Holy crap! I've had both the bare bones DVD and the Special Edition DVD for years. But for whatever reason, whenever I decided to watch Heat, I would just reach for the one that was already open (Bare Bones) and watch it. So, today I finally **** open the Brand New copy of the Special Edition for the first time. I've had it since...2005, the day it came out!! That's what it said when I checked to see the release date. That's crazy that I would sit on this for so long. 7 years!!!!! It's not the only DVD that I'm still sitting on either. I've got plenty of DVD's that I have yet to bust open for whatever reason.

Anyway, Heat was my favorite Micheal Mann film before Collateral came along. That doesn't make Heat any less of a tour de force film for both Robert De Niro and Al Pacino. Personally I think this is the last truly great film for either one where they were at their peak. Val Kilmer, Tom Sizemore, Jon Voight and Amy Brenneman made this an even better film. A lot of star wattage power here. Also in this is Ted Levine, Wes Studi, Natalie Portman, Danny Trejo and Dennis Haysbert. This cast was rockin' it!!

I highly recommend this as a Buy. Hey, I've got two copies  m o t h e r f u c k e r !  The least you can do is own one!!

At the risk of quoting Jim Gaffigan, "hey, I just saw Heat!"

I've never seen it before.  I know, I know, after the Madonna thing does that really surprise anyone, but oh man I'm glad I waited for blu-ray because it looks AMAZING.  So sharp and clear... you know, there's so many movies where the 2:40 scope feels like you're getting picture cut off, this is the opposite, this could be on the biggest screen and you find yourself immersed in.  When we started going through locations it reminded me of seeing old IMAX documentaries with my dad.  The cinematography was astounding.

Gawd, everyone was in this.  I think I remembered that Danny Trejo was in this but I didn't realize his character was actually named "Trejo."  I also didn't realize that Robert DeNiro's character was based on a real guy, a FASCINATING guy, it sounds like.  Actually, when I first read the scene where he and Pacino sit down, I mixed the characters up, I thought for some reason DeNiro was the cop and Pacino was the crook.  That was an interesting little read (I need to find the whole script for this...).

And what TIMING... I finally got around to seeing this because I watched the big-screen revival of "The Sweeney" on Netflix and thought "this better be the Heat of Britain" because the bar for hard-nosed cops in that country got raised by Luther and, of course, Life On Mars/Ashes To Ashes, and... it wasn't, I don't think.  But it reminded me that I never saw the movie so I decided to.  But the timing... the guy who helped put the movie together was Chuck Adamson, a name that jumped out to me immediately because he was Dennis Farina's partner, then Dennis Farina popped up in the special features, like a ghost, it's almost unreal.

You know, I forgot to mention Ted Levine in there... I was honestly surprised he died because it was so in my head that his character would move to San Francisco and meet Monk.

Oh, and I love the fact that Pacino said his character did a little coke when the camera wasn't on, that's why he blows up every now and then.

And can I say how HAPPY I am that I didn't have to see this movie for the first time on a VHS tape or on a DVD on my old laptop or CRT TV and suffer through those black bars?  I waited and I was rewarded.

The idea for GTA V using Heat as a point of reference actually goes back to GTA IV. In that game the best mission also was a bank heist. But it was the escape that garnered a huge amount of public support. As the main character, you literally have to fight off wave after wave of cops that are coming at you from both in front and behind you, just like in the movie Heat. Not only was this the best mission in the game, it's one of the most exhilarating gaming experiences I've ever had playing any game. So, it's no surprise that for GTA V, they are going to the source material and recreating not just the heist themselves, but the look and feel of the movie is said to have it's DNA throughout the entire game and the fact that it all takes place in 'Los Angeles' is a bonus.