An epic masterpiece of modern American cinema

Rating: 10/10 (25 August 2012)

Heat is among the finest 10 movies ever made. It's a classic. You can watch it nearly 20 years after it was made and it still astonishes you, every time you see it. Heat is a movie I never get tired of seeing.
In Heat we follow a very professional tight crew of criminals led by DeNiro's McCauley that specialize in complex high-yield crimes. In the intro crime, they are forced to hire a new guy- Waingro, which will end up being the cause of their undoing. That intro crime is also among the more thrilling crimes ever filmed. It's elaborate, brilliant, fascinating.
Tasked with solving the crime will be Pacino's Hanna. And he sure is up to the task, a man just as dedicated to his job as his nemesis. While McCauley is a loner and introvert, Hanna is the loud, at times funny, extrovert- and is he ever an extrovert.
Hanna quickly catches up with this crew and keeps track of them in secret. But, McCauley is no dummy and he catches on to the cops, in a scene that is flat out genius.
Hanna has unorthodox methods to say the least and one night he decides to invite McCauley for a coffee- leading to the famous face-to-face scene between DeNiro and Pacino. McCauley's character is the coolest criminal ever, and you most definitely don't want to this movie to reach its unavoidable conclusion. But for getting there you are rewarded with the most exhilarating shoot out scene put on film- following the crew's bank robbery in the middle of downtown L.A.
Heat succeeds on every level: action scenes- the now legendary shoot out scene; on a personal level- Hanna's marriage falling apart and McCauley finding a girl; it has plenty of memorable funny moments- Hanna visiting Alan Marciano or Albert Torena; the fantastic music- many directors pay attention to their music (Tarantino being a bad example of it) but the score of Heat is perfect; not to mention the casting from the main to minor characters, it now reads as a who's who of Hollywood.
What is most remarkable about Heat is the attention to emotional detail. The scene where loner McCauley looks in tenderness and disbelief the next morning at the girl in his bed is outstanding. In general, relationship are handled so well in this movie, in a mature, smart way that's not melodramatic. And the most significant relationship is the indirect one between Hanna and McCauley. They are truly meant for each other. There is a deep reciprocity in their lives. Without brilliant criminals like MacCauley there wouldn't be brilliant cops like Hanna. Hanna is married but the marriage is falling apart; MacCauley is a single and deep down lonely and finds a relationship. But both men aren't meant to live a regular life.
Worth mentioning is also the cinematography. This movie looks gorgeous, every scene, every setting, the fashion, the cars. There is an aesthetic sensibility here that is years ahead of the aesthetic focus in movies these days. The tone of this movie, the looks, the music, it's all so understated yet so unashamedly brilliant.
What makes this movie unforgettable though are the characters and the script. And there is no shortage of amazing characters. This isn't a movie that depends on one character or where one performance makes the movie. McCauley, the coolest criminal; Hanna the outrageous cop; Waingro, the vicious criminal; one could go on and on. One in particular is interesting because mysterious- Jon Voight's Nate- the man behind McCauley, pulling strings for him. What is his deal? We'll never know. A TV series based on him would have been a great idea. It's a shame that Mann's Robbery Homicide Division TV series never developed into what it could have been, a TV version of Heat.
There are good movies, there are great movies, and there are movies like Heat. In a category of their own.