Dog Day Afternoon

Starring: Al Pacino, John Cazale, Charles Durning, Chris Sarandon, Lance Henriksen, Sully Boyar
Directed by: Sidney Lumet
Rating: R
Genre: Drama, Crime
1975

Times Seen:
Tim: 2

Summary: Two bank robbers (Al Pacino, John Cazale) expect it to be an easy job. However, something goes wrong, and they are soon surrounded by police. The media gets involved, and the story- and the situation- spins out of control.

Review:

Tim: Dog Day Afternoon is a gritty, realistic look at a true life event that took place in the early 1970s. The film works best when it portrays that period in the 70s, and the sweltering events of that fateful day. This is an honest, compelling character study. I really enjoyed this movie. It was nominated for 6 Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Actor. While I believe this is a solid movie and deserving of its acclaim, I also feel like some critics overrate this film. This is a very good movie, but I think it falls just short of greatness.

The biggest problem I see with this movie is that it doesn't really feel like it's about anything. We have some interesting characters, some unexpected events, but it feels like it is lacking some meaning. What is this all building up to? I never really understood that. The movie is also too long at over 2 hours in length. Director Sidney Lumet really needed to cut the film down some. There are too many scenes during the middle of the film that drag on too long and feel somewhat redundant. I started to lose interest and it took effort to stay engaged in the story. The movie wanders a bit and loses its focus. That hurts the film.

Now, I'm not trying to be overly harsh with this film. I really, really liked it. Al Pacino is terrific as Sonny Wortzik. Pacino is undoubtedly one of the finest actors of all time, and delivers another stunning, mesmerizing performance here. He really throws himself completely into his roles, and it is obvious he does that here. He has so much energy and emotion that it is draining to watch him. His performance is one of the best of all time, and he very much deserved his Best Actor nomination. It's too bad he had to compete with Jack Nicholson in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, because in any other year, Pacino could have won (but the Academy made the right choice with Nicholson).

The film also features some memorable, terrific scenes. I loved Al Pacino's improvised "Attica! Attica!" scene, which is one of the most unforgettable of the entire film. Pacino's every scene is memorable, and he has some terrific moments throughout the film. The phone conversation between Sonny and Leon is powerful and striking. The finale airport scene is also chillingly, tensely unforgettable. These scenes and others make this a classic.

While I really enjoyed Dog Day Afternoon, I also think that many movie viewers tend to overrate this film just a bit. It is a solid, entertaining hit. It is powerful and emotional. And yet, it feels just a bit bloated and a bit too long. The film could have been more streamlined and tightened. Still, this is one of the classic films of the 70s, and deserving of much of its praise.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 7.5



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: Serpico, Scarface, The Godfather, The Godfather: Part II, Glengarry Glen Ross