“Dog Day Afternoon” is a 1975 comedy drama inspired by a real life bank robbery from 1972. It was directed by Sidney Lumet from a script by Frank Pierson, and stars Al Pacino, John Cazale, Chris Sarandon and others. First time criminal Sonny Wortzik (Pacino), Sal Naturale (Cazale) and Stevie (Gary Springer) attempt to rob a back in Brooklyn. Things go wrong from the start, when nervous Stevie flees the scene in a matter of seconds. Then, to their utter dismay, Sonny and Sal find that they’ve entered the bank after the daily pick up and that the safe contains little over a thousand dollars. They decide to make up for it by taking traveler’s cheques and burn the bank records so they couldn’t be traced, but the smoke alerts the neighboring businesses and soon the cops are in front of the bank. Instead of trying to flee, sonny and Sal stay in the bank holding the employees hostage. Seeing they are surrounded, Sonny demands a helicopter to fly them to safety, and when it’s explained that the bank’s roof can’t hold a helicopter, he agrees with the police to have a car transport them to the airport. In the meantime, police bring in Leon Shermer (Sarandon), Sonny’s pre-operative transsexual wife to talk him into surrendering. Leon reveals that part of the reasons sonny decided to rob a bank is to find the money for her operation. She also reveals that she has tried suicide because of Sonny, and she refuses to join him and Sal in fleeing the country. Ultimately, Sonny, Sal and some of the hostages board a limo that takes them to the airport. At the airport police manage to grab control of the situation. Sal is shoot and killed, and Sonny arrested.
Jason Segel collects puppets
