MANHUNTER: the original tale of Hannibal Lecter
June 17th 2010 15:13
“It’s just you and me now, sport…”
Five years before Jonathan Demme made Silence Of The Lambs, Michael Mann (Heat, The Insider, Thief) created Hannibal Lecter’s original and somewhat unsung first appearance on film screens. This was Mann’s third film and everything you could love about the Mann himself is in full form here. ManHunter, made in 1985, boasts a stellar cast of acting talent and an immersed and lush neo-noir atmosphere of colour and a warm sound scape of synthesisers blanketing this most solid foray into the serial killer genre.
Starring William Petersen (To Live And Die In L.A., Fear), Tom Noonan (Heat, Heavens Gate, The Pledge), Bill Cox (Zodiac, Match Point, The Bourne Identity), Joan Allen (The Upside Of Anger, Pleasantville, Nixon) and Dennis Farina (Out Of Sight, Snatch, Striking Distance) all in inspired form here.
William Petersen plays Will Graham, a police investigator who’s rallied back into police work by fellow investigator Jack Crawford (Dennis Farina), after a traumatising experience. Graham is a detective who embodies an almost method actor like approach to his work, solving each sickly case by learning to take on the feelings and mindset of each serial killer he hunts down. Graham has to now find a serial killer sardonically known as the Tooth Fairy (Tom Noonan) and the first step is to face his demons and seek assistance from Hannibal Lecter, the man who caused Graham’s trauma.
If this story line sounds familiar to the film Red Dragon, it’s because that was actually a remake of ManHunter. ManHunter is by far superior to all other Hannibal films that came after this one. ManHunter is one of the most impressive serial killer films of the 80’s and has a seductive atmosphere of neon greens and blues which saturate the surroundings through out. The colours create an exotic, almost tropical techno-noir look. Each scene strikingly crafted, with so much thought put into it that you could watch the film repeatedly. The technically precise, elegantly shot, aesthetically beautiful looking film gives this serial killer yarn a breathless bit of style, making it one of the most memorable of the decade. Composer Michel Rubini and music group The Reds create a haunting and resonant sound track for the film, complimenting Man Hunter’s neon colours, and adding a heady intoxication to the entire feel of the film. It’s this mood that makes ManHunter special, giving it a unique flavour like no other.
Director Michael Mann has put a ridiculous amount of thought into every single shot. Not a single thing in the frame is without purpose, whether it’s the production design creating opportunities for the framing or the warm flesh tones in the characters faces that balance out the overpowering green and blue. Every single shot in ManHunter elevates the story telling, managing to at once use each shot to highlight the film’s themes and also it’s characters. Each actor in the film does great work. The cast, through out, have a restraint and subtlety to their performances, which is worth mentioning, especially for a film which gives plenty of opportunities to chew up scenery. The script by Mann is tightly structured and flawlessly paced. This is story telling 101 at it’s most lean and mean.
William Petersen really is very engaging as Will Graham, he’s put his heart into this role and unlike his character in his only other major role of the 80’s - To Live And Die In L.A. - he’s the complete opposite in this. There’s a slow burning inwardness to Petersen’s acting, nothing amazing or with nuance, mind you, but just oodles of personality. Like fellow has been super star of the 80’s, Micheal Biehn, Petersen has charisma to burn.
As for Doctor Lecter himself, Bill Cox is a joy to watch, I may be in the minority in saying this (as I so often am) but I really prefer him to Anthony Hopkins. When Cox plays this role, you aren’t able to pigeon hole Lecter the very first moment you see him. Cox plays Hannibal more mysteriously, although in ManHunter, Lecter isn’t as big a part than in the films which come after this. Man Hunter is less interested in Doctor Lecter and more interested in the mind and mystery behind the slaughtered families, which Graham is looking to get to the bottom of.
The real star of ManHunter is Tom Noonan, who plays the serial killer Francis Dollarhyde, a.k.a. the Tooth Fairy. Noonan’s murderous character may be frightening, but what’s even more terrifying is how human he’s played. I really wish Red Dragon hadn’t been made as it scorn’s Man Hunter’s memory. Forget about Ralph Fiennes one note psychopath serial killer who acted like a retarded puppy, when Noonan plays this character it’s a revelation and a lesson in acting, he so full of quietly unpredictable human moments, he does so much with this character that it’s impossible to put him under your thumb as you watch. His complex portrayal of Francis Dollarhyde is something to be seen and his best moment’s reveal a twisted man that repels, but is still distressingly human. It’s a beautiful, frightening and heart breaking performance and Tom Noonan is an actor who is sadly under used.
Between ManHunter’s slick story, it’s expert direction and it’s magnificent ambience, it’s a serial killer film that separates itself from the pack and a film with a lot of history behind it. Whether you want treat it as a curio like precursor to Silence of the Lambs or a classic Michael Mann film, you’ll hopefully find ManHunter to be a first rate thriller and a classy, atmospheric modern noir, that still hasn’t lost any of it’s impact.
Manhunter - a film by Michael Mann
Five years before Jonathan Demme made Silence Of The Lambs, Michael Mann (Heat, The Insider, Thief) created Hannibal Lecter’s original and somewhat unsung first appearance on film screens. This was Mann’s third film and everything you could love about the Mann himself is in full form here. ManHunter, made in 1985, boasts a stellar cast of acting talent and an immersed and lush neo-noir atmosphere of colour and a warm sound scape of synthesisers blanketing this most solid foray into the serial killer genre.
Starring William Petersen (To Live And Die In L.A., Fear), Tom Noonan (Heat, Heavens Gate, The Pledge), Bill Cox (Zodiac, Match Point, The Bourne Identity), Joan Allen (The Upside Of Anger, Pleasantville, Nixon) and Dennis Farina (Out Of Sight, Snatch, Striking Distance) all in inspired form here.
Bill Cox as Hannibal Lecter
William Petersen plays Will Graham, a police investigator who’s rallied back into police work by fellow investigator Jack Crawford (Dennis Farina), after a traumatising experience. Graham is a detective who embodies an almost method actor like approach to his work, solving each sickly case by learning to take on the feelings and mindset of each serial killer he hunts down. Graham has to now find a serial killer sardonically known as the Tooth Fairy (Tom Noonan) and the first step is to face his demons and seek assistance from Hannibal Lecter, the man who caused Graham’s trauma.
If this story line sounds familiar to the film Red Dragon, it’s because that was actually a remake of ManHunter. ManHunter is by far superior to all other Hannibal films that came after this one. ManHunter is one of the most impressive serial killer films of the 80’s and has a seductive atmosphere of neon greens and blues which saturate the surroundings through out. The colours create an exotic, almost tropical techno-noir look. Each scene strikingly crafted, with so much thought put into it that you could watch the film repeatedly. The technically precise, elegantly shot, aesthetically beautiful looking film gives this serial killer yarn a breathless bit of style, making it one of the most memorable of the decade. Composer Michel Rubini and music group The Reds create a haunting and resonant sound track for the film, complimenting Man Hunter’s neon colours, and adding a heady intoxication to the entire feel of the film. It’s this mood that makes ManHunter special, giving it a unique flavour like no other.
Director Michael Mann has put a ridiculous amount of thought into every single shot. Not a single thing in the frame is without purpose, whether it’s the production design creating opportunities for the framing or the warm flesh tones in the characters faces that balance out the overpowering green and blue. Every single shot in ManHunter elevates the story telling, managing to at once use each shot to highlight the film’s themes and also it’s characters. Each actor in the film does great work. The cast, through out, have a restraint and subtlety to their performances, which is worth mentioning, especially for a film which gives plenty of opportunities to chew up scenery. The script by Mann is tightly structured and flawlessly paced. This is story telling 101 at it’s most lean and mean.
William Petersen really is very engaging as Will Graham, he’s put his heart into this role and unlike his character in his only other major role of the 80’s - To Live And Die In L.A. - he’s the complete opposite in this. There’s a slow burning inwardness to Petersen’s acting, nothing amazing or with nuance, mind you, but just oodles of personality. Like fellow has been super star of the 80’s, Micheal Biehn, Petersen has charisma to burn.
As for Doctor Lecter himself, Bill Cox is a joy to watch, I may be in the minority in saying this (as I so often am) but I really prefer him to Anthony Hopkins. When Cox plays this role, you aren’t able to pigeon hole Lecter the very first moment you see him. Cox plays Hannibal more mysteriously, although in ManHunter, Lecter isn’t as big a part than in the films which come after this. Man Hunter is less interested in Doctor Lecter and more interested in the mind and mystery behind the slaughtered families, which Graham is looking to get to the bottom of.
MANHUNTER - rich with visual atmosphere
The real star of ManHunter is Tom Noonan, who plays the serial killer Francis Dollarhyde, a.k.a. the Tooth Fairy. Noonan’s murderous character may be frightening, but what’s even more terrifying is how human he’s played. I really wish Red Dragon hadn’t been made as it scorn’s Man Hunter’s memory. Forget about Ralph Fiennes one note psychopath serial killer who acted like a retarded puppy, when Noonan plays this character it’s a revelation and a lesson in acting, he so full of quietly unpredictable human moments, he does so much with this character that it’s impossible to put him under your thumb as you watch. His complex portrayal of Francis Dollarhyde is something to be seen and his best moment’s reveal a twisted man that repels, but is still distressingly human. It’s a beautiful, frightening and heart breaking performance and Tom Noonan is an actor who is sadly under used.
A terrifying mix of madness and humanity - Tom Noonan as Francis Dollarhyde
Between ManHunter’s slick story, it’s expert direction and it’s magnificent ambience, it’s a serial killer film that separates itself from the pack and a film with a lot of history behind it. Whether you want treat it as a curio like precursor to Silence of the Lambs or a classic Michael Mann film, you’ll hopefully find ManHunter to be a first rate thriller and a classy, atmospheric modern noir, that still hasn’t lost any of it’s impact.
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Comment by JohnDoe
Film & TV on DVD
It's easy to see why Noonan (The Pledge) is always cast as in foreboding roles. Brian Cox (Adaptation) as the good doctor nails it without the ham. Then he always delivers.
Comment by ShaunK
Screen Adventure
Comment by Deni
Abstract Magick
Cinema Herald
It's funny because I met Tom Noonan some time after watching Manhunter and he is one of the nicest and sweetest guys you can ever meet.
Comment by David O'Connell
20/20 Filmsight
Screen Fanatic
You're right about the ambience created by Rubini and co's score Shaun - and it just recently had a full release on CD for the first time too.
Comment by Bryn
Horrorphile
Comment by ShaunK
Screen Adventure
David - I personally prefer Cox, simply for the reason that I dont like Hopkins choices for the character. I also like how subtle Cox is - of course you cant have every one always agree on everything, so it's just a case of what we personally preferred. I'll keep an eye out for the CD - it might just be one of my favourite scores.
Bryn - thanks a lot mate. I've been tempted to see Miami Vice but was always afraid it would lower my opinion of Mann, but it now sounds like it could be a guilty pleasure.
Comment by Matt Shea
Mann is a flippin' classy filmmaker - Vice is average, but I think it's fair enough to just put it down to the guy having a bad day and there are definitely some nice moments.
Comment by JohnDoe
Film & TV on DVD
I actually enjoyed Miami Vice for what it was and think that there was dazzling technique in some of the action sequences...for me the most disappointing Mann film was Public Enemies, just plain flat.