Nerds That Geek Movie Review: ‘Heat’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

When it comes to crime movies, there's something to be said about how these films are in essence, a simple but pure re-telling of the age-old notion of good versus evil. After all, you have your intrepid police officer, bound by oath to protect and serve, squaring off against a bad man or woman, who is hell bent on breaking the laws that mankind has set forth.

Throughout the years these films have made for some incredibly compelling stories, but often times the focus is kept to the crime in question and the man or woman chasing our criminal, only giving us minimal insight when it comes to the people involved in their respective cat and mouse game. Which means that the films that do take the time to let us learn more about the characters are special movies indeed and one such film remains the cream of the crop when it comes to giving us grand insight in regard to the everyday life of a cop or a criminal, 1995's Heat. 

At the time this motion picture was on everyone's radar because at long last two screen legends in Al Pacino and Robert DeNiro were finally going to be in a film together, but this story provides us with so much more. It is in fact a classic Hollywood epic through and through, giving us a grand and sweeping story filled to the brim with colorful and flawed characters, some of them just hoping to make it through the day, while others are hell bent on their goals and well...what makes this film so fascinating and so compelling is that insight into the character's world I mentioned a moment ago. The struggles of being a criminal and what that life looks like is explored in detail and it was also fascinating to see how the next big score, or just one damn good one drives these men since there really is nothing else in life for them to accomplish.

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Yet in showing us all of this, the film does not elicit pity from the audience, it humanizes these characters on a fundamental level, allowing for you to hope that they find some semblance of success so that perhaps they can leave this life behind and the humanizing doesn't end with the bad guys, our intrepid cop; Vincent Hanna, played with an edge by Al Pacino, is explored in depth as well. This is a man who has seen incredible horrors during his storied career with the L.A.P.D.'s Robbery/Homicide division and he will give anything to find some sense of normalcy in his world and is desperate to assemble some kind of family life to escape the toughest parts of his daily life. 

Yet, at no point will Hanna ever walk away from the badge and the gun since he truly believes he is doing some good in this world and that's where the film returns to its crime roots, because Hanna and Neil McCauley, played brilliantly by Robert DeNiro are locked into their respective goals and watching these two men play one another to accomplish said goals is stunning to say the least, making the all-important dinner scene where they confront one another absolutely breathtaking, and heartbreaking. Because it is here that we learn just how dedicated these men truly are to their individual cause and despite their best efforts to talk one another down from a showdown for the ages, they both know it is inevitable and when it finally does arrive, it ends up being one costly and bloody conflict. 

But the film constantly feels a need to go above and beyond any tropes from this particular genre, because in a way, the diner scene serves as a last chance for both men to save their souls. If Hanna walks away, he doesn't have any blood on his hands, if Neil chooses to go straight, his life is never in danger and the fact that the story blurs the line between good versus evil since both men feel they have brought forth both sides of that proverbial coin into their lives is another stroke of genius, one that makes the ending of the story all the more insightful since in a strange way, both men find redemption. Either way, this is a wonderful motion picture that is filled to the brim with subtle moments and plot points that we could fawn over for days since it seems every character has a rich backstory and because of that, this is a film that you need to experience if you haven't already because of the fact that it is a crime film that is unlike any other and it's one with a story so rich and endearing that it will stay with you long after the screen has faded to black. 
 
Also, if you enjoyed this review and love all aspects of cinema, we also recommend you check out our Podcast, ‘Movie Mumble’, located here.

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