- As a fan of heist films, I've noticed that there are several key elements emblematic of the genre. Usually, the crooks spend lots of time planning the caper (Thief, Le Cercle Rouge) and maybe even walk through a model (Bob Le Flambeur, Ocean's 11). Their plans range from the elaborate (Thief, Rififi) to the absurd (Die Hard, Un Flic), but these are rarely run-of-the-mill schemes. Often, the thieves are led by a criminal mastermind ("Doc" Riedenschneider in The Asphalt Jungle) and opposed by a daring police captain (Mattei in Le Cercle Rouge). Crooks and cops alike exude competence (Heat), and the bad guys are often only undone by tragic character flaws (The Asphalt Jungle) or an odd twist of fate (The Killing).
- None of these elements are present in Sidney Lumet's Dog Day Afternoon.
- From the start, it's obvious that we're dealing with amateurs. Prospective bank robber Sonny Wortzik (Al Pacino) is so excited to display his weapon that he nearly fumbles it, and he has to leap rather cartoonishly to spray-paint the bank cameras. In a hilarious sequence of events, one of his cohorts immediately chickens out and has to be excused from the robbery. Of course, Sonny has to remind him not to drive away with the getaway car. This is only a minor setback, however, compared to the discovery that the bank safe contains no money! It turns out that the crooks mistook an armored car pickup for a dropoff, and they're reduced to swiping loose bills from the registers. As Sonny and his remaining accomplice Sal (John Cazale) ponder their next move, the police phone to inform them that they're surrounded. At this point, the robbery accidentally escalates into a hostage situation.
- The remainder of the film is an oddly fascinating study in humanity. The police are at least as inept as the robbers, constantly waving their weapons around despite the protestations of Detective Moretti (Charles Durning). Soon, the wolfish media picks up the story, a mob gathers, and it isn't long before the event attracts a regular cheering section. What Sonny lacks in organizational skills, he makes up for in public relations, famously leading the crowd to chant "Attica!" mostly as a self-defensive measure. One of the more unexpected aspects of the story involves Sonny's motivation for robbing the bank, which extends beyond his paraphrase of Willie Sutton's excuse "that's where they keep the money." Eventually, we discover that Sonny is acting to raise funds for his wife, who proves to be a more interesting character than some clever scene juxtaposition initially suggests.
- The most amazing thing about Dog Day Afternoon is that it is played completely straight (well, serious). There is a lot of humor inherent in the absurd situations, but there is never a wink at the camera. It's obvious that Sonny is always acting in earnest, and it's tough not to feel sorry for the guy, despite his problems. After all, he does have to deal with two nagging wives, a difficult family, a stoically homicidal accomplice, a gaggle of hostages, a raving crowd, and hundreds of trigger-happy cops. It's enough to ruin anybody's day. The outcome of the caper is presumably not what Sonny had in mind, but at least he was lucky enough to live through the experience. More organized criminals have been less fortunate.
- Did I mention this was based on a true story?
- His wife is played by Chris Sarandon.
- Apparently, Sonny's voice was the inspiration for Moe the bartender from The Simpsons.
