Directed by Sidney Lumet • 1975 • United States
Starring Al Pacino, John Cazale, Charles Durning

On a sweltering August day, novice criminals Sonny (Al Pacino) and Sal (John Cazale) attempt to rob a Brooklyn bank in order to pay for Sonny’s lover’s gender confirmation surgery—a situation that quickly spirals into a tense police standoff and a three-ring media circus. Sidney Lumet’s New York City classic contains what may be the definitive Pacino performance—totally wired, thrillingly unpredictable—and flavorful footage of summer-in-the-city ’70s Brooklyn: you can practically feel the heat rising from the rubble.