20 Things You Didn't Know About Heat

As scarcely believable as it might seem, Michael Mann's masterful heist thriller Heat is nearing 30 years old, yet is today every bit as electrifying and compulsively engrossing as it was back in 1995.

Despite criminally receiving no Oscar nominations, Heat was widely acclaimed by critics and also a significant box office success, grossing more than three-fold its $60 million budget.

An epic, sprawling crime ensemble film as is rarely made these days, Heat is defined by not only its brilliant cast - especially its first-time meeting between Al Pacino and Robert De Niro - and its blisteringly crafted action sequences.

Though it may not be the Michael Mann movie to receive the most awards plaudits, it's certainly his fan favourite project: a deliriously crafted genre classic that makes the absolute best of its massive canvas.

And with the near-three-hour movie's gargantuan production, there's inevitably a treasure trove of incredible stories which Mann and his co-stars have revealed over the years.

From the innovative manner in which Mann filmed his iconic set-pieces to the acting tics of his exemplary cast and everything in-between, you need to know these can't-miss Heat facts...

It's no secret that Michael Mann has a penchant for gritty authenticity where his action sequences are concerned, but even so, he went to extreme measures to ensure Heat's iconic bank robbery shootout sequence not only looked real, but sounded it too.

While it's common practise for movie gunfire to be dubbed during post-production, Mann wanted the movie's shootout to sound totally unique in its "realism," and so had microphones placed around the shooting location, allowing him to capture the audio live.

As a result the gunfire doesn't sound as cleanly post-produced as it does in most Hollywood action flicks, ensuring the audience really feels like they're down in the weeds with these characters when it all kicks off.