8.3 | / 10 |
Users | 4.5 | |
Reviewer | 4.5 | |
Overall | 4.5 |
Three amateur bank robbers plan to hold up a bank. Unfortunately, the heist suddenly becomes a nightmare as everything that could go wrong does.
Starring: Al Pacino, John Cazale, James Broderick, Charles Durning, Penelope AllenDrama | 100% |
Crime | 45% |
Biography | 21% |
Heist | 13% |
Thriller | Insignificant |
Video codec: VC-1
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1
English: Dolby Digital Mono
French: Dolby Digital Mono
Spanish: Dolby Digital Mono
English, English SDH, French, Spanish
25GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region free
Movie | 4.5 | |
Video | 4.0 | |
Audio | 3.5 | |
Extras | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.5 |
A low-budget film from 1975 that features a monaural soundtrack may seem like an odd candidate for release on Blu-ray. But Dog Day Afternoon will forever be a classic due to one of the greatest performances in Al Pacino's career. A lesser actor would have played up the insanity of the lead role of Sonny Wortzik, but Pacino accentuated the misguided character's human side, allowing audiences better accessibility to the bizarre story.
With hostages secured inside, Sonny Wortzik (Al Pacino) emerges from the bank to find himself surrounded by dozens of police officers with guns drawn as well as reporters pointing cameras and microphones.
Until the advent of DVD, Pacino's facial expressions, body language cues and method acting were
conveyed to viewers in NTSC broadcasts and video tape showing a 1.33:1
aspect ratio. The resolution was terrible, the picture blurry, the sound muddy and distorted, the
videostage severely cropped. Then came the digital. Watching the second-generation DVD and
two-disc extended version was like lifting a veil. The DVD greatly improved the imagery and
audio, restoring the picture to its original ratio. But we were still left with NTSC. The resolution
was nowhere near film quality.
All that changed as of April 10, 2007 when Warner Home Video released Dog Day Afternoon on
Blu-ray. For the first time, the movie sets and characters have life-like definition and detail.
Warner's use of the VC-1 codec may not stack up to Sony's use of MPEG-4 (not a fair comparison
giving the new movies Sony releases on BD), but one thing is for sure: the 1080p resolution of
Dog Day Afternoon absolutely trounces what was available before.
Watch the way Sonny's face drops when he learns the police have the bank surrounded. His
expression is imbued with details that were simply missing in NTSC versions of Dog Day
Afternoon. Even the actors' clothes, marking this film firmly in the 1970s, show incredible clarity
and definition. Grain noise is prevalent, but it provides an analog warmth to the picture, as
though we are seeing real film. The details shine through in stunning manner compared to the
DVD. It won't win awards for picture quality, but Dog Day Afternoon is impressively detailed with
gorgeous contrast. I witnessed a few digital artefacts during the final scenes. But even that
content maintained good black level.
The film will not win any audio awards, either. After treating my ears to the SACD version of Elton John's Tumbleweed Connection album, Amoreena sounded comparably two-dimensional and harsh on Warner's mono Dolby Digital soundtrack. Not surprisingly, it lacked any depth or soundstage. But when the music ended, the audio was passable, and even a significant improvement compared to the sound of previous versions of the film. Voices and gunshots, footsteps and chanting bystanders all sound remarkably clear and convincing. In a nutshell, the audio doesn't hold back Dog Day Afternoon, but you won't want to use it to demo your system.
Aside from Pacino, a key factor in the success of the film is the behind-the-camera work of legendary director Sidney Lumet. Of great interest to his fans, and indeed fans of movies in general, is Lumet's commentary describing the casting, filming and aftermath of Dog Day Afternoon. A featurette entitled "Lumet: Film Maker" is also included. Rounding out the special features are the theatrical trailer and a worthwhile, four part documentary on the making of Dog Day Afternoon, which includes an exploration of the actual events that inspired the movie.
Within the span of three short years, Pacino mastered three characters that would become legends
of film: Michael Corleone, Frank Serpico and Sonny Wortzik. Each has a distinct personality,
manner of speaking, facial expressions and body language. Perfectly portraying the traits of any one
of these characters would have been a major achievement for any actor, but to go from one to the
other in succession and convincingly transform himself was a triumph for Al Pacino. His 1992 Oscar
Award for Best Actor in Scent of a Woman, and his powerhouse roles of that time--Ricky Roma in
Glengarry Glenn Ross and Vincent Hanna in Heat--were another highlight of his career, but the
early-to-mid 1970s proved his meddle.
Dog Day Afternoon never achieved the popularity of many Pacino films, but remains something of a
cult classic--a counterculture portrait of criminal narcissism. Sonny is too unlikely a hero for
Hollywood to handle, but thanks to Lumet, the storytelling is wonderful. Pacino had a strong
supporting cast, but he stole the show. To see him perform in this role in 1080p is a treat, and I
feel indebted to Warner for releasing the Blu-ray.
1972
2006
2002
1973
Director's Definitive Edition | Ultimate Collector's Edition
1995
Import
1978
2010
1974
1967
1971
2016
2017
1973
Choice Collection
1958
Reissue
1968
1971
2009
1972
2015
1990