Heat

  Michael Mann's (1995) masterpiece is a action fuelled crime thriller.  He is both writer and director,  the plot is simple a crew of professional bank robbers start to feel the heat from police when they unknowingly leave a clue at their latest heist.  One of the most amazing things about Heat, is the scale of the film at nearly three hours long it's packed full of mind-blowing visuals from the opening scene to the closing credits.  Starring Al Pacino as Lt. Vincent Hanna and Robert De Niro as Neil McCauley, both give powerful performances as they play a game of cat and mouse.  The support cast to this epic is impressive on both sides.   McCauley's crew includes Val Kilmer as Chris Shiherlis, Tom Sizemore as Michael Cheritto and Danny Trejo played by Trejo.  Lt. Hanna has Mykelti Williamson as Seargent Drucker,  Wes Studi as Detective Casals and Ted Levine as Bosko.  A long side the above you get great performances from Jon Voight, Ashley Judd and a young Natalie Portman.  I can't stress enough how powerful this film is, the cinematography (Dante Spinotti) is flawless from overlooking a table in a diner (great scene) to long landscaping views across LA or the camera work during a carbine filled street battle.   Music by Elliot Goldenthal flows from scene to scene.  Pacino oozes class playing one of the most intense characterisations of "the tragic hero" I believe you will ever see.  Only matched by De Niro's portrayal of the ruthless leader of a crew who will rock and roll at a moments notice.  You have a front row seat as he calculates his need for survival and vengeance.  Heat grabs you and pulls you in. This is a true film masterpiece.  It gets 10 out of 10

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