hello everyone and all members of Movies & TV Shows Community, I'm back again to participate in this community. This time, I want to discuss one cult movie or classic movie that I've watched and was very memorable for me. I want to talk about Dog Day Afternoon (1975) in this post.

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Synopsis
One afternoon, Sunny (Al Pacino), Sal (John Cazale), and Stevie (Gary Spenger) commit a gun robbery at a bank. All of them had their first burglary and looked so nervous and amateurish that even Stevie wasn't sure about the robbery and asked permission to leave. Initially, they would leave immediately after getting the money and valuables but because of their carelessness, this robbery action was discovered by the police. Sunny took the next step by holding everyone in the bank hostage and contemplating their next move.

Cast :
Al Pacino as Sunny
John Cazale as Sal
Stevie as Gary Spenger
Sylvia as Penelope Allen

Director :
Sidney Lumet

Screenplay :
Frank Pierson
P.F. Kluge and Thomas Moore (Magazine Article)

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Reasons To Watch This Movie?

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Realistic
Dog Day Afternoon (1975) is a movie inspired by a real event, namely the bank robbery in Brookyln in 1972. My first impression of watching this movie, I felt like watching a documentary or filming a scene of an event. The first 15 minutes will be very boring moments for the audience.

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The plot of this movie feels slow, the camera movement is slow and the editing is simple. However, after seeing the entire ending of this movie, I realized this realistic and panicky impression that the director wanted to convey. Dog Day Afternoon does not use background music, the situation and tension of this movie is built by dialogue and character characteristics that are not in vain.

Dog Day Afternoon is directed by Sidney Lumet and this is the second Sidney Lumet film I have seen. First, I've watched 12 Angry Man (1957) and was very fascinated and amazed by the film, I saw how Sidney Lumet is very strong in the scene situation and also the dialogue between the players. 12 Angry Men and Dog Day Afternoon have a similar set, where the movie is only centered in one place. While 12 Angry Men use the courtroom, Dog Day Afternoon uses the bank.

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Quality Acting from the Actors
Al Pacino is the biggest reason why I watched this movie. I really like Al Pacino's acting after watching The Godfather. As far as I can remember, I have watched almost all the movies that Al Pacino has played. In 1975, Al Pacino was 35 years old and very charming in this movie.

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Al Pacino is also the biggest and decisive force in this movie. Al Pacino successfully portrayed the character of an amateur robber leader who came without a plan, was nervous and confused. Al Pacino gets the heaviest burden of the role, he must calm the hostages, convince colleagues to remain confident, negotiate with the police and the FBI and also plan the next plan of the robbery. Al Pacino has succeeded in translating Sidney Lumet's wishes, I think if it wasn't for Al Pacino, it seems that this movie would not be that successful.

In addition to Al Pacino, John Cazale who plays the role of Sal also displays extraordinary acting. From the gestures and facial expressions made by John Cazale, we can feel how an amateur robber feels who experiences doubts and doubts about the success of his robbery.

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Media Circus
Dog Day Afternoon presents one interesting thing and is still true today. I studied how media propaganda works in ordinary people. The robbery only lasted for 10 minutes, when the media started covering it and within four hours the bank robbery had become a circus show on television and within eight hours it had become the highest rating on television.

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We also see how public sentiment changes in this film. At first the public was concerned about the tragedy of the bank robbery, then public sentiment turned to sympathy for the robbers after Sunny (Al Pacino) gave a speech in front of live television, and instantly turned to hate when the public learned the truth from Sunny. Sunny is a gay (LGBT) and American in 1975 the majority of society was against the LGBT community.

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My Short Review

It's been more than 45 years since Dog Day Afternoon aired and for me this movie can still be enjoyed in this era. Dog Day Afternoon has the power of dialogue, total acting from the actors, character characteristics and very real scenes. The reality in 1975 is still the same in 2022, about how the media can turn a tragedy or disaster into a circus show. I still remember several years ago, there was an act of terrorism in Jakarta. The terrorists fired shots and I was more surprised when the reporters made the news reports closer than the anti-terror police.

Dog Day Afternoon is indeed a crime and biography genre, but I also get a lot of comedy or dark comedy moments in this movie. Comedy in Dog Doy Afternoon arises from situations that are done by the actors. One of my favorite scenes, when Sal (John Cazale) reprimands a female bank clerk for smoking. He says smoking is harmful to the body (what about robbing? isn't life at stake too?). So, this is my discussion about this movie, maybe if you have time you can watch it again.

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