A scorcher

Rating: 10/10 (19 September 1998)

An expertly crafted action-drama. You can see the painstaking detail Michael Mann took in making this film. Not a single scene was shot on a studio sound stage, and what results is a slick, uncompromising, stylishly made movie that makes you feel as if you're witnessing a real-life story. The movie kept me glued to my seat from start till finish, despite its nearly 3 hour run time. I've read various criticisms of the movie, usually involving length and/or the heavy focus given to the personal relationships of both the cops and criminals. However, if you allow yourself to be drawn into the movie, you'll find that those aspects are actually strengths and not weaknesses. Michael Mann doesn't shy away from anything, he wants to show us what it's like to live and breath as these characters do, and as a movie watching experience, it's absolutely gripping.