- Every once in a great while, a movie comes out that authoritatively caps off its genre or sub-genre by finally perfecting the formula. Within my lifetime, Raiders of the Lost Ark did this for pulp adventure films, Unforgiven did it for Westerns, and Michael Mann's Heat did it for heist films. That's not to say that there could never be another cinematic heist after Heat. Indeed, some entries in the Ocean's 11 series were strong and Inception was a creative new take on the same old idea, but these films had to blend in comedy and sci-fi, respectively, in order to stand out. The days of the classic heist film are over, and Heat had the final word.
- The plot is best summarized in a conversation over coffee between master thief Neil McCauley (Robert De Niro) and master detective Vincent Hanna (Al Pacino) in which McCauley distills their lives into a single axiom: "I do what I do best: I take scores. You do what you do best: try to stop guys like me." In McCauley's case, his best work involves an exceedingly competent crew (Val Kilmer, Tom Sizemore, Danny Trejo), reliable contacts (Jon Voight, Tom Noonan), and the repeated mantra "Don't let yourself get attached to anything you are not willing to walk out on in 30 seconds flat if you feel the heat around the corner." For Hanna, the requirements are a dedicated police division (Mykelti Williamson, Ted Levine, Wes Studi) and his personal obsession with chasing down criminals at any price, even if that price includes time that could be spent with his wife (Diane Venora) and stepdaughter (Natalie Portman).
- About the heists themselves: there are three of them in this film, and each one is spectacular in its own unique way. In a virtuoso early sequence, McCauley's crew knocks over an armored car (literally!), earning some unwanted attention when a strange interloper named Waingro (Kevin Gage) initiates a killing spree. The later nighttime heist of a metal depository is masterfully tense, as McCauley intuits that they are being watched by the police and walks away from the job at the last possible moment. The final heist is a daytime bank robbery in downtown L.A. that culminates in the most riveting urban shootout ever put to film. That scene is also the most tragic for a recent parolee (Dennis Haysbert) defeated by a corrupt system, not to mention the wives and girlfriends (Amy Brenneman, Ashley Judd, Kim Staunton, Susan Traylor) forced to watch their loved ones pasted all over the six o'clock news.
- Although certain aspects of this film follow genre conventions that have been around since The Asphalt Jungle and others codified by Mann's own earlier work (notably his TV movie L.A. Takedown and Thief), the quality of filmmaking evidenced here really propels Heat to the top of its class. The film's ample cast overflows with talent, with Mann even teasing a decent performance out of Al Pacino during his regrettable "Hoo-ah!" era. Cinematographer Dante Spinotti perfectly captures the lush blues of L.A. at night, transforming a sprawling urban landscape into a bleak terrain where predators stalk their prey. Elliot Goldenthal's score, including contributions from Brian Eno, Moby, and others, is a mesmerizing combination of minimalist industrial stylings and operatic swells. Heat's most long-lasting contribution to cinema, however, may be its groundbreaking heist and shootout sequences. When both of the big two comic book companies make movies (The Dark Knight and Captain America: Winter Soldier) that visually reference your work over a decade later, you know you've made an impact. Maybe superhero heist films will be the next big thing, but the classic heist film is, to borrow a phrase, "gone...bye, bye...bang!"
- I couldn't find space to list William Fichtner, Henry Rollins, Tone Loc, Jeremy Piven, Xander Berkeley, or Bud Cort.
