Heat (1995)
Heat is a 1995 American crime drama film written and directed by Michael Mann. It features an ensemble cast led by Al Pacino and Robert De Niro, with Tom Sizemore, Jon Voight, and Val Kilmer in supporting roles. The film follows the conflict between an LAPD detective, played by Pacino, and a career thief, played by De Niro, while also depicting its effect on their professional relationships and personal lives. Mann wrote the original script for Heat in 1979, basing it on Chicago police officer Chuck Adamson’s pursuit of criminal Neil McCauley, after whom De Niro’s character is named. The script was first used for a television pilot developed by Mann, which became the 1989 television film L.A. Takedown after the pilot did not receive a series order. In 1994, Mann revisited the script to turn it into a feature film, co-producing the project with Art Linson.
The film marks De Niro and Pacino’s first on-screen appearance together following a period of acclaimed performances from both. Due to their esteemed reputations, promotion centered on their involvement.
Heat was released by Warner Bros. Pictures on December 15, 1995, to critical and commercial success. It grossed $187 million on a $60 million budget, while receiving praise for Mann’s direction and screenplay, action sequences, sound mixing, and the performances of Pacino and De Niro. Although it did not receive any major award nominations, Heat is regarded as one of the most influential films of its genre and has inspired several other works. A planned sequel was announced in July 2022
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Plot.
Neil McCauley is a professional thief based in Los Angeles. He and his crew – Chris Shiherlis, Michael Cheritto, Trejo, and newly hired hand Waingro – rob $1.6 million in bearer bonds from an armored car. During the heist, Waingro kills a guard without provocation. McCauley kills a second guard who attempts to pull out his concealed weapon, and Cheritto kills the third guard so as to not leave any witnesses. Later, McCauley prepares to kill Waingro, but Waingro escapes. LAPD Lieutenant Vincent Hanna and his team investigate the robbery. Hanna, a dedicated lawman and former Marine, has a strained relationship with his third wife Justine, and struggles to connect with his stepdaughter, Lauren. McCauley follows a code: “allow nothing to be in your life that you cannot walk out on in thirty seconds flat if you spot the heat around the corner”. He begins a relationship with Eady, a graphic design artist.
McCauley’s fence, Nate, suggests he sell the stolen bonds back to their original owner, money launderer Roger Van Zant. Van Zant agrees, but instead arranges an ambush. Anticipating a trap, McCauley and his crew counter-ambush, kill the hitmen, and vow to kill Van Zant. Waingro murders a prostitute; Hanna’s team investigate, discovering evidence that leads them to the murder of other prostitutes, victims of a serial killer. An informant of the LAPD connects Cheritto to the robbery, and Hanna’s team begin monitoring him, leading them to the rest of the crew and their next target, a precious metals depository. Hanna’s team stakes out the depository, but when a careless officer makes a noise, McCauley has his crew walk off the job.
Factual basis
Heat is based on the true story of Neil McCauley, a calculating criminal and ex-Alcatraz inmate who was tracked down by Detective Chuck Adamson in 1964. In 1961, McCauley was transferred from Alcatraz to McNeil, as mentioned in the film. When he was released, in 1962, he immediately began planning new heists. With Michael Parille and William Pinkerton, they used bolt cutters and drills to burgle a manufacturing company of diamond drill bits, a scene which is recreated in the film.Detective Chuck Adamson, upon whom Al Pacino’s character is largely based, began keeping tabs on McCauley’s crew around this time, knowing that he had become active again. The two even met for coffee once, just as portrayed in the film. Their dialogue in the script was based on the conversation that McCauley and Adamson had. The next time the two met, guns were drawn, just as the movie portrays.
Pre-production.Â
In April 1994, Mann was reported to have abandoned his earlier plan to shoot a biopic of James Dean in favor of directing Heat, producing it with Art Linson. The film was marketed as the first on-screen appearance of Al Pacino and Robert De Niro together in the same scene – both actors had previously starred in The Godfather Part II, but owing to the film’s double story structure, they were never seen in the same scene. Pacino and De Niro were Mann’s first choices for the roles of Hanna and McCauley, respectively, and they both immediately agreed to act. Initially, Keanu Reeves was offered the role of Chris Shiherlis, which he turned down in favor of playing Hamlet at the Royal Manitoba Theatre Centre. As a result, Val Kilmer was given the role.
Filming, Box office.
Principal photography for Heat lasted 107 days during the summer of 1995. All of the shooting was done on location, due to Mann’s decision not to use a soundstage. Heat was released on December 15, 1995, and opened #3 in the box office with $8.4 million from 1,325 theaters, finishing third behind Jumanji and Toy Story. It went on to have a total gross of $67.4 million in United States box offices, and $120 million in foreign box offices. Heat was ranked the #25 highest-grossing film of 1995.RELATED:
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