Kevin Lenihan at 2013-04-13 21:33:55:

It wasn't enough that Hanna wanted to be a cop just because that's what he does. Same with Neil wanting to be a crook. The writer wanted to add to the characters motives: the cop tortured by the victims, or the crook desperate to pull off the big score before it's too late. It fuels the drama with a sense of urgency. And I think it creates a unique tension. This scene bonds these two characters, even more so given the history of the actors. We want to see them both win in the end, and to somehow end up as friends of a sort. But this new dialogue establishes that this is impossible. One will win, one will fail. This converts the story to tragedy. In a tragedy, we know the end, but the satisfaction comes from a sense of participation in the choices which lead the characters to this end. There is a fatefulness to these choices, as it seems in hindsight with events in our own lives, so we really connect to the characters. My amateur musings!

Despina at 2013-04-16 00:07:06:

I just finished watching Heat and am now completely annoyed with the entire movie and have entered into a seemingly dead end (for me, at least) debate with two handfuls of people who insist this was one of the best crime movies of that generation and it's on their top 5 or top 10 lists and could watch it a million times. Meanwhile, I want my 2 hours back. Am I completely off my rocker in thinking this movie was not that great? It went on too long and there were too many holes and... I dunno. I do love Pacino, DeNiro, Sizemore, and Kilmer (and Trejo and Studi!), and they were great, but the movie just didn't flow right to me. I thought I would absolutely love it, too. Hmmm... If anything it was a very huge, very insightful lesson on what not to do and how to be sure I'm closing the gaps within the plot and ensuring all characters are necessary.

Kevin Lenihan at 2013-04-16 00:11:12:

Actually, I agree with you, D. Both the film and the script are low quality. That scene where they have coffee is one of the few good parts. The rest of the film is unfocused.