Fucked for life. You know what happens, because you’ve been there
“All I want is Chiherlis and his whole fucking crew.”
As explored previously, we see contempt for businessmen, however this time, it’s from the police: Hanna operates outside of his jurisdiction and forces Marciano, under threat of arrest for earlier crimes, into an extremely dangerous situation. The strong-arming of a sleazy businessman may not elicit sympathy for Marciano, or evoke anger at police tactics, but the blackmailing of Charlene does. It also shows how far the police are willing to go in the pursuit of a target. This use of Charlene as a pawn in a grander scheme is also echoed by McCauley – he blackmails her under the implied threat of violence, solely to ensure Chris is straight for the next score.
With both men blackmailing Charlene, we descend into dubious moral territory. In McCauley’s case, his act of armed robbery is a serious crime. However, during the bank heist, we see that the crime is not aimed specifically at the people there. If anything, McCauley’s speech demonstrates empathic understanding of the human element, and highlights their real target: offshore investment accounts owned by the likes of Van Zant:
Neil McCauley: “We want to hurt no one! We're here for the bank's money, not your money. Your money is insured by the federal government, you're not gonna lose a dime! Think of your families, don't risk your life.”
Things are further obfuscated by the actions of the police. The methods they employ are an inversion of those used by McCauley - their objectively ‘noble’ act of arresting criminals is negated by what happens next.
“Fucked for life”
During the blackmailing of Charlene, Sergeant Drucker gives a detailed description of what will happen to her son. In outlining the steps, he explains it with such clarity, that it becomes a tangible future to the troubled wife; real enough to make her betray her husband. What’s key here, is the precise knowledge that the police have regarding the origins of lifelong criminals:
Sergeant Drucker: “If you don’t betray Chris, you victimize Dominik. ‘Cause he becomes an orphan when you go to prison as an accessory, ’cause you got no living parents to take him. So he ends up state raised in foster homes, juvenile facilities. Then he steals a car. Then he winds up in gladiator academies like Chino and Tracy. Fucked for life. You know what happens, because you’ve been there. Dominick didn’t get a chance yet to choose his life, but Chris did.”
Within this future history, we can see deep within the symbiotic relationship between law enforcement and criminals, and some hard truths are brought to light.
The major point is the insidiousness of the relationship: a middle truth between the cobra effect and planned obsolescence. The police know how lifelong criminals are formed, and they know this to such a degree, that they have it down to a checklist:
absent parents
placed into the care system
growing up in correction centers
starting with petty misdemeanors
moving to more serious crimes
the Pygmalion effect.
This is not a coincidence; this is a detailed process that can be seen on a factory production line. These people are the product of a system designed to make criminals.
This path is laid out so matter of factly, and with such step-by-step logic, that it raises the question:
Why don’t the police stop it before it happens?
The answer connects back to the ouroboric nature of police and criminals: reflecting methodologies, developing alongside one another, and requiring the other to justify their existence. In order to ‘protect and serve’, there needs to be something to ‘protect’ people from. For the likes of Hanna, he needs a worthy opponent to exist, otherwise it’s back to “barbecues and ballgames”. It’s the same for McCauley’s crew – without the action, there is no juice.
“What would have become of Hercules do you think if there had been no lion, hydra, stag or boar - and no savage criminals to rid the world of? What would he have done in the absence of such challenges? What would have been the use of those arms, that physique, and that noble soul, without crises or conditions to stir into him action?”
- Epictetus
If there was any semblance of a line at the start of the film, it has now been completely erased. In thinking alike and influencing each other, Hanna and McCauley have now created a blended mindset, with the result being unlike anything ever seen before.
In crime thrillers the battle between cop and criminal is usually depicted as a game of cat and mouse, however in Heat this doesn’t hold true. Cats show contempt for their prey, toying with them before the kill. In the case of Hanna and McCauley, there is strong mutual respect between belligerents. This is not cat and mouse, this is two apex predators circling each other. The stakes are high and the consequences are lethal. It’s a dance of respect and death, that leads to an exceptionally rare moment - not only in film, but in the human condition:
“He likes you”
It begins as both men learn of the other’s background. Displaying a detective-like methodology, we see McCauley studying Hanna’s details. On the surface, he is investigating his foe as he would a bank, but underneath that, we see something else. As Nate goes over Hanna’s details, we see an uncharacteristic reaction from McCauley:
Nate: “He's a hot dog. Graduate school, marine corps. Lieutenant in Robbery-Homicide, major crimes unit. He's taken down some heavy crews. Blew away Frankie Yonder in Chicago and he was a fucking maniac. He was working narcotics before that. That's the problem. He's divorced twice, current wife's Justine. He's why the extra heat. The vice sergeant says Hanna likes you, thinks you're some kind of star. You do this sharp, you do that sharp. Look how sharp this guy is to figure that.”
Neil McCauley: (laughs)
Nate: “Funny as a heart attack, man. Three marriages. What the fuck do you think that means? He likes staying home? Means he's one of those guys out there, prowling around all night, dedicated. With this guy, this much heat, you should pass.”
This laugh betrays profound meaning. Throughout the film, McCauley rarely shows emotion, however in this instance, we see a reaction borne of spontaneity. It’s the only time that he basks in admiration from someone else, and this shows the kinship that lies between them – both of these men are obsessed with creating their preferred reality, yet they know that this cannot be achieved without a worthy opponent.
The opposition which they find themselves against gives them meaning, and purpose.
“The impediment to action advances action. What stands in the way, becomes the way.”
- Marcus Aurelius
What they find in their mirrored antagonist is the opportunity to face themselves. In meeting someone just like them, it has invigorated their troubled existences. Their shared realization that they are uniquely alike is what then drives them to discard normality for good, and achieve their preferred reality.
We finally see this aligning of existences in the coffee shop showdown, which is then crystallized in Heat’s resonant finale.