While some movies enjoy immediate and vocal adulation, its a sad fact that many others pass by unnoticed.
Such is the case withManhunter, an adaptation of Thomas Harris 1981 novel,Red Dragon.
BeforeManhunter, Mann was well known as the showrunner on the cop showMiami Vice.
Brian Coxs performance as Lecktor is remarkable.
I wouldnt want them to think I was dwelling on anything morbid.).
When Lecktor gently teases Graham about his early retirement (Youre very tan, Will.
Your hands are rough.
They dont look like cops hands anymore.
In 1986, some critics wrote disparagingly of Petersens performance.
The New York Times, for example, wrote that he played Graham with unmodulated self-absoption.
The film really clicks into gear, though, when the Tooth Fairy is properly introduced.
Someone took a little boy and turned him into a monster.
In a jealous fit, he reaches forward and tears back the vinyl on the vans dashboard.
Its a nerve jangling, striking use of sound effects and music.
In shootingManhunter, Michael Mann was as meticulous and methodical as the films central character.
The brief conversation between Graham and Lecktor alone took two days to shoot.
This attention to detail ultimately took its toll, however.
This perhaps explains why, after a careful build-up,Manhunters climactic shoot-out feels rushed and perfunctory.
William Petersen later revealed that many of the gore effects in this sequence were improvised by Mann himself.
Its faltering conclusion aside,Manhunterstill stands up as a classic procedural thriller.
LikePeeping Tom,it took some time beforeManhunters brilliance was recognised.
The elements of the book gently implied by Michael Mann are explicit in Ratners film.
you might rent or buyManhunteron Blu-ray atBlockbuster.co.uk.
