Login
Heat isn't just a thriller in the normal sense of the word: it's a saga and a monster of a film. With star turns from Robert DeNiro and Al Pacino as the leading actors, ably supported with the likes of Jon Voight, Val Kilmer, Wes Studi, Ashley Judd, and a young Natalie Portman, Heat tells the story of a cautious mastermind thief (DeNiro) and his crew (Voight, Kilmer, Tom Sizemore) as they try to pull off a $12 million bank heist, avenge a double-cross by a crooked investment broker (William Fichtner), and avoid the police, or "Heat". Leading the chase is Pacino, whose character admires DeNiro's style but is determined to bring him down.
Here's where Heat rises above other films of it's type. The criminals, who we're supposed to hate, are properly developed characters (especially DeNiro's affair with a graphic designer and Kilmer's problems with his wife), and you can't help but feel some sympathy for them and their situation. On the side of the police, Pacino's character is the only one that's fully developed, however as much of the action revolves around his battle of wits with DeNiro, and the toll it takes on their personal lives, this can be excused.
The only issue I have with the film is what comes with it. While the direction is excellent and the script very well-written, all you get on the DVD is scene selection and languages! For a film of this calibre, I couldn't help but feel cheated by the total lack of extras that it offers. Hopefully, though, Heat will be realised as a great saga of a film, and Mann will finally relinquish all that should have been placed on this DVD.
