The legendary actor Al Pacino has appeared in many incredible films and among them is one of his cult classics, Heat. Directed by Michael Mann, the film was released in 1995 and stands as one of Pacino’s best works. Based on Mann’s novel of the same name, the crime thriller genre film takes on a dark theme that defines the essence of the film.
Surprisingly, there is a scene in the film, that adds a touch of humor to the film and provides a unique edge to the film. The person behind this improvised scene was Al Pacino who is often experimental nature on set.
Al Pacino’s experimental nature on set led to surprising scene in the film
Al Pacino’s 1995 film, Heat is an impeccable masterpiece where it’s hard to find any flaw. However, the makers of the film are very well aware of those scenes which weren’t planned originally. The 1995 film is a crime drama based on a dark theme which significantly defines the essence of the movie. Amidst the intense scenes in the film, there comes a scene where Pacino’s character, Detective Vincent Hanna, delivers a dialogue,
“She has a great ass, and you’ve got your head all the way up it!”
This particular scene sets apart from the entire film as being a comedic scene it challenges the intense nature of the film. When the film was shot, the filmmakers thought that this scene might drown the entire film, but surprisingly, the scene made it to the final cut and indeed fit well with the rest of the film.
Previously, during an interview, the director of the film, Michael Mann, talked about the dynamic approach of the actor while filming scenes. There have been times when Pacino’s improvised scenes have proved to be a miracle for the film, but there have also been scenes that fit perfectly in the category of ‘bizarre.’ The director said, “Pacino’s best takes are always five, six or seven.”
Mann went on to explain that the initial takes are just a part of the experiment, then the actor moves further and by the time he hits six, things progress a little, and ultimately, Pacino would “deliver a take that was fantastic.” What Mann wanted to assert here was that Pacino goes a little off-script and prefers improvising his scenes.
Al Pacino’s experiment on a scene left his co-star in shock
Since Al Pacino prefers filming a scene majorly on his terms, the actor once decided to go wild for a scene to demonstrate the intensity of his character. During the same interview, Mann explained that Pacino asked him if he could try “a wild one.”
Being cognizant of Pacino’s nature, the director agreed. One of the reasons why Mann was convinced to give to steering of the scene to Pacino was because his experiments often turned out to be hilarious, yet there were times when he miserably failed at it as well.
While Pacino was ready with his improvised version of the scene, Mann was also aware of his experiment. Unfortunately, they forgot to involve Pacino’s co-star Hank Azaria in all this. Azaria being new to all this became a subject of Pacino’s experiment. Mann said,
“I neglected to tell [Azaria] that we had a habit of doing this. Al just flipped this guy up and down and cut loose, and that look of shock and amazement on Azaria’s face is because we’re going completely off the script into something totally wild.”
But that wasn’t the end of Pacino’s experiment as he along with Mann wanted to add some extra details to his character of Vincent Hanna. To make his character look complete, the actor thought to portray him as a cocaine addict.
Mann also got convinced by Pacino’s vision and shot the scene where Hanna had a cocaine addiction, even showing him doing coke off a dagger he carried in the small of his back. However, the scene never made it to the final cut since the director thought that it conveyed “too strong a message.”
Source: Variety
