Analysis in the 21st century of "Dog Day Afternoon" has interpreted it as an "anti-authoritarian film" that "defied the establishment". Its mention of the Attica Prison riot and the character's resentment towards police were pointed as the cause. Commentators also mentioned its contemporaneity with the aftermath of the Vietnam War and the Watergate scandal. It became one of the first motion pictures to portray a gay character as the protagonist. In 2009, "Dog Day Afternoon" was deemed "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant" by the Library of Congress, and it was selected for preservation in the National Film Registry.