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Select media
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Film details
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Featuring
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Country
USA
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Year
1975
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Genres
Police drama Crime
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Type
Film
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Category
Fiction
Introduction
“A film made brilliant by its deeply seen characters, in a plot that could have obviously been cheapened and exploited but is always human and true.”
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times, 2008
This account of a bungled bank robbery that degenerates into a hostage situation is an illustration of how real life can offer deeper tragedy and absurdity than most fiction. Screenwriter Frank Pierson won the film’s only Oscar for sticking to the substance of events that unfolded in Brooklyn in 1972, while also bringing out the comedy and pathos as Al Pacino’s stressed debut criminal Sonny gets in way over his head in a tense stand-off with armed police.
The revelation that he’s out to raise the fees for his boyfriend’s sex-change operation locates the story at a time of changing cultural values, yet the film’s focus on flawed individuals driven by their affections into acts of desperation is timeless.
Philadelphia-born Sidney Lumet was the maestro of New York location work, primarily in crime dramas Serpico (1973), Prince of the City (1981) and Q&A (1990).
Cast & Credits
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Cast
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Sonny Wortzik
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Sylvia
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Mulvaney
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Sal
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Margaret
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Jenny
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Deborah
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Miriam
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Maria
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Howard
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Edna
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Stevie
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Sheldon
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Moretti
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Carmine
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Murphy
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phone cop
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limo driver
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Sonny's father
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neighbour
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Sonny's mother
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Angie
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Leon Shermer
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TV anchorman
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TV reporter
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Sam
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doctor
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Maria's boyfriend
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pizza boy
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[policeman with Angie]
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[.]
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Credits
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Unknown:
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Directed by
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©
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Production
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Produced by
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Produced by
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Associate Producer
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Location Manager
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Assistant Director
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Assistant Director (2nd)
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Script Supervisor
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Casting
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Casting
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Screenplay by
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Based upon a magazine article by
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Based upon a magazine article by
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Director of Photography
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Camera Operator
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Gaffer
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Key Grip
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Stills by
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Film Editor
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Assistant Editor
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Production Designer
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Art Director
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Set Decorator
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Scenic Artist
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Propmaster
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Carpenter
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Construction Grip
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Costume Designer
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Wardrobe Supervisor
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Wardrobe Supervisor
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Makeup Artist
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Hairdresser
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Colour by
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Sound Mixer
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Rerecording Supervisor
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Sound Editor
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[Assistant] Sound Editor
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[Assistant] Sound Editor
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[Assistant] Sound Editor
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Photographic Equipment by
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Unit Publicity
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The Greatest Films of All Time 2012
Voted for by 1 critic and 4 directors.