Manhunter

By 1986, Director Michael Mann was about as recognizable of a name as the fictional character of Hannibal which wasn’t very, having only made a few films including Theif and some work on the Miami Vice TV show. Hannibal Lector is a character who would be consistently adapted on the big screen from the multiple novels of Thomas Harris. Coming before 2002’s remake titled Red Dragon, Coming before 2001’s Hannibal and also before the massive critical success of The Silence of the Lambs from Jonathan Demme we received Manhunter. Marking the first time audiences would see the fictional killer portrayed by Brian Cox them later by Anthony Hopkins but this would set a trend of more depraved criminals being portrayed in movies and not limited to novels. While unsuccessful at the box office Manhunter has received praise in later years since its release for dynamic use of colors to convey moods as well as grounded performances that highlight detailed police work and some of the anxieties that come along with it. You could argue there is some elegance on display here despite the detaching nature of the dark crimes which is something that often lacks in other Hannibal appearances. This has so good elements that helped set the groundwork for darker crime thrillers to come but is still a definite product of the 80’s that holds it back from taking it further like the next iterations did. Will Graham is a former FBI agent who’s currently living quietly with his family after a previous encounter with Hannibal Lector caused him to have a mental breakdown. Years after these events a new serial killer is on the loose with no real progress made they ask Graham if he’d be willing to lend his expertise which he does. It isn’t before long that Will is fully entrenched back into this taxing environment where he risks both personal and mental safety for not just himself but his family included in hopes of bringing this horrific crimes to and end like he’s done once before. Shame on me for this being the only film iteration of Hannibal Lector that I haven’t seen until now even though I do enjoy Michael Mann thoroughly I just always assumed it would be like 2002’s Red Dragon which was both true and wildly wrong. The general story is of course the same following the 1981 book in both cases but Manhunter has a undeniable style it’s going for with the vibrant variations of colors along with the electric synth rock sound of the 80’s. While Mann never goes quite as graphic as the early 2000s remakes there are certainly glimpses and the general outline of the crimes remains the clear inspiration for most of what follows. Of course I’m sure elements from the books were in play but I had to imagine this served as inspiration for nearly every character involved with bringing these books to life. I definitely enjoyed the more family focused exploration of Will Graham and showing how it’s changed both him and his family being this close and I also enjoyed the final showdown/ending it just felt like an extremely 80’s product accompanied with romantic beach ending and all. Most of this works for me since I’m a sucker for crime based dialogue especially when it’s over styled one way of the other but I felt it was pretty good all around and I can appreciate the groundwork it set. Manhunter released in the mid 80’s and brought an almost instant shift from cop action to forensic analysis detective thrillers that would go on to dominate both movies and television in the 90’s and through the 2000’s. While far from perfect, this was an important early showcase on how to display some dark content on the screen from the page at a time where this subject matter was seldom in movies.