Forget 'Heat': This Gritty Heist Thriller Is Now Streaming for Free

Director Michael Mann's crime classic Heat remains as influential as ever, with a long-awaited sequel finally inching toward production. The star-studded movie will be headlined by Leonardo DiCaprio and Christian Bale, plus several other A-listers who've jumped at the chance to work with Mann as he enters the final stages of his career. In the three decades since Heat's release, scores of other filmmakers have borrowed liberally from its samurai-like depiction of crime and punishment in Los Angeles. Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight is perhaps the most prominent example of a movie influenced directly by Heat, but there have been several more low-key movies as well, including the recent Crime 101. Now, one of the most overlooked cops-and-robbers alternatives to Heat is available to stream for free.

We aren't talking about Den of Thieves or its sequel, Den of Thieves 2: Pantera. The two films, starring Gerard Butler, have proven quite popular at home, and have grossed a combined total of around $150 million worldwide. We're talking, instead, about a heist thriller released just one year after The Dark Knight, headlined by Matt Dillon, Jean Reno, and Laurence Fishburne.