Heat
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Movie Reviews of Heat
Movie Review: Lukewarm
Summary: 3 Stars
How does a movie written and directed
by Michael Mann and starring
Al Pacino and Robert De Niro go wrong?
When all three of those guys,
in particular, Al Pacino,
do not show up with their A-game.
I purchased this DVD with the impression
that it could not fail to be great movie
due to its pedigree.
It turned out to be a mediocre movie with
some great action sequences and saved
from being lame otherwise by some good
supporting roles.
The primary actors were disappointing.
De Niro and Pacino both seemed
to be reprising former roles
and one could not help but seeing
them as De Niro and Pacino,
rather than fictional characters
in a story.
That's called poor acting,
or to be kind to them,
poor screenwriting and directing.
If one had never seen either of those
actors in a film, it would probably
have worked out well,
but there are few movie viewers out
there in that category.
Both men have been movie stars
for decades.
Pacino, in particular, was ridiculous
and unbelievable much of the time.
Michael Mann manufactured some excellent
scenes, but overall, the movie seemed
to be lacking something that he usually
brings.
It doesn't compare well to "Collateral"
or "Manhunter", which are masterpieces
and highly recommended.
The juxtaposition of crazed criminals
and a crazed policeman as family men
and boyfriends did not really work for me.
What's the point?
That sociopaths who will open fire
with submachine guns on a crowded
city street are somehow complex
individuals with feelings.
It might have worked had it been
done differently, but as it was,
I wanted to get back to cops and robbers.
The relationships, other than the one
between Neil McCauley(De Niro) and
Eady(Amy Brenneman) were meaningless
subplots.
Subplot overdose was achieved with the
addition of a teenage girl attempting
suicide which temporarily sidelined
our "hero".
In trying to do too much,
a disservice was done to the whole.
It would have been a much better film
had the "crew" and its activities been
more prominent, perhaps adding some of
their history, like how they became
a team, and spending more time with
the planning stages of the "scores".
It would have been a better film if
Pacino were on the crew, instead of
opposed to it. His persona didn't
work as a policeman, but the tension
of two similar, and at the same time
quite different, strong-willed crew
members would have been interesting.
We don't even know what happened to
all the crew members.
Did Chris escape capture because
his wife wouldn't betray him after
he refused to abandon her?
Is that a good thing?
Isn't he the madman who initiated a
city block's metamorphosis into
a war zone.
Lt. Hanna (Pacino), certainly would
not have let that go.
Then again, you might say that the
police were responsible for the terror
and tragedy of that firefight.
Better to let the crew have the money
or track them down later than allow
a deadly mess like that to develop.
I do not diminish its greatness as an
action scene for the movie
which gets back to the original point
about this being a mediocre movie
with some very cool action sequences.
Now that I have come full circle,
I offer a clarification.
This is a mediocre movie,
but in the upper class.
I recommend it,
but remain disappointed.
I had very high expectations.
It was like going to a fine steakhouse
and getting a fast food burger.
I like fast food burgers, but...
nb: I needed to keep my DVD remote handy
because the volume needed to be adjusted
periodically throughout the movie.
The volume levels went from loud stuff
to hard to hear dialog.
Movie Review: Mediocre
Summary: 3 Stars
The film, much hyped for the first onscreen meeting of Al Pacino and Robert De Niro, opens with an only in Hollywood heist of an armored bank truck. The newest member of the gang- Waingro (Kevin Gage)- panics, which results in the murder of the 3 guards. De Niro's character, Neil McCauley, the gang's leader, attempts to kill the screw up, but he escapes. Meanwhile, Vincent Hanna (Pacino), LAPD homicide expert, takes over the case. Needless digressions include Hanna's failing marriage with his faithless wife Justine (Diane Venora) & suicidal stepdaughter (Natalie Portman), Waingroe's revelation as a serial killer of prostitutes, McCauley's contrived and sparkless romance with a lonely bookworm 25 years his junior, Eady (Amy Brenneman), & the backstory of the newest member of the gang. If the long and superfluous digressions are not bad enough, the implausible action scenes & character interactions are worse- this is an absolutely abominable screenplay, folks. Here are just some of the implausibilities: after figuring out that McCauley's thieves have turned the tables on him Hanna stops McCauley, who absurdly agrees to a cup of joe with him. This is the big `Clash of Titans' the film hypes, but is as realistic as John Ashcroft breaking bread with Osama bin Laden. Instead, we get insipid dick on the table banter as Hanna warns McCauley he just might have to `take him out'. McCauley counters, `Oh yeah? I just might have to take you out.' It would have been a hoot had McCauley replied, `You talkin' to me?', but no such luck.... In short, Heat is a mediocre movie at best- its visual style accounting for whatever props it deserves. It was only 2 years later that the brilliant L.A. Confidential came along & showed America what a truly great crime film could be. As for the DVD itself? It's no-frills- there's no commentary, 3 trailers, but the actual transfer of the film print is very clean, as is the sound quality. Curiously, the DVD package seems to recapitulate the making of the film: great attention paid to the shine, but a fairly hollow core.
I waited years to see this film because it was so overhyped, just like I waited years to see the abominable Schindler's List. Heat is not that bad, but post-9/11 this sort of juvenilia all seems kind of unreal.
Movie Review: pretty good gangster melodrama
Summary: 3 Stars
While there is nothing original or fascinating about this film, it is very good for passing the time, in particular the action is far better than average. I enjoyed the masterful professional thieves, their self-imposed discipline of leaving in 30 seconds, and their physicality in violence. The subtheme of good/bad guy resembling eachother is also fun, particularly the Pacino/Niro meeting and open conversation. It is much better than average.
But what can you say about the plot? A heist, maybe the big one, is coming. Get em or get away with it. Then there are the girls, the anchor we all seek. In an obsessed life, there is little room for love, except as castoff entertainment or broken promises. Fine, but does it rise above that kind of formula? No, in my view.
Recommended, but not as a film I would love to watch again and again and again. It is well worth a viewing, perhaps, but alas will not join the classics by any stretch of the imagination.
Movie Review: Containing one of the best shooting scenes I've ever seen!
Summary: 3 Stars
It contains one of the best shooting scenes I've ever seen! This scene is worth the whole movie. However, the last half is dragging and boring. The acting is interesting.
It's definitely worth watching once.
Movie Review: Extreme Borefest
Summary: 1 Stars
I am a huge fan of Al Pacino and Robert De Niro. I had heard nothing but great reviews about this film.
There are so many characters to keep track of and seemingly so many different stories going on aside from the main story that I wish I had a pad and paper to keep track of it all.
A seasoned criminal who becomes lonely and tries to find love. A cop who can't devote enough time to his wife as she would like. A recently released ex-con who doesn't like his job at a diner. That ex-con's woman who tries to keep him motivated. A daughter who has a hissy-fit because she can't find a pair of hair clippers that match her outfit. The list goes on and on. Too many side stories that pointlessly make this film an hour or more longer then it needed to be.
A classic example of how an all-star cast does not guarantee an all-star film.