Rating: 
Summary: Definitely underrated
Review: Any reference to a lack of character development in this movie is a downright lie. De Niro is the obvious focal point, as he deserves to be in ANY cast and he lives up to his billing as always. Pacino's character is a little harder to grasp, however. Anyone watching for the car chases and the action scenes won't spend enough time thinking about this movie to realize how his performance is equal to that of De Niro's in its own way. The sleeper in this movie is the relationship between Kilmer and Judd's characters, dealt their hands at birth and trying desperately to make their marriage work in the face of insurmountable obstacles. Anyone who doubts the power of this on-screen romance need only watch the last scene between the two characters, where they don't even speak a word. A movie not only about bank robbers and cops, but about life.
Rating:
Summary: Best movie I have ever seen.
Review: This movie has the best scene ever directed. Al Pacino and Robert Deniro in my opinion work together to make this the best film they have ever made. Throw in Val Kilmer and you have one awesome flick that you will watch more than once, guaranteed!
Rating: 
Summary: Gripping action scenes; soggy love subplots.
Review: Michael Mann is a recognized master of the action sequence. What makes Heat tick is the supercharged scenes of gunplay and cat-and-mouse battle of the wits. However, Heat only succeeds unconditionally on one of the two fronts it tackles -- its successful treatment of phallocentric (homoerotic?) matches of power only makes its clumsy treatment of love themes all the more frustrating.Amy Brenneman gets a role in which she does little more than look good and look sad. Diane Venora is even more grievous; she plays the vulnerable ("stoned out on Prozac") mother/wife role with such vicious confidence that the character of Justine ends up not deserving any sympathy at all. Part of the fault, as well, must lie in Mann's writing -- he just doesn't tend to come up with strong or complex female characters. "I have to demean myself with Ralph just to get closure with you?" Give me a break. Ashley Judd, super-gifted as she is, salvages her role by giving it emotional resonance touched with a splash of courage and spirit. As for the Pacino-De Niro pairing...De Niro wins hands down. Though Pacino is wonderful in scenes where Vincent Hanna shows his "softer" side, he overhams other parts so much that after a while Vincent Hanna veers closer and closer to being a caricature. Not so De Niro's McCauley -- repressed but never unfeeling, cool but never subzero. High points also to Val Kilmer in a tailor-made role that seems to echo what he did in Tombstone. Overlength, a hit-or-miss score by Elliot Goldenthal (superb during action scenes, cliched and tiring during dramatic scenes) and too many subplots mar this otherwise sweeping action saga.
Rating:
Summary: wow
Review: clearing up a little confusion created by other posts: the black character (mykelti williamson) is not written dumber than his colleagues, he's if anything written smarter. and al pacino gives an amazing performance, not a "goofy" one. it's a great movie
Rating:
Summary: sophisticated, sexy
Review: 'Heat' is clearly one of the best movies of its genre. I don't normally buy videos, but I bought this one after seeing the movie and thinking about it off and on for a number of months. Sure, the action scenes are no-holds-barred. Pacino is, well, Pacino, good and bad. DeNiro, well, he's DeNiro! This is the movie that made me a true fan of his, and his quiet, sophisticated portrayal of Neil MacAuley is downright inspiring. I have never contemplated a life of crime, but if there is one movie that could make me think about it, this is it. This is because Mann does an excellent job of blurring the lines between the good and the bad guys, and on more than one occasion, I found myself pulling for the latter. I've heard that in the pre-screenings they released two versions with different endings. In the unreleased version (which I would love to see and own), the main bad-guy MacAuley (DeNiro) ends up killing Pacino's Vincent Hanna. I would have preferred this ending, if for no other reason thant he fact that his character actually had much more to live for than Pacino's. Overall this is a fine movie and extremely enjoyable to watch.
Rating:
Summary: You won't want this movie to end. It's great
Review: If you love Al pacino and Robert DeNiro this movie is for you. It will be a classic in your video collection.
Rating:
Summary: great movie
Review: THIS MOVIE WILL PUT YOU ON THE EDGE OF YOUR SEAT ITS GREAT....
Rating:
Summary: Best of '95
Review: This movie is easily the best of 1995.Both pacino and De Niro are on top form in this slick re-working of Manns earlier "La Takedown".The camera work is outstanding and the bank robbery shoot-out was superbly choreographed. FULL MARKS!
Rating:
Summary: Great Action Flick with some of Hollywood's Best!!!!!!
Review: If you like shoot 'em flicks, this is, without a doubt, the best in years. The extended shootout after the doomed bank robbery is incredibly violent and actually has you rooting for the bad guys! Val Kilmer is peerless and Al Pacino's personal battle with DeNiro pits two great stars against each other. Not as much gore as you might expect but relentless fun and action.
Rating:
Summary: Bears repeated viewings
Review: When you first see this film, what really sticks in your mind are the action scenes. But repeated viewings reveal layer after layer of awesome character development. Women may find the "damn the torpedos, full speed ahead" attitudes of Pacino and Deniro to be simple male bullheadedness, but men will relate to their compulsions. The inner workings of both the police department and the criminal gang are fully fleshed out. Michael Mann proves himself once again to be one of the most stylish directors in America. Watch this video in stereo, and feel your room shake at the end during the airport showdown, as the planes take off and land all around Pacino and Deniro! If you like this flick, also check out the Mann-directed crime films "Thief" and "Manhunter". But "Heat" is definitely his masterpiece... so far. Only the murdered-hooker subplot seems superfluous. By the way, "Heat" is a remake of Mann's T.V. movie from the late 80s,"L.A.Takedown"
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