Heat Reviews
Top CriticHeat occupies an exalted position among the countless contemporary crime films.
Robert De Niro's last great role before he devoted himself to self-parody.
| Original Score: 3/4
This is simply the best American crime movie -- and indeed, one of the finest movies, period -- in over a decade.
As Heat progresses, its sensational looks pale beside storytelling weaknesses that expose the more soulless aspects of this cat-and-mouse crime tale.
Michael Mann and a superlative cast have taken a classic heist movie rife with familiar genre elements and turned it into a sleek, accomplished piece of work, meticulously controlled and completely involving.
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| Original Score: 5/5
For a film that deserves Oscars for photography, editing, sound and arguably scoring, Heat is packed with unforgettable subcharacters.
| Original Score: 4/4
All this adds good weight and tension to the movie and provides a lot of very good actors with the opportunity to do honest, probing work in a context where, typically, less will do.
| Original Score: 4/5
All the squealing tires, flying bullets and falling bodies cannot save Heat from drowning in its own banalities ...
Michael Mann's writing and direction elevate this material. It's not just an action picture.
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| Original Score: 3.5/4
If there's one thing Michael Mann knows how to do, it's create tension.
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| Original Score: 3/5
Heat generates lots of energy but gives off little light.
As with his other works, [Mann] binds sound, music and pictures into one hypnotic triaxial cable and plugs it right into your brain. He makes this almost-three-hour experience practically glide by.
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| Original Score: 4.5/5
Boosters and touts use the term 'major movie' so often that it's more likely to generate yawns than excitement at this point. Back to basics. Heat is a major movie. With major stars. Doing major acting.
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| Original Score: 3/4
This is the first time De Niro and Pacino have acted together, and each gives a strong, watertight performance.
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| Original Score: 3/4
The cop/ crime stuff that makes up the bulk of the movie is well thought out and well directed.
Heat has an impressively strong script by Mann, and he backs it up with gorgeous filmmaking.
Full Review
| Original Score: 4/4
