Finally, a 'great' 70's film that lives up to the hype

Rating: 8/10 (17 September 2005)

Being such a big movie fan, I discovered there were still many "great" films, especially from the 70's, I haven't seen yet. "Love Story," "The Way We Were," "Straw Dogs" and more, I check them out and they're all overrated tripe.
I was hoping "Dog Day Afternoon" wouldn't fall into that category, and it hasn't. It's actually a very gripping tale and filmed just beautifully, and casted even better. Al Pacino of course is great, and even though he does walk a little close to the "overacting" line (a line he crosses throughout his entire career to some degree) he just stays safe here.
Charles Durning was excellent as the head cop trying to keep things cool, and the scene with him and Pacino simply bickering back and forth is priceless. When the FBI take over at one point, he pretty much disappears for the rest of the movie and it's very noticeable.
This was actually filmed just blocks from where I grew up in Brooklyn so that's another reason I always wanted to see it. I'm shocked this hasn't been on the list for potential remakes, another decent movie ready to be ruined by today's Hollywood.