When I bought the BlueRay last week of Michael Mann’s HEAT, I was aptly reminded of the greatness of this incredibly beautiful urban heist movie.
Mann shows a clear fondness in his work for urban environment. This was clear even way back in THIEF starring James Caan but after HEAT, it was also seen to be part of the mix in COLLATERAL. But where COLLATERAL was a good thriller, it did not match up to the greatness of HEAT.
HEAT tells the story of two like persons on a collision course. One is Neal McCauley, career thief, the other is Vincent Hannah, Lieutenant of the LA Homicide Division. McCauley is played by Robert De Niro, Hannah is played by Al Pacino. Both stars invested this heist thriller with a passionate performance that registered on the Richter Scale.
Michael Mann had tried to make this film for years in the 1980s but had failed to do so and ended up putting into a television movie format of 1989 : LA TAKEDOWN. When he did get the chance to make it for the big screen, HEAT turned out to be a big hit worldwide. It grossed over 187 Million Dollars worldwide.
It also had the first teaming up of Robert De Niro and Al Pacino, even though they only shared one scene, in a diner. Nevertheless, this film is a tough action thriller that never lets up and continues to fascinate you, even years after it’s theatrical release.
The film music was composed by Elliot Goldenthal, who added greatly to the poetic nature of the visual imagery. The film further has wonderful performances by Diane Venora, Amy Brenneman, Ashley Judd, Mykelti Williamson, Wes Studi, Ted Levine, Dennis Haysbert, William Fichtner, Hank Azaria, Danny Trejo, Jeremy Piven, Xander Berkeley and others.
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