Two Crimes

Heat is a 1995 American epic crime drama film written and directed by Michael Mann and starring Al Pacino, Robert De Niro, Tom Sizemore, Diane Venora, Amy Brenneman, Ashley Judd, Mykelti Williamson, Wes Studi, Ted Levine, Jon Voight, and Val Kilmer. In the film, LAPD detective Vincent Hanna (Pacino) attempts to apprehend career thief Neil McCauley (De Niro), leading to strain on their professional lives and personal relationships. 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 after co-starring but not sharing a scene in The Godfather Part II (1974): the film's promotion centered heavily on the actors' involvement. Heat was theatrically released in the United States by Warner Bros. on December 15, 1995. It grossed $187.4 million worldwide and received critical acclaim, with praise for Mann's direction as well as the performances from both Pacino and De Niro. Heat is considered to be one of the best and most influential crime films of all time, inspiring several other works. A sequel novel, Heat 2, was written by Mann and Meg Gardiner and released in 2022, with a film adaptation to be written and directed by Mann and starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Christian Bale.