Maybe director Michael Mann’s theatrics flair a bit bright at times and perhaps an abundance of characters milk screen time from those more deserving, but the precious few exchanges between legendary actors Al Pacino and Robert De Niro make it all worthwhile.  Heat remains one of the finest examples of contemporary “cops and robbers” cinema with deafening firefights and cat-and-mouse trickery woven amongst the grittily realistic lives of both criminal and lawman alike. The epic crime saga also features arguably the greatest bank robbery sequence ever filmed.

Neil McCauley (Robert De Niro) is a master thief and Lt. Vincent Hanna (Al Pacino) is the detective in charge of stopping him.  Though on different sides of the law, both men find their personal lives consumed by similar tragedies brought on by their extreme devotion to equally demanding professions.  While McCauley struggles with his ideals of detachment and the prospects of newfound love Eady (Amy Brenneman), Hanna must confront his failing marriage and deteriorating home life.  After an armored car heist ends in bloodshed, McCauley and his gang of thieves, including Chris Shiherlis (Val Kilmer), Michael Cheritto (Tom Sizemore), and Trejo (Danny Trejo), find themselves hunted by the relentless detective.  As the LAPD steadily closes in around them, McCauley must match wits with Hanna and weigh the risks of attempting one final score.

The film examines the effects of both crime and crime fighting on relationships and family, careful not to glamorize either side. The cops are shown to be overzealous in their mission to catch crooks, especially when their own families cry out for attention. Similarly, the villains are real people too, complete with loved ones and familial interests. Mann goes so far as to develop a supporting character, Donald (Dennis Haysbert), simply to show the disinterest society has on accepting criminals, and to create yet another believable thief that the audience can sympathize with. The robbers are all humanized to the point that we side with them just as much as the men of the law.

Heat features the bank robbery scene to end all bank robbery scenes, a tense, suspenseful heist that finds its way out onto the busy streets where machinegun fire can rattle about with piercing, alarmingly real sounds, and bustling bystanders and panic can escalate the situation into a full blown action extravaganza, without ever feeling over-the-top or exaggerated. Although the back-and-forth hail of bullets doesn’t slow up, many criticize the nearly three-hour runtime of Heat, which spends a good deal of momentum focusing on the deterioration of the many side characters involved, especially when it concerns children (including Natalie Portman in an early role) or disapproving wives. Ultimately, the film is most noteworthy for its reunion of Al Pacino and Robert De Niro, who both have such strong personalities and invigorating performances, perfectly matched to play on opposite sides of the law. Heat’s message is powerful too; when it comes to the families of those caught up in the never-ending battle for justice, no one really wins. The act of surviving doesn’t designate fortune, happiness or comfort.

- The Massie Twins

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