Heat

This has been a movie I've wanted to watch all the way through for a long time. And I have tried many times. That is probably the biggest problem I have with this movie right off the bat. This movie clocks in at just under 3 hours. Its a long ass movie! And surprisingly this movie is very deep into character development and plot. So much that the last few times I've tried to watch this movie, I've fallen asleep before any of the action happens.

The point of this is, watch this movie when you're very much awake. Don't worry its worth it.

Heat is the story of a team of criminals who are very good at pulling off several robberies in the Los Angeles Area. The team is headed by Neil McCauley (played by Robert De Niro). McCauley is very good at what he does because he lives by a certain code. His philosophy is that one shouldn't have any attachments that he couldn't walk away from in 30 seconds if he feels the heat around the corner. Thus, he has no wife, no girlfriend unlike the rest of his team.

On the other end, you have Al Pacino playing Homicide and Burglary Detective Vincent Hanna. He is on his third marriage because he is so invested in his work.

And as you'd expect. Its freakin Pacino

Somewhere between the First Godfather film and this film, Al Pacino I swear just took his own route and just went fucking nuts. 

He has these moments where he just yells for no reason whatsoever. I mean how are you going to actually say the lines, "Cause she's got a great ass, and you've got your head all the way up it." But at this point, I can't think of any other way it could have been said. 

Needless to say, its never a dull moment with Pacino.

But all that being said, Pacino does bring a great performance to the entire movie. Like stated before, Pacino is on his third marriage and its stressed because of all the time he spends at work. Like McCauley, Hanna is good at his job. So much that he must choose between his family and his job. 

And then you have Val Kilmer...

Honestly, Val Kilmer isn't that great of a character. He's the good friend of McCauley and he has a

gambling problem. Him and his wife (played by Ashley Judd) are having a hard time and thus, Ashley Judd starts having an affair with another guy. Needless to say, Val Kilmer is just a member of the group. He's not that important.

After the robbery of an armored car, the team has another job that will allow them to win big.

Meanwhile they work with Jon Voight to sell the bonds they got in the armored car job back to their owner (William Fitchner)

But Detective Hanna is on their trail, and eventually the police are monitoring this group, waiting for them to make their next move where they will be waiting.

The movie is mainly a cat and mouse game between De Niro and Pacino and its just great.

There's this great scene where Hanna takes McCauley out for coffee. There is no front between the two of them, they know who each other is and exactly what they do.

But they talk to each other man to man and you can see there's a kinship between the two of them. Hanna actually says, Sitting face to face with you, I don't want to arrest you.

But its also very clear that neither of them will stop if the other one gets in the way. Its two incredible forces coming towards each other and only one can come out alive.... its phenomenal.

I feel like I haven't talked enough about De Niro in this review.

The funniest part about Neil McCauley is that he looks like a bad guy. I think its mainly the goatee but its almost hilarious how are they try to distinguish Pacino and De Niro. I think its mainly the fact that Pacino looks like he could be a bad guy in this film. And don't get me wrong, Vincent Hanna is not necessarily a good guy in this film.

But McCauley, he's ruthless. If something is in his way, he will stop at nothing before it is eliminated. And yet there's this human element of him trying to get out. And I think that's what makes De Niro's portrayal so good.

I've never been an absolute die hard De Niro fan. The main reason I respect the man is because he is respected by others. I don't doubt the man is talented. He's done his fair share of movies to earn his reputation, but prior to this movie I never really enjoyed De Niro.

This movie, I thoroughly enjoy his work as Neil McCauley. He's so calculated and yet there's that human element. He does not hesitate to shoot at cops and murder people point blank, and yet he's lonely.

This is mainly shown in his relationship with Eady (played by Amy Brenneman).

This relationship harkens back to the relationships of The Godfather (part 1... I have yet to see the other two)

It just reminds me of Al Pacino and Diane Keaton, where she has an idea that he's a dangerous man and yet there's this intrigue and charisma that convinces her to stay. Its uncomfortable, its a very 90s trope and while its not exactly the most flattering trope for women, its still a great element of the story.

Now there are a couple things wrong with this movie. Not necessarily bad things, but things that I noticed and should make note of.

I've stated before, this movie is long. Did it need to be 3 hours long... probably not. But the cover of this film says its a LA Crime Saga. Now, I'm not totally sure if its the correct use of the word Saga, but I guess with all the stories that are included in this movie, I suppose its a term that isn't totally misused.

There are a lot of subplots within this movie. Some of them are done well, others are kind of introduced then pushed to the side until they become relevant.

One of which, is Natalie Portman.

Its always something I kind of forget. That Natalie Portman has a role in this film. She is the daughter and step daughter of Vincent's wife and him.

She has some issues because her biological father is not very present in her life. She's emotional and just has these moments that are just strange. Now these moments are suppose to come to a climax at the end... and they do... sorta. But again, its really a plot point that is brought up, sorta talked about, and then disappears until it helps move the plot along. Was Natalie totally needed in this film? No, she really wasn't.

And unfortunately, this happens with a couple of characters. Looking back at the movie and the definition of a Saga, its really a compilation of people's stories and how they connect in a perfect history, but again, some characters get a lot more screen time then others.

Dennis Haysbert is in this movie.

Yes. David Palmer is in this film.

He has a very small part of an ex-con trying to put his life straight. Its an interesting story and for the longest time watching this film, I had totally forgot what his purpose was.

Sure its an interesting story about a guy down on his luck and doing his best to make the best of it. And I have to give Haysbert credit, its the first time I've seen him in a role where he doesn't wear a suit, and I like it. I wish I knew more of his work where he's not a politician or President.

But again, its a situation where Haysbert is only important when he suddenly needs to be without much explanation. All of a suddenly he knows Robert De Niro. How? Its very quickly explained but not very well. Maybe its the fact that I wanted a bigger part for David Palmer, but I didn't really see the point of Dennis Haysbert in this movie.

However, the film is, for the most part pretty focused. Its not an adrenaline pumping action movie, at least not for a good portion of it. Its really a drama about two men on opposite sides of a line. Neither man is good, and neither man is overtly evil.

What's that saying, when an unstoppable force meets and unmoveable object. What happens?

And that's the great part about this movie. The chemistry between De Niro, their characters and the just overall crime thriller feel to the movie.

This movie set a lot of standards, standards that people have been trying to recreate for years. You can't play a Grand Theft Auto game these days without seeing a level conceived by Heat.

Its a good movie. Its complex, its action packed, and while its long, its fulfilling.

I will definitely be rewatching this movie and I made a very good choice when I saw it and bought it out of the blue at Target.

But those are my thoughts on Heat. What did you think? Comment and Discuss Below.

I'll leave you with this. I can't talk about this movie without talking about one of the greatest heist scenes ever conceived by man. It gets your heart pumping, people have been trying to recreate it for years. Its just one of the greatest scenes ever made and it's blown my mind every time I have seen it. Enjoy!