The public cheering him on... - Dog Day Afternoon (1975) Discussion

[–] alioth4 10 years ago

I found how quickly the "Stockholm syndrome" set in among the bank employees to be interesting as well. I mean, Sonny let one of them even play with his gun, with no incident. It seemed like they got to like him a bit too soon. Then again, I've never been anyone's hostage before, so I don't know how I'd be in such a situation.

The "Attica" chant seemed to be a key here, in his drumming up public sympathy in general. I know there was some big riot there back in the day, but I've never read much about it. Still, it's fascinating watching movies from this era (I was just a little kid in the 70s), just how different attitudes were in those days. I can't help thinking that today, this would have been long over before any limo came to take them to the airport. Probably involving more bloodshed as well, which is part of my "for better or worse" question.

Understanding is a three-edged sword.

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[–] Darthmauler_megaa 10 years ago

Then again, I've never been anyone's hostage before, so I don't know how I'd be in such a situation.

That's the key. We think we know how we'd react, until we're actually in the situation.

"Whoever he is, this Torch is dangerous...He has a sense of humor!" (Son of Monte Cristo, 1940)

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[–] boxerrebellion 8 years ago

The Sonny character was supposedly very charming. I'm not sure it was Stockholm Syndrome, but I'm not sure that the tellers really saw him as a threat. The manager and head teller likely were just doing whatever was needed to keep Sonny calm.

If the robbers had made it about mortgages, they might have gotten some support a few years ago - especially if the target were Bank of America or any other of the big names responsible for the housing bubble.

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[–] franzkabuki 10 years ago

"It seemed like they got to like him a bit too soon".

I don't think the hostages 'liked' him necessarily, but they saw that he wasn't a psycho or a violent man and, of course, being dependent on him, they 'wanted' to be able to trust him. Establishing a healthy raport with the dudes holding them captive, was probably a good idea.

"facts are stupid things" - Ronald Reagan

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[–] PussyCrusher_Principal 10 years ago

As another poster has said, the Atica chant was key - a lot of mistrust of police back then, coming out of the sixties. It's coming back, frankly, and I think it's healthy, maybe not to the extent it was then, but every cop isn't a good guy or to be trusted necessarily. It's a shame why it's coming back, police murdering people, but it is...right now though the trusting and mistrusting seem dividedly sharply along the dividing line of races. But Look at Serpico, and the levels of corruption in the NYPD. PRINCE of The City (Lumet was brilliant at portraying this).

They turn on him, though, when they find out he's got a male lover. Which was sad, I thought.

Takes two to tumble it takes two to tango
Speak up don't mumble when you're in the combo

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[–] Darthmauler_megaa 10 years ago

They turn on him, though, when they find out he's got a male lover. Which was sad, I thought.

I'm right there with you; I found myself feeling bad for Sonny that his "followers" would turn on him so quickly. And for something that really had nothing to do with why they cheered him on in the first place.

“Hate speech is the modern term for heresy."--Ayaan Hirsi Ali

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[–] DanaShelbyChancey 10 years ago

When I asked myself the question "how would things be different today" the first thing I thought of was, there wouldn't have been any gawkers near the scene. The police would cordon off several blocks in all directions of the bank.

Of course there are more cameras, smaller and not so easy to find now, than there were then.

And it would not have gone on so long. Cops don't dance with bank robbers to this extent, today.

At the end it says that Sonny was sentenced to 20 years in prison. This happened in 1972, so Sonny would be long out of jail by now. I wonder what happened to him, is he still alive? Anybody know?

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[–] aaustin-10 10 years ago

Apparently he was released from prison after serving five years and died in 2006.

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[–] coorsbeer 9 years ago

Did you not see what happened in Baltimore this year?

The only difference in the two eras is that Sonny and Sal both would have been shot dead in 2015.

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[–] mike-848 8 years ago

They cheered OJ when he was tryin to get away in his Bronco and cheered when he was he beat the rap.

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[–] liscarkat (18456) 2 years ago

Today, if Sonny fit a certain demographic, there would be hundreds of fans in the street cheering him on and obstructing the police. The hostage's boyfriend who ran up and tackled him would go to jail, but the DA would let Sonny out without bail and he'd end up with a misdemeanor charge and probation. As for Sal, his death would trigger months of arson and looting, and there would be a statue of him erected. The cop who shot him would go to prison.

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