#509: Captive Audiences, Pt. 2 — Dead Man's Wire

Even without the Al Pacino connection, Gus Van Sant's new dramatization of a real-life 1970s hostage situation turned public spectacle was destined for comparisons to Dog Day Afternoon.

Episode 509 of the The Next Picture Show podcast, hosted by Genevieve Koski, Keith Phipps, Tasha Robinson & Scott Tobias, titled "#509: Captive Audiences, Pt. 2 — Dead Man's Wire" was published on January 27, 2026 and runs 66 minutes.

January 27, 2026 ·66m · The Next Picture Show

Summary

Even without Al Pacino's name in its cast list, the new Dead Man's Wire would invite comparisons to Dog Day Afternoon in its dramatization of a real-life 1970s hostage situation turned public spectacle. Whether it benefits from comparisons to Sidney Lumet's 1975 crime classic is another question, one we take up in our discussion of Gus Van Sant's first new feature in eight years. After that, we bring Dog Day Afternoon back in for Connections, to consider how these two films about volatile, narcissistic men and their ostensibly populist schemes fit into the proud tradition of amateur-hour crime movies, and whether a modern film depicting Indianapolis half a century ago has any hope of evoking its setting the way Lumet captured contemporary 1970s New York. Please share your thoughts about Dog Day Afternoon, Dead Man's Wire, or anything else in the world of film, by sending an email or voice memo to [email protected], or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730. Next pairing: Sam Raimi's Send Help and Lina Wurtmuller's Swept Away. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Episode Description