Dog Day Afternoon

Hot summer stretch

Dog Day Afternoon is a 1975 film starring Al Pacino as a man who robs a bank to pay for his lover's sex-reassignment surgery, based on a true story.

The title refers to the dog days of summer—the hottest, most oppressive period—when the real robbery took place.

The phrase has come to evoke chaotic situations that spiral out of control in sweltering conditions.

Related

Al Pacino · tension · heist · crowd · media circus · bank robbery · bank heist · fear · crime drama · thriller · Brooklyn · summer heat · anxiety · Attica · panic · dog days · civil rights era · LGBT rights

Categories
Opposites
seasonal/atmospheric tone

Dog Day AfternoonFargo

North Dakota metropolis

Winter's Tale · cold snap · The Shining · Doctor Zhivago · January thaw

film genre/tone

Dog Day AfternoonMary Poppins

Grease · romantic comedy · fairy tale · Legally Blonde · La La Land

narrative outcome

Dog Day AfternoonOcean's Eleven

Casino heist caper

The Italian Job · flawless execution · perfect crime · The Sting · happy ending

Family

dogged, doggedly, daylight, daytime, afternoon, afternoons, noon

Familiarity
Top 500,000
Profile
Mostly American · Timeless · Concrete · Everyday, not technical · Rated PG-13