Heat (film)

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Heat is an American crime drama film released on December 15, 1995. It was written and directed by Michael Mann. It stars Al Pacino and Robert De Niro.

De Niro plays a professional robber who is a calm, methodical introvert, while Pacino plays a veteran LAPD homicide detective whose devotion to his job causes him to neglect his personal problems. The central conflict of the film was based on the experiences of former Chicago police officer Chuck Adamson and his pursuit of a criminal named McCauley in the 1960s, of which the name of De Niro's character, Neil McCauley, was derived.

Heat marked the first time that Pacino and De Niro appeared together onscreen. Although both actors had already starred in The Godfather Part II 21 years earlier, they had not appeared in any scenes together.

The film is a remake of L.A. Takedown, a 1989 made-for-television film also written and directed by Mann. Heat was a critical and commercial success, grossing over $185 million worldwide.

[edit] Plot summary

Neil McCauley (De Niro) is an ex-con and expert thief who has centered his life around the creed "Do not allow anything into your life which you cannot walk out on in thirty seconds flat if you spot the heat around the corner." He and his crew, including compulsive gambler Chris Shiherlis (Kilmer) and ex-con turned family man Michael Cheritto (Sizemore), take part in an elaborate robbery of an armored car. They escape with US$1.6 million in bearer bonds from Malibu Equity Investments, a shell company that launders off-shore drug accounts. Although originally planned as a mere robbery, they end up killing all three guards after the first is murdered impulsively by new member Waingro (Kevin Gage), the second is shot in self-defense, while the third is killed simply to avoid leaving any witnesses.

McCauley meets with his fence, Nate (Voight), who suggests selling the bonds back to their original owner, Roger Van Zant (William Fichtner). Van Zant had the bonds insured and stands to profit from buying the bonds back at a reduced price, though higher than what Nate could conceivably receive on the open market. As retribution for turning the robbery into a triple-homicide, McCauley and crew also attempt to kill Waingro, but he escapes when a police cruiser drives by and distracts McCauley. Angry with McCauley's gang for stealing his bonds, Van Zant double-crosses McCauley and attempts to have him killed during the buy-back. After escaping the ambush, McCauley calls Van Zant and tells him he is a dead man.

The officer investigating McCauley's armored car job is Lieutenant Vincent Hanna (Pacino). Hanna's extensive pedigree has made him one of the top detectives in the elite Robbery-Homicide Division of the LAPD. Hanna "searches through the remains of a crime for the scent of his prey and then hunts them down". He takes such extreme devotion to his work that his personal life is in disorder.[1]

Vincent and his team immediately go to work, utilizing a number of leads and informants to bring McCauley and his crew to justice. Meanwhile, McCauley is busy planning another major score: an audacious bank heist valued at US$12 million.

As the plans are being made, the movie explores the personal lives of both men, and how their commitment to being the best in their respective professions has all but destroyed their personal lives: McCauley lives a lonely, barren existence, having severed all links and emotional attachments in furtherance of his creed, although he tells his new girlfriend, Eady, "I'm alone, I am not lonely." He starts to thaw as a result of meeting Eady (Amy Brenneman), a graphic designer who believes him to be a metal salesman. Meanwhile, Hanna's current marriage, his third, to Justine (Diane Venora) is clearly in the last stages of a breakdown — although he is close to and clearly cares dearly for his troubled stepdaughter Lauren (Natalie Portman), whose own father is neglectful. The relationship between Shiherlis (Kilmer) and his wife Charlene (Ashley Judd) is examined as well; their marriage is also apparently disintegrating due to his gambling addiction. Charlene is also cheating on her husband with another man, Marciano (Hank Azaria), who later will become a very important information source to Hanna and his team.

The film culminates in a scene where McCauley and Hanna cross paths and reflect on their chosen lives, over coffee in a diner. During their meeting, Hanna says that while he may not like it, he will kill McCauley if need be to prevent the latter from killing an innocent. McCauley points out the flip side by saying that he will not hesitate to kill if the cops box him in. McCauley also explains the purpose of his "30 seconds" creed by saying he never wants to go back to prison. [2] The best-laid plans of the thieves for the bank heist are thwarted behind-the-scenes by Waingro. Waingro has been lying low since the attempt on his life by McCauley; he eventually meets Van Zant after looking for criminal work in a biker bar. Waingro leads Van Zant to one of the members of McCauley's crew, Trejo (Danny Trejo).

With his wife being beaten and raped by Waingro and Van Zant's crew, Trejo is forced to reveal McCauley's latest plans. One of Van Zant's subordinates, a police informant named Hugh Benny (Henry Rollins), then tips off the police as to which bank McCauley plans to hit; Hanna and several police officers immediately head to the bank, only to find McCauley and his crew already exiting. The robbery was executed flawlessly; however, as the crew exit the bank and approach the getaway car, Shiherlis sees Hanna and other police officers hiding on the other side of the street. Shiherlis opens fire, and a chaotic, violent shoot-out erupts a busy downtown Los Angeles boulevard. During the gunfight, Hanna's partner, Bosko (Ted Levine), is killed, as are Cheritto and Trejo's replacement driver Breedan (Dennis Haysbert). Another one of Hanna's detectives and several LAPD patrolmen are also shot, though it is unclear if they survived. Shiherlis is wounded, but he manages to escape with McCauley's aid.

Following the disastrous robbery and getaway, McCauley realizes that Trejo betrayed them. McCauley goes to Trejo's house with the intent to kill him, only to find Trejo severely injured and dying and his wife already dead. In his final moments, Trejo tells McCauley that Waingro and Van Zant are responsible. Trejo inquires into his wife's whereabouts, and McCauley informs him that she is dead. Distraught over his wife's death (and close to death himself,) Trejo tells McCauley, "Don't leave me like this". Respecting Trejo's final wishes, McCauley mercifully kills him and goes to Van Zant's house, demanding to know the whereabouts of Waingro. Van Zant claims not to know and McCauley executes him.

The police move Charlene Shiherlis and her son Dominic to a safe house. One of Hanna's team, Drucker (Mykelti Williamson), explains that Charlene will be charged as an accessory to her husband and serve jail time if she refuses to turn him over to the police. Drucker also informs her that her son will become a foster child and more prone to a criminal life if she will not cooperate. Chris, who has recovered from his gun-shot wound, eventually shows up, sporting a new hairstyle to disguise his identity. However, despite their marital problems, his wife surreptitiously warns him that the police are present. The two share one last emotional look before Chris gets back in his car. He comes close to being caught as he passes a police checkpoint, but a fake ID card saves him at the last moment.

McCauley, now in love with Eady, breaks his "30 seconds" creed by asking her to flee the country with him. Nate had made prior arrangements for the two to escape to New Zealand; however, upon receiving a tip concerning Waingro's whereabouts from Nate, McCauley makes the impulsive decision to kill him in his hotel room, which is near the airport. After setting off the hotel's emergency alarm to clear the area, McCauley barges in and executes Waingro, then escapes after a short confrontation with a cop.

Having also acted on a tip-off from Benny, Hanna arrives at the hotel. From a distance, Hanna spots Eady calmly waiting in McCauley's car. Recalling the "30 seconds" discussion that he and McCauley had at the coffee shop (during which McCauley mentions his girlfriend), Hanna becomes suspicious and approaches Eady. At that moment, McCauley emerges from the building and begins heading for his car, only to realize that Hanna has spotted him. Hanna begins moving towards McCauley. At this critical and emotional moment in the film, McCauley defaults to his "30 seconds" rule and abandons Eady; he disappears into the crowd with Hanna in pursuit.

McCauley jumps over the perimeter fence of the airport and heads to the freight terminal. Hanna is close behind and the two briefly exchange gunfire until McCauley moves again, finding refuge behind the ILS and electronic control system buildings near one of the airport's runways. Hanna follows and the two play a tense game of cat-and-mouse in the dark. McCauley notices that bright runway lights turn on during landings to enable the pilots to land; realizing that Hanna will be temporarily blinded, he makes a move to take out Hanna. However, as McCauley steps out to shoot with the lights at his back, Hanna is able to see McCauley's shadow and, by a fraction of a second, shoots first, hitting McCauley in the shoulder. As the lights go down, Hanna quickly gains clear sight of McCauley and, knowing he will not go quietly, shoots him several times in the chest. Hanna, knowing that he has more in common with McCauley than anyone else in his life, moves to comfort his would-be killer. McCauley reciprocates, taking some solace in his mortal wounds as he will not have to go back to prison. The two men share a final, reflective moment together before McCauley dies.

[edit] Cast

• Al Pacino as Lt. Vincent Hanna
• Robert De Niro as Neil McCauley
• Val Kilmer as Chris Shiherlis
• Jon Voight as Nate
• Tom Sizemore as Michael Cheritto
• Diane Venora as Justine Hanna
• Amy Brenneman as Eady
• Ashley Judd as Charlene Shiherlis
• Mykelti Williamson as Sgt. Drucker
• Wes Studi as Det. Casals
• Ted Levine as Bosko
• Dennis Haysbert as Donald Breedan
• William Fichtner as Roger Van Zant
• Natalie Portman as Lauren Gustafson
• Tom Noonan as Kelso
• Kevin Gage as Waingro
• Hank Azaria as Alan Marciano
• Danny Trejo as Trejo
• Henry Rollins as Hugh Benny
• Tone Lōc as Richard Torena

[edit] Similarities to Collateral

The film has several similarities with Mann's later work Collateral. Both storylines are set in Los Angeles, and share a central theme of contrasting the personalities of two main characters. In addition, some of the methods and attributes of the films criminal lead characters Neil and Vincent are similar, most notably the use of a particular appearance so as not to be memorable. The films also share some dialogue phrases about the methods of shooting people for avoidance of casualties. Both films also have a lead character named Vincent, although in Collateral, Vincent is the antagonist. In the scene where McCauley kills Waingro, he shoots him twice in the sternum and once in the head, also a trademark of Vincent in Collateral.

[edit] See also

• Heat Soundtrack

[edit] External links

• Heat at the Internet Movie Database
• Metacritic Reviews
• Heat (video game) at the Internet Movie Database
• L.A. Takedown at the Internet Movie Database
• Jump Cut essay
• " De Niro and Pacino Star in a Film. Together." New York Times article
• "Michael Mann: Hot Again With 'L.A. Vice'" New York Times article

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