This movie may have worked almost two decades ago, but even then, it wouldn't have appealed to everyone. It's a guy's movie - flat out; the women are all dependent on their men or needy. Character development is barely beyond adequate; a few good character scenes don't make up for the many that aren't. And then we have the cliche dedicated cop whose work focus drives a wedge through his marriage. A bad guy among thieves is a killer of prostitutes, which I found pointless as it served to make us hate him more, but did so uncreatively. Overall, the emotional tone is surprisingly flat and dreary for far too much of the movie; I had the impression this was supposed to contribute to a cool, serious tone to make characters and simple scenes, like long stretches of a guy walking or waiting, seem more important than they actually were. This type of movie cannot stand alone without extremely good character development and more energetic and interesting scenes. After hearing how great this movie was, I found little to second that vote.

This movie has never looked this good. I have seen the movie in the theater, laserdisc, twice on different dvds and now on this spec. blu-ray.
This blu-ray is the one to buy!
HEAT Director's Definitive Edition

Billed as "A Los Angeles Crime Saga," "Heat" is one of the finest crime dramas ever to come out of Hollywood. Now newly reissued in a “Director’s Cut” edition on Blu-ray, this the story of Vincent Hanna (Al Pacino), and Neil McCauley (Robert De Niro), two charismatic men on opposite sides of the law. With its two superstar co-lead actors (Pacino and De Niro), and an equally outstanding supporting cast that includes Diane Venora, Tom Sizemore, Natalie Portman, and Val Kilmer, this movie provides nearly three hours of spine-tingling suspense and superb action.

"Heat" abounds with fantastic action scenes, culminating in a bank heist and shootout between Neil McCauley's gang of bank robbers and Vincent Hanna's squad of police detectives. In the immediate aftermath of the heist are found the best action sequences in the entire film. I think they rank among the best action scenes in any movie of recent years. The battle between McCauley’s automatic weapons-wielding crew and dozens of Hanna’s equally well-armed police officers, fought over several city blocks, takes on the grim, fiery reality of urban combat. This scene is grand in its scope, perfectly executed, and positively gripping to watch.

The acting in "Heat" is uniformly superb. as one might expect with Al Pacino and Robert De Niro leading the cast. Each of these actors plays his part to perfection – Pacino, angst-ridden, hard-as-nails, slightly burned out, yet totally dedicated to stopping and apprehending Neil McCauley and his gang; and De Niro, coldly calculating, soft spoken, betraying no outward hint of his violent nature, a man alone in the world…

Perhaps the most interesting scene in "Heat" occurs when Vince Hanna and Neil McCauley sit down in a café for a cup of coffee. This scene, rated by "TV Guide" as one of the 50 best movie scenes of all time, was the first time Al Pacino and Robert De Niro had ever acted together in the same scene. It is simply a marvelous display of acting by two of the best actors of their generation...

"Heat" is one of my all-time favorite movies of any genre. Most highly recommended.

I guess I'm one of the half dozen people in the world who didn't see "Heat" when it came out. I read all the gushing critical reviews, but I just never got around to it.

Watching it 24 years after its release, it struck me as contrived and cliched, with dialogue that sounds like something out of a bad 1940's gangster movie ("The cops are all over me like a cheap suit." One guy actually says this! And there many other cringe-worthy lines).

The cops and crooks are all alpha males; the women are all brainless bimbos--especially DeNiro's girlfriend who, in spite of being a normal "civilian," decides to stick with him even after she discovers that's he's a thief and a murderer. This is after about two dates. Good choice, lady.

To make matters worse, the movie is interminable: two hours and 49 minutes.

There's plenty of automatic weapons fire, scores of wrecked vehicles, and many gallons of blood, if you like that kind of thing.

Everyone at the time of the film's release was all hyped to see DeNiro and Pacino together as a bad guy and a cop, but to me, there is no chemistry. The one scene in which they meet in a restaurant and talk is promising, but it falls flat. They recite their lines and try to make it convincing, but that particular moment in the film made me realize how little investment they had in these roles. Just two big time actors collecting their paychecks.

Another boring Hollywood blockbuster with pretensions of greatness.

Heat directed, produced and co-written by Michael Mann is one of the all-time great heist flicks. It’s about how everything goes wrong for a robbery crew led by Robert De Niro. Their problems are foreshadowed in their opening job when a member gets gun happy and leads to the death of a number of people. De Niro is being hunted by Al Pacino who plays a police detective. He brings the heat hence the title.

There are some great cat and mouse elements to the story as De Niro and Pacino attempt to outsmart each other. That’s topped off by the two going for coffee together where they get to test each other’s egos. The movie posits the main characters as very similar. Pacino also gets to be manic and crazy in some scenes and yell which is one of his trademarks.

Of course, what Heat is known for is one of THE greatest robbery/shoot out scenes put to film. It is an amazing expenditure of ammunition.

If you want to watch how a crime drama is supposed to be made watch Heat. It is fantastic.

I bought the DVD of this when it first came out some years ago. I'm a big Michael Mann fan, and he doesn't disappoint with this film. Al Pacino and DeNero were great, and it's something that they haven't worked together on something together before now, other than The Godfather, and if I remember an interview...they never acted together on a scene together in that movie. A few story lines and then BAM they all collide towards the end of the movie. Lots of action and Michael Mann is still the best on night scenes. He just knows how to shoot them. This is a great movie.. it wont disappoint.

The film looks beautiful. I had the other version on Blu-Ray, and this one is not only better looking, but also has better special features. I'd love to see a full-length documentary by Charles de Lauzirika - that's my dream special feature. Until that day, this is what I will have to content myself with.

Heat is one of the greatest movies of all time, bringing in two legendary actors playing characters who are two sides of the same coin - one a professional who takes down high-level scores and the other a homicide detective whose life is defined by the hunt for those types of criminals, but both suffering flaws and breakdowns due to their personal codes and the paths they've chosen. The rest of the cast is excellent, and the way the story plays out, with ebbs and flows and highs and lows, quiet contemplative scenes and ear-shattering gunfights, it just mesmerizes you.*

I can only give 4-stars for the newer blu-ray release though, because personally I found it to be a bit of a let down. Much like other redone releases, the clarity and sharpness are excellent, and there are some nice new features like a cast/crew interview by Christopher Nolan (no inclusion of the original tv movie "LA Takedown" though, which would have been nice). The problem is that Mann, like others, has re-color timed the movie, so a lot of it has a light blue hue and just looks weird. This is something that plagues a lot of releases (Terminator 2, Batman, Blade Runner, etc) and takes away from the experience. I'm also annoyed at the removal of the line "viscous, aren't I?", as now you just see Hank Azaria's face frozen for a few seconds and again, it feels out of place.

*Slight detractions in the cast include Diane Venora as Hanna's ex wife (pretentious to a fault) and Kevin Gage as Waingro, who just doesn't fit with any of Neil's crew or the rest of the characters.