Heat

The 1995 action crime film, Heat, starring Al Pacino and Robert De Niro, is often considered one of the greatest action films ever created. Though the genre is packed to the brim with various options that can range from over-the-top escapades that mainly strive for mindless spectacle but still manage to entertain on an almost primal level, to ones that attempt to challenge the mind, provoke interesting discussions, and use their script, direction, and characters for more than just maniacal chaos, Heat managed to create the best-case scenario by utilizing both avenues despite coming out in a period where this balance was still forming, resulting in a picture that while flawed in some ways, is able to excel at its core ingredients and produce an overall very solid picture.

LAPD lieutenant Vincent Hanna (played by Al Pacino) and his team investigate an armoured car robbery which saw the assailants steal $1.6 million dollars’ worth in bearer bonds. The thief in question was Neil McCauley (played by Robert De Niro), a notorious criminal in the L.A. region, who along with his right-hand-man, Chris Shiherlis (played by Val Kilmer) and the rest of his crew, continue robbing banks with the help of money launderer, Roger Van Sant (played by William Fichtner) who secretly plans to double-cross them with the help of newly hired hand and former member of McCauley’s crew, Waingro (played by Kevin Gage). Eventually, both Hanna and McCauley end up meeting, and despite sharing a small level of respect for the other, both stay true to their guns and continue down their own paths, which results in havoc and chaos for all those around them, including their loved ones. With a large heist being planned and with Hanna being more determined than ever to finally put this criminal away, what will the end results be in this battle between law and crime?

Being a critical and commercial success, Heat provides a solid script, capable direction, a balanced tone, and some truly memorable leading performances, but its extended running time, weak supporting cast, and failure in furthering some of its concepts hold it back just a bit.

The idea for this film is actually truer to life than expected, with both main characters being inspired by real world counterparts (Neil McCauley was the name of a real criminal) and the basis for the plot is pretty similar to the events that occurred between these two parties (the scene where the two meet for the first time is pretty beat-for-beat). It was originally supposed to be a crime television series for NBC starring Scott Plank and Alex McArthur (which Mann himself wrote), but it never aired past its original 90-minute pilot and was instead turned into the 1989 TV movie, L. A. Takedown, so Mann went about revising the script to turn it into a feature. On the surface, it might not look like anything special next to other crime-based action flicks featuring a heist-like premise and a police procedural personality, but what this film has against others of its type is this fun sense of authenticity. It has an unclean and chaotic side that makes it feel eerily similar to most crazy action films of the era, but also this raw brutality and subtle awareness about itself which brings a grounded nature to what it’s showcasing. While the risk of tonal inconsistency is apparent, it actually doesn’t struggle with this problem, with both sides instead adding to the overall feel of the film rather than taking away from it.

It has a vibe that’s very akin to something like Grand Theft Auto, where the crazy portrayal of the world and its characters still manages to feel realistic, just with a colorful flair that isn’t afraid to present some truly gruesome and even graphic content (which is fitting considering this film did inspire some of the games in the franchise). What’s also nice is that it’s also nicely written and directed, with Mann providing a mostly engaging experience that is well balanced in tone, character and violence. The film does suffer from a mostly dull and hard-to-follow first act that doesn’t really grab its audience or feel very unique, but the second the two leads interact, suddenly everything feels more active, memorable, and even kind of stylish. It has a lot more personality, the interactions between the characters feel more purposeful, the dialogue improves and is more memorable, and the pace quickens and feels less like its trudging along (at least until the final act where it feels a little overly spaced out).

The movie feels like it’s banking on its two main stars being its defining factor. Both De Niro and Pacino were Mann’s first choices for the roles and both immediately said yes when offered the parts, and considering the prestige that both actors held at this point, it was a huge win for the project to include them as well as have it be the first time they were ever on-screen together (both were in The Godfather Part II, but never in the same scene). Considering how much was weighing on their involvement, it’s nice then that they are easily the best part of the film, and their quality doesn’t only come from their performances (which are very good), but also from the writing, as they are probably the only characters that are well constructed and contain a sense of depth and intrigue which helps add to the film’s heightened environment and tone. Both are somehow able to build chemistry and a fun dynamic even before they interact, which more than likely is associated with how both of them feel very similar in many regards, which is showcased quite well in their first interaction (which is easily one of the highlights of the film).

Both characters feel like they can’t exist in normal society and thrive on dangerous and mentally damaging situations, to the point that even though they tire of the extremity and have the desire to settle down, neither can truly escape it because it ultimately drives them. Portraying this mindset on both sides of the morality spectrum is a fun idea, and it results in this odd dynamic where neither actively dislikes the other, but know they have to and arguably will be the other’s down-fall, it’s a very well realized relationship and both De Niro and Pacino are fantastic against each other and even on their own. It’s a fun flip to see the criminal acting in a subdued, almost friendly demeanour whilst the cop feels off-the-rails and even a little insane, and while both have their own little flaws from both a writing and even acting level (Pacino’s outburst do feel more like personal ticks of the actor rather than a trait of the character), they are still really good and leagues better than anyone else in the picture. Sadly, even though the leads feel very well thought out and executed, the supporting cast don’t feel like they’re given the same treatment and don’t provide much, not helped out by even the acting feeling a little half-and-half all around. While people like Mykelti Williamson, Dennis Haysbert, Willaim Fichtner, Ricky Harris, Jon Voight, and Tone Loc are fine if a bit underused, people like Tom Sizemore, Diana Venora, Amy Brenneman, Ashley Judd, Natalie Portman, Kevin Gage, Danny Trejo and especially Val Kilmer aren’t used that well at all. It’s a shame that for an environment that feels prime for explosive characters with rich personalities, most of them just feel like tropes and not even interesting ones, it’s a pretty underwhelming quality of this feature.

The movie doesn’t present itself as overly cinematic and instead tries to look more down-to-earth, but that doesn’t mean that it isn’t able to look nice and polished. The cinematography by Dante Spinotti can capture the more ground level personal moments as well as a few nice high-profile shots that give the picture a hint of a style, but where the camera work really shines in during the big heist in the middle of the film, which is arguably the best scene in the entire film.

Often being credited as one of the best and most realistic depictions of a heist and police shoot out ever presented on film, the way this scene is composed, filmed, directed and even paced is really impressive and creates a situation that feels genuinely real, down to the way the people react, to the deafening sounds of the bullets thanks to some brilliant sound design by Peter Michael Sullivan, to the camera work being the right amount of shaky while still being very clear. It’s place at a great spot in the film, it feels effectively built up to, it reaches a climatic high that the film never truly is able to replicate, and it provides an action set piece that doesn’t contain a whole lot of variety or even physical interaction between the characters (as its mostly just shooting), but the emotions felt in that moment are going to leave an impression on the audience. The score is also pretty great, with composer Elliot Goldenthal providing a piece that has elements of a traditional crime thriller and even film noir with the instrumentation and mood, but the active rhythm and how it feels like it evolves over the course of the picture by adding on more elements is pretty effective. It might not be his most noticeable piece, but it is handled quite nicely, and it provides for great atmosphere during multiple different scenes.

Heat is considered a classic that left an impact on a lot of filmmakers and casual moviegoers, and for an action film of its type to do so in such a way can’t be understated. Action flicks have become more balanced in terms of juggling between dumb fun and complexity, and while this evolution was certainly around during this period of the 90s with films like Total Recall, RoboCop, Demolition Man and eventually The Matrix, providing a sense of thought behind their mayhem, this film definitely had a reserved demeanour that made it more like a typical crime thriller, yet contained enough dramatic situations and characters to feel like a larger-than-life action romp, offering a sampling from both tables to satisfy all customers. It has solid direction and writing, it’s atmospheric and more grounded while still having character, the visuals and the music heighten many moments throughout, and the leads are very well handled from both an acting and a writing standpoint. It does still have its hurdles to overcome like its weak supporting cast, a poorly handled opening act, and an overly long length, but it isn’t enough to tarnish the legacy that it has built for itself, one that it most certainly deserves.