Synopsis

A disciplined Los Angeles detective becomes obsessed with catching Neil McCauley, a highly skilled professional thief whose crew is preparing a major score. As the investigation tightens, Hanna and McCauley recognize that they are mirror images, each devoted to a demanding life that leaves little room for family or escape. Their uneasy respect eventually gives way to a violent final confrontation.

Factoids & Trivia

• The story was inspired by Chicago detective Chuck Adamson's pursuit of career criminal Neil McCauley in the 1960s. Michael Mann knew Adamson personally, and the real McCauley supplied the name for Robert De Niro's character.

• Mann first developed the material as a feature screenplay in the late 1970s. It was eventually made as the 1989 television film "L.A. Takedown," which Mann later expanded and reworked into "Heat."

• "Heat" marked the first time Al Pacino and Robert De Niro shared a scene. They had both appeared in "The Godfather Part II," but their characters never interacted on screen in that film.

• The famous diner conversation between Hanna and McCauley was filmed with minimal rehearsal. The lack of preparation was intended to preserve the feeling that two strangers were sizing each other up in real time.

• Mann shot almost the entire film on location in Los Angeles rather than relying on soundstages. Production used about 95 locations over a 107-day schedule, giving the city an unusually prominent role in the film.

• The downtown bank robbery shootout is known for using production sound recorded on location. Microphones captured the gunfire echoing between the buildings, creating a harsher and more spacious sound than conventional studio-added effects.

• The 1997 North Hollywood shootout occurred two years after the film's release and bore striking similarities to its heavily armed bank-robbery sequence. News reports later noted that the real-life robbers were familiar with "Heat," contributing to the film's enduring notoriety.