Michael Mann. Fact, all eight of Mann’s archiveable films below would show up on their respective years’ top 10 if I had to update all my yearly top ten’s today. That’s remarkable. Now with another look at Blackhat, Ali (neither in the archives) or his earlier work that’ll change with his perfect top 10 record (these aren’t his only 8 films of course) but still. He also has a big “M” Masterpiece in Heat (top 100 all-time) and is an auteur with a distinct worldview and aesthetic. His films are bleak, serious, dark films (often shot at night). He’s an auteur with visual consistency and a fairly deep filmography (not many auteurs this far down from #1 on the list have a 6th best film like Thief).
Best film: Heat I don’t think there’s a realistic challenger here to one of the best films of the 1990’s. It’s a modern crime epic told with a controlled yet ambitious scrupulous style and polish. It’s as much Mann’s take on the genre as say Leone’s on the western.
total archiveable films: 8
top 100 films: 1 (Heat)
top 500 films: 3 (Heat, The Last of the Mohicans, The Insider)
top 100 films of the decade: 7 (Thief, Manhunter, The Last of the Mohicans, Heat, The Insider, Collateral, Public Enemies)
most overrated: Absolutely nothing here. Michael Mann isn’t in the TSPDT top 150 directors, and, shockingly, he has only 1 film in the TSPDT top 1000 (Heat but even that isn’t in the top 300). It’s one of the largest gulfs between the consensus and myself. I think the evidence shows (films themselves) pretty clearly that I have the correct reading on Mann.
most underrated: Public Enemies is #722 on TSPDT… OF THE 21ST CENTURY… haha. That’s absurd. It’s one highlight after another starting with the opening prison break. I don’t think it’s on the level of Last of the Mohicans but I think it’s an even more personalized period piece (Mann is so modern) with a patented aesthetic.
gem I want to spotlight: Thief. The urban neon florescent motif so magnificently achieved here. James Caan is great in the lead here as well. It’s not just the lighting here- he uses natural lighting and the magic hour to turn the sky pink. Some of the best shots in Heat or The Insider 15-20 years later are set up here initially.
stylistic innovations/traits: Mann shares certain urban-art shadowy auteur sensibilities with WKW and David Fincher. It’s an interesting juxtaposition with more traditionally (nature) appreciated filmmakers known for great cinematography like Malick, Lean or Leone. Mann has a penchant for neon and florescent lighting, the use of deep blue day for night (which is Nicholas Ray). Mann’s films are serious and bleak in tone—meticulous illumination and often pushed aside by some critics as genre exercises or style exercises (sign me up). Mann has been on the cusp of the digital camera expansion in the 21st century. Many of his subjects pit two men against each other. There are reoccurring shots of the water, just after the dusk, and night city skylines.
top 10
- Heat
- The Last of the Mohicans
- The Insider
- Collateral
- Manhunter
- Thief
- Public Enemies
- Miami Vice
By year and grades
| 1981- Thief | HR |
| 1986- Manhunter | HR |
| 1992- The Last of the Mohicans | MS |
| 1995- Heat | MP |
| 1999- The Insider | MS |
| 2004- Collateral | HR |
| 2006- Miami Vice | R/HR |
| 2009- Public Enemies | HR |
*MP is Masterpiece- top 1-3 quality of the year film
MS is Must-see- top 5-6 quality of the year film
HR is Highly Recommend- top 10 quality of the year film
R is Recommend- outside the top 10 of the year quality film but still in the archives
Thief (1981)
Notes:
Opens with shots of city streets during rainy night
2:02 incredible crane shot of fire escape in alleyway
3:38 James Caan lead character Frank is breaking into a safe which is his specialty
7:58 green, blue, and green neon lighting in streets
11:34 gorgeous painterly imagery with purple and blue horizon
15:08 Frank speaks with girlfriend Jessie (Tuesday Weld)
17:03 green and blue mise en scene
20:54 using two men shot shoulder down in foreground to frame Frank in the background putting a gun to a man’s head who owes him $185,000
26:01 Frank meeting Leo (Robert Prosky) in wide angle shot
27:25 shallow focus in back and forth conversation with Frank and Leo
28:03 high angle shot with blue light patterns
28:50 Frank and Leo
42 min diner scene with Frank trying to convince Jessie to start a life with him complete with a strange collage while Frank tells her his life story
45:24 split screen with Frank and pay phone and shallow focus lights in background
47:58 cars in junkyard obstructing frame
52 min court scene with not-so-subtle secret sign language indicating the judge to be corrupt
57 min adoption attempt fails miserably
1:05:00 Leo and Frank in dimly lit room with Leo continuing to show Frank the benefits of working for him as he eventually gets Frank to admit he wants to adopt a kid
1:06:58 blue/silver tinted frame as Frank and Jessie go to hospital to check on Frank’s friend
1:15:48 Frank beat up by crooked police
1:17:09 low angle shots of crooked police towering over Frank who refuses to pay them
1:34:03 medium close up on Jessie and their baby at the beach
1:35:38 camera slowly push in on water at beach
1:39:00 Frank and Leo argument
1:40:17 neon lights reflecting off of Frank’s car
1:41:12 gorgeous car lot lit up at night
1:43:08 low angle shot of Leo towering over Frank followed by the same shot with inverted image of Leon standing over Frank and giving speech
1:51:37 stunning shot with neon lit club just before Frank blows it up
1:52:50 another magnificent shot
1:56:36 over the shoulder POV as Frank slowly makes his way through Leo’s house
1:57:54 slow motion shooting death
Ending does not give closure
Thoughts:
There is a crane shot near the opening in the alley of Chicago streets at night. Shortly after you see Caan’s Frank working his trade as a safe cracker, and get some beautiful shots complete with neon lighting in streets, this opening 10 minutes give a preview of the films strengths
This is an excellent crime thriller with perfect pacing and mix of action and drama
While there are some double crosses late in the film, for the most part the plot is easy to follow and relatively simple. This is a character study of a career criminal who wants something more to his life than just working jobs, he makes moves on an attractive woman who he convinces to try to start a family with. More than anything Caan’s Frank does not want to feel indebted to anyone and rejects the attempts of Leo to join his organization
The neon lighting is gorgeous, there are some incredible shots throughout the film but especially in the last 30 minutes including the parking lot lit up at night just after the 101 minute mark, another between the 111 and 112 minute mark, another just before the 113 minute mark
The dialogue is a weakness at times, the crooked police taunting Frank come off like High School bullies, thankfully it is not prevalent enough to do any serious damage. Some of the dialogue between the Caan character and Tuesday Weld is a little clunky even though that scene gives insight to the Caan character. The adoption scene shows how out of his element he is in mainstream society
Perhaps it is a bit insulting to say this is a dress rehearsal for Heat but in a way, it is, and that is more a testament to the greatness of Heat than an insult here. There are many similarities stylistically, thematically, and narratively
Tangerine Dream score is crucial to the atmosphere, the film is often at its best in moments with dialogue free stretches
Verdict: MS/HR
Additional points I meant to add
Mann uses high angle and low angle shots effectively in sequences that display a power imbalance such as the crooked police officers towering over Frank even though he does not give in to their demands and of course the inverted shot of Leo standing over Frank
Robert Prosky as Leo is excellent, the aforementioned sequence at the 103-minute mark is chilling as Leo drops the caring fatherly persona and shows the ruthless mob boss persona. Prosky gives the standout performance along with Caan
@James Trapp-I think it’s Willie Nelson, but Prosky is fine. Imo, Prosky came off evil from the very start.
@Malith – Willie Nelson was solid. I agree that Prosky’s Leo does not hide his true nature well but I think that is how the character is meant to be played
It’s clear when Caan and Prosky first meet and the way Prosky talks to Caan with his smile that he is very shady(Caan then replies with his I’ll go to a country club line if I want to talk to people). Mann’s villains in subsequent films are stronger imo. Granted I haven’t seen The Keep. I saw it was released in 4K recently. Maybe you can watch it and share your thoughts here. It’s the only Mann I have not seen.
@Malith – to be honest, I think I am skipping that one. Between the poor reviews, the lack of free places to watch since I do not already own it, and the lack of HD quality versions available for a reasonable price I just do not have much incentive. I have the following ten films planned (I have already posted my review for Thief of course). I am very excited for this Study.
Thief
Manhunter
The Last of the Mohicans
Heat
The Insider
Ali
Collateral
Miami Vice
Public Enemies
Ferrari
@James – Blackhat is a fine film and I think it should be coveted as well. Haven’t seen the Keep
@James Trapp watch Blackhat. It’s an archivable
@James Trapp-Blackhat is a better film than Ali imo. And has bigger highs than Ferrari. People are underrating it because I guess it’s tough for them to take a hacker as an action hero and Hemsworth is more the latter type than the former type.
So I watched all of Michael Mann films aside from The Keep (1983). Does anyone know where to find a good copy of that film?
I would rank his films as this:
1.Heat(1995)-MP
2.The Last of the Mohicas(1992)-MP
3.Thief(1981)-MS
4.Manhunter(1986)-HR/MS.
5.The Insider(1999)-HR/MS
6.Collateral(2004)-R/HR
7.Public Enemies(2009)-R/HR
8.Miami Vice(2006)-R/HR
9.Ferrari(2023)-R
10.Blackhat(2015)-R
11.Ali(2001)-Not Recommended
And the performances:
1.Russell Crowe-The Insider
2.James Caan-Thief
3.William Petersen-Manhunter
4.Daniel Day-Lewis-The Last of the Mohicans
5.Jamie Foxx-Collateral
6.Robert De Niro-Heat
7.Adam Driver-Ferrari
8.Al Pacino-The Insider
9.Christopher Plummer-The Insider
10.Tom Noonan-Manhunter
11.Al Pacino-Heat
12.Tom Cruise-Collateral
13.Mario Van Peebles-Ali
14.Marion Cotillard-Public Enemies
15.Penelope Cruz-Ferrari
16.Wes Studi-The Last of the Mohicans
17.Johnny Depp-Public Enemies
18.Willie Nelson-Thief
19.Stephen Lang-Manhunter
20.Stephen Lang-Public Enemies
21.Brian Cox-Manhunter
22.Joan Allen-Manhunter
23.Madeleine Stowe-The Last of the Mohicans
24.Robert Prosky-Thief
25.John Ortiz-Miami Vice
Summary-
*Thief(1981)
-Both the film and Michael Mann blasts out of the gate with that safe breaking opening scene
-Best performance of James Caan capped off by the monologue to Tuesday Weld in the cafe
-The scenes with Willie Nelson are heartbreaking
-Both the romantic subplot and thief hunting procedure is minimal which is a good thing. They are expanded in his later films
-Great atmosphere throughout. Almost all the scenes are shot at night.
-The final crane shot with Caan walking into the distance
*Manhunter(1986)
-Very deep cast all doing very solid work from Petersen to Noonan, Joan Allen, Cox, Farina, Lang.
-Petersen is the standout as the lead here. He has a great blowup scene with Dennis Farina near the end and is fully immersed in the character. Also the great “it’s now between me and you sport” line which is actually used by the Chris Hemsworth character in Blackhat as a homage. Petersen was the lead in Firedkin’s To Live and Die in L.A in 1985 and this here a year later. Then not much after. Apparently he was close to getting main roles in both Goodfellas and Who Framed Roger Rabbit. He and Joan Allen are part of the cast in 2000’s The Contender which is one of the roles Joan Allen was Oscar nominated for.
-The interiors are all white in the Production Design which I love especially in the Brian Cox scenes
-The dedication to shooting the Kim Greist interior scenes inside the house with blue lighting and the Tom Noonan scenes inside his house with this rough part light green lighting
-That scene of Joan Allen and the tiger. Wow
-The villain played by Tom Noonan is introduced torturing the Stephen Lang character which is a great scene
-The final shootout could have been executed better. Apparently they ran out of budget. And the Hearbeat song used at the end is a disaster
*The Last of The Mohicans(1992)
-Firstly, its too long since I last watched this so I don’t remember every detail/performance
-Day-Lewis transforms into this role which is his first big role since My Left Foot. There is nothing common between the two characters which is crazy. The great “Stay Alive, I will come back” line.
-Not a single flow I remember. Shows Michael Mann’s range as a filmmaker. It’s still the same genre but going from the urban, mostly night set films to a period setting like this. It’s a blessing digital photography wasn’t used in 1992
-The final showdown is amazing which is actually between Wes Studi & Russell Means character not Day-Lewis which is interesting
-The ending shot with all 3 faces(Day-Lewis, Stowe, Means) captured in the same frame
*Heat(1995)
-The pinnacle of Michael Mann’s career in the ultimate thief vs. cop film.
-The highlights are the reason I think that makes this his best film. From the opening heist scene to the bank heist scene to the final shootout and quite a few others
-The audio design in the gunfights are revelatory
-Pacino goes overboard in a few scenes but otherwise both De Niro and Pacino are equally strong
-Again the blue lighting is used in the home scenes involving the De Niro character and again mostly full white interiors like Manhunter
-The final shootout and frame is great at the airfield even though De Niro twitches a bit after his character is dead if I’m not wrong
*The Insider(1999)
-I think the best performance in any Michael Mann film from Russell Crowe. He is so authentic and real. I have no idea how an A-list Hollywood actor can pull off a scene like when Crowe’s character rolls down an alley after stumbling on his feet going after a car. He is just not good at action or chasing after people.
-I think the first half is stronger when it is focused on Crowe’s character rather than the second half which is focused on Pacino’s character
-The first half is Pacino trying to convince Crowe to give the interview and become a whistle blower. The second half is Pacino trying to air the conducted segment with opposition from his own company and even his very close friend played by Christopher Plummer
-Pacino is mostly in his element but he has a great scene when he is gobsmacked when Plummer sides with the others
-Plummer is very strong as well in a key supporting role and has a great scene where he blows off when they edit down his conducted interview
-Quite a few great suspense scenes in the first half involving the Crowe character with deadly silence and probably the best scene in the second half is another suspense scene involving Crowe with a large mural when he is contemplating suicide
-Shows Michael Mann’s range as a filmmaker. This doesn’t have any of his trademaek violence or action
-The cinematography in the scene when Pacino resides near a beach on holidays and tries to and eventually contact Crowe’s character is great.
-I thought the ending sort of fizzles out and lacks any urgency.
*Ali(2001)
-Very disappointing film coming from Mann and a biopic about a fascinating figure like Muhammad Ali
-Will Smith is simply awful. He is just not a dramatic actor and is overly serious in every scene
-I think Mario Van Peebles is the standout actor. It’s almost a two hander between Ali and Malcolm X for the first hour. I love the scene and close up of him when he visits Ali at night and gives a long monologue.
-The Malcolm X death scene is great(although I could do without the blinking after dying part) but the problem is we are not even at the halfway mark.
-In the rest of the cast Foxx is funny in a few scenes, Giancarlo Esposito has a good scene(although I had no idea he was playing Ali’s father, I thought that was his brother), Joe Morton as well(although he disappears after a bizzare and terrible slow motion kill scene), Voight doesn’t really have to act per se but does a solid job becoming a charater although the makeup department did a terrible job on his face.
-The Voight interview scenes are the interview scenes with Plummer in The Insider
-The 2nd Joe Frazier fight is left out which is strange
-The female characters drag the film. They start a relationship with Ali, then get angry with him after a while. The breakup scenes are oddly both after a fight resting in the cooldown room which is terrible screenwriting. Although the second one doesn’t really breakup after all.
-Box-office flop and not a very flattering potrayal of Ali. A womanizer, trash talker without any cool(which is why he was great after all).
-The other major problem with this film aside from the Will Smith performance is the very poor Sound Mixing. Very obsessive post-production work from Mann manipulating every scene & dialogue with music, even two strands of music within the same scene. The music from one scene carries out to the next scene as well which is worse.
-There is rough digital photography in a few scenes as well
-Few decent back of the head silhouette shots
-The main highlight is the boxing scenes and they are executed well overall.
*Collateral(2004)
-Even though it may not have the highlights of most other Mann films it is a very engaging narrative focused on the travails of Jamie Foxx’s taxi driver in one night. Bizzare he was nominated for Supporting.
-It’s also a coming of age story of Foxx’s character
-Foxx is very good at portraying the everyman, the scene where he tells Cruise he just want to chill rather than go on is really good.
-Cruise is perfectly cast playing against type as the suave hitman
-Bardem appears in one scene as the head boss which is a great scene and Ruffalo plays an interesting Latino character as well who is surprisingly shot dead sooner than I expected
-Cruise’s character is too technical shooting two rounds to the chest, then one to the head which is what leads to his demise while Foxx is shooting everywhere.
-And to the major problem with the film imo is the ending of Cruise’s character. They make the decision to make him a hero to make him more friendly to the audience with that talk at the end rather than going for the more serious route which more or less kills the arc of his character
*Miami Vice(2006)
-Another of many Michael Mann films in the 21st Century with lukewarm reviews just like Ali, Blackhat and Public Enemies and all of them are understandable to an extent. All of them have major flaws. Collateral is the only universally loved film of his in the 21st Century.
-However this has become very overrated over time and is now ranked 2nd best Mann on TSPDT(What?)
-The most Michael Mann film of all of his films in most aspects
-So one of the misses here is the non-existent dynamic between Foxx and Farrell. They are not really friends or rivals. Each of them gets romantic subplots with identical shower scenes, both are shot in a light green background. If Mann is not interested in this dynamic at all, this film would be better off with one single protagonist
-Oddly enough Mann does do that by sidelining Foxx for the Farrell-Gong Li story in the 2nd half.
-The romantic subplots are not Mann’s strongest suit. It’s not helped by Gong Li’s poor command of English and she looks nervous in many of her scenes as well. Naomie Harris isn’t much better. I actually know nothing about her character or who she is.
-Like many Mann films most of the interiors in the houses in this film are painted white
-Too much dialogue in many scenes. The Eddie Marsden interrogation scene and the meeting with John Ortiz which is shot in front of a nice mural etc.
-Both the freeing of Harris’ character scene and the final shootout is great. The audio design once again is exemplary in the shootout.
-Just like Foxx, Barry Shabaka Henley’s 3rd Collaboration with Mann and he is always solid to fill out the cast.
-Fails to do anything with the Luis Tosar character who is the more intimidating villain. But one gunfight is more than enough with one of the villains.
-Foxx was apparently a big issue on set and it shows in some scenes where he stares vacantly like his head is not in the film and they dropped another shootout(probably the one with the Luis Tosar character) because they couldn’t keep Foxx in that location which I think is a blessing in disguise. But some of these scenes are still left in the film oddly enough. The ending is fine.
*Public Enemies(2009)
-Again a film focused on characters breaking the law like his debut Thief but the fate of his protagonist here is tragic unlike Thief
-In many ways Mann’s worst film. The cinematography is the worst of any of his films and the sound mixing is another major problem. TSPDT even ranks this below The Keep and Blackhat (underrated)
-I think the film is buoyed by the highlights which ranks with Mann’s very best. From the opening Prison setpiece to the shootout in the woods which lasts for like 12 minutes to the bank raid with Graham to both the endings.
-If someone points to Spinotti as the main reason for Mann’s sucess this diminishes that notion considerably. Spinotti uses these yellow filters and some images appear to be sharpened in Post Production and none of these choices work. On top of that most scenes are not well lit at all
-And just like Ali, Mann is obessed with the Post Production Sound Mixing in this film. He manipulates every scene with dialogue & music. Often two different music strands in the same scene like in the love making scene between Depp & Cotillard. And worse of all some music from the previous scene carries on to the next scene. Like in the start of the great last scene between Lang & Cotillard
-Both the endings pack a punch. Which I think is Mann’s very best. The killing of Depp’s character and the Bye-Bye Blackbird meeting between Lang & Cotillard.
-Stephen Lang should be in every film. Both of his Mann collaborations (this and Manhunter) are great. The range in those two roles are crazy. This came in the same year as his main villain role in Avatar. A great year for him.
-Cotillard probably gives the best performance even with that strange accent and lack of depth(not helped by teasing her questioning Depp’s character in an earlier scene involving a horse race)
-Strange 10 second role for Carey Mulligan. Not sure why Depp leaves her for Cotillard
-Miscasting issues(Crudrup as J. Hoover, and the one who plays Depp’s lawyer is awful in one scene, Brendan Fraser in Killers of the Flower Moon look great compared to this)
-Stephen Graham is great at playing the loudmouth gangster(this and The Irishman), Jason Clarke is excellent as well, John Ortiz has a good scene
-Strange choice to use Depp’s face on his body double when he is jumping over a bank counter
-The execution of many scenes here is strange. Depp having an arm around somebody while captured, one guy talking cool with him after he is captured and in prison, the lawyers and judge bantering in court, Bale carrying off Cotillard, Depp walking casually in the investigation office while someone is actually there etc.
-Aside from Cotillard, the other two main roles are played by Depp and Bale and there are issues with their characters that are hard to overlook. Bale’s character doesn’t have any depth(in one scene he is enjoying the torturing, in other scenes he is sensitive like when he sees the two killed passengers and carrying off Cotillard, and Mann seems to loose interest in him and substitues him for Lang who plays a more interesting character). Depp is very fine but there is a shortcut choice to have a Romanian lady subplot included to move along the plot which comes out of nowhere. And even in the final scenes he seems happy with his fate in the theater, then searches for his gun and tries to run in the kill scene.
*Blackhat(2015)
-Very underrated film. I think many people are turned off by casting well-built Chris Hemsworth as a hacker and the implausability of a hacker being very good at shooting people and hand to hand combat as well as having a good knowledge about medicine
-Hemsworth performance is solid but emotionally devoid like the characters in Miami Vice
-John Ortiz’ 3rd collaboration with Mann after playing the villain in Miami Vice and again appearing in Public Enemies but he doesn’t have much to do here
-Tang Wei is a striking beauty but her command of English is weak. This is no different than casting Gong Li in Miami Vice. These are great East Asian actresses but they need more practice with English especially when they are supposed to play intelligence
-Strangely the English of the actor who plays Tang Wei’s brother is very good. Hard to believe they grew up together.
-Even without English fluency issues, this is a very narrow view on East Asian women by Mann. They are intelligent but falls for the handsome guy in an instant and in the case of Gong Li, got to where she is by sleeping with everyone. Both these romantic subplots are poorly handled regardless of casting.
-Some notably poor dialogue. Hemsworth speaking about Santa Claus in one interrogation scene, Viola Davis with her “Do I look like Chica?”
-There are highlights aplenty. A long shootout scene in the middle, the shootout where Tang Wei’s character’s brother and Davis dies, the finale is shot ambitiously with a ton of extras and shallow focus and slow motion, the beautiful skyline in one scene with the helicopter
-Mann’s trademark audio design in the shootouts and those behind the ear extreme closeups to build suspense. One when Hemsworth is released into free air in an airfield.
-The villain is very poor and not intimidating. Very poor casting. After all, Hemsworth and him are in the same profession.
*Ferrari(2023)
-Very straightforward film for Mann I think. And maybe the least Michael Mann of all of his films.
-Both Driver and Cruz are superb I think and complements each other. Driver blows up in one scene talking about his deceased son but is reserved overall and is very warm in the scenes with his illogical son(the kid actor is fantastic) including the end.
-Cruz is given a thankless role but she is fierce and I love the way she scolds Driver and others with a straight face rather than skaking her head like many Latino and Black actors. But the scene with Ferrari’s mother maybe too much.
-Woodley is poorly cast but not an issue to dwell about. The film is focused on the relationship between Ferrari and her son when Driver is with Woodley.
-Some weak Visual Effects in car crashes(especially takeoffs) and the dummy car going down the cliff and stopping is obvious. But not many flaws.
-The subject matter is still about an extremly skilled individual at the top of his profession which is probably why this interested Mann
-Focuses on one event/race rather than a whole bunch of events in life like Ali and that is a good thing.
-The shift to the POV of a family out of nowhere is too obvious
-The camera just drifts away after the big car crash which is bizzare
-The tracking shot along the road is tough to watch
-Decent ending going back to the church visiting scene(this time with the illogical son) and a nice frame at the end
I think the biggest problem with both Miami Vice and Blackhat are the female love interests. They are so poorly written ,developed and miscast(T.Wei, G.Li) even by Michael Mann standards. These parts completely broke my engagement with both films. How can you expect an Asian Actress(both are undoubtedly great in their own language) who is not fluent in English at all to portray intelligence? And a ton of dialogue? And that is only one of the problems. They hook up with the protagonist in no more than 5 seconds. And is a complete distraction to the main plotline. And now unlike his past works like Thief, Manhunter Mann decides to make all the love interests badass including N.Harris and that too after devoiding the protagonists of the emotion they used to have. These are absolute slogs to get through when even the love interests don’t have any vulnerability or seem like real characters. But still his direction is excellent and both films have really good shootouts. And a large canvas finale in Blackhat which is interesting but very very implausible. I mean Hemsworth is very overpowered here. An expert in coding, shooting, combat, medicine. What a versatile man.
M.Mann films I have seen ranked:
1.Heat(1995)-MP
2.The Last of the Mohicans(1992)-MP
3.Thief(1981)-MS
4.Manhunter(1986)-HR/MS
5.The Insider(1999)-HR/MS
6.Collateral(2004)-R/HR
7.Miami Vice(2006)-R/HR
8.Blackhat(2015)-R/HR
9.Ferrari(2023)-R
Would Mann’s legacy/body of work be stronger if he did a film like Last of the Mohicans again? It has the same themes (good vs evil, action genre) but in a completely different setting to his other works which are often urban crime thrillers often set at night time. I think The Last of the Mohicans proved his range.
That close up shot of Jamie Foxx included here just above the top 10 ranking is from Miami Vice I believe not Collateral.
@Drake-Where would you rank Ferrari in Mann’s filmography?
@Lionel – haven’t sat down and reranked Mann’s films- but certainly not towards the top
@Drake-Do you think Blackhat (2015) is a bad film? How many times have you seen it?
@Lionel – I do not think it is a bad film- and twice
@Drake-Interesting. What is the reason you think it is not up to snuff?
My ranking of Mann`s films that I`ve seen:
1. Heat MP
2. The Last of Mohicans MS
3. The Insider MS
4. Manhunter MS
5. Thief MS
6. Collateral HR
7. Miami Vice R/HR
8. Public Enemies R/HR
15 Best Performances
1. De Niro- Heat 5
2. Cruise- Collateral 5
3. Crowe- The Insider 5
4. Caan- Thief 5
5. Pacino- Heat 5
6. Pacino- The Insider 5
7. Plummer- The Insider 5
8. Day-Lewis- The Last of Mohicans 5
9. Studi- The Last of Mohicans 4.5
10. Cotillard- Public Enemies 4.5
11. Prosky- Thief 4.5
12. Stowe- The Last of Mohicans 4.5
13. Cox- Manhunter 4
14. Petersen- Manhunter 4
15. Foxx- Collateral 4
@Drake-Any thoughts on Ferrari? Where would you put it in the Michael Mann canon?
Has anyone seen Ferrari? And if so how would you grade?
@James-R feels like the cap. It’s a good story but there isn’t a whole lot here. There are a couple of deep focus shots switching focus during conversations but that’s about it. The camera is overly shaky at times(especially in the first part) and all the 3 car crash scenes are brutal. At least the first impact/take-off.
Really like Ferrari despite the slow start and some overdone meledrama.
“again in Collateral – both actors nominated– both partly thanks to Mann”
Tom Cruise wasn’t nominated for Collateral sadly. Did Collateral got a big downgrade recently? It is ranked 4th here. But I didn’t see it in the top 1000 while Thief and Manhunter were in the top 500.
@ Matthew. Both of them are there. The book goes into much detail about their lives before the film’s events.
Hello Drake. Hope you are doing well.
Heat 2 came out recently. If it is made into a film, who would you like to see as Neil and Vincent?
Are you sure that Neil and Vincent are apart of the Heat 2 story? I heard otherwise.
@AP- Doing well here thanks- hope the same for you. I saw this- haha. Tough question. I stumbled upon this and sort of like these (or most of these) https://www.slashfilm.com/968791/actors-wed-love-to-see-in-the-heat-2-movie/
I’ve been on a mini Mann binge the past couple weeks and just finished Mohicans for the first time. (Was a nice to surprise to see Drake’s mind also went immediately to Barry Lyndon during several compositions (he said this on the Mohicans page)
My ratings so far:
Heat – MP
The Last of the Mohicans – MS/MP
Collateral – HR
Thief – HR
Not really sure which I would give the edge to between Collateral and Thief-it’s close. Curious to see if Drake reveals his updated rankings post-his Mann study
When I’ve finished his entire filmography I might put together an performance ranking too
@Matthew – sounds good so far
1. Heat – easy choice, MP
2. Manhunter, MS
3. Collateral, MS
4. The Insider, MS
5. Thief, HR
Going to check out Public Enemies next
@James here’s mine
1. Heat – MP
2. The Last of the Mohicans – MP
3. The Insider – MS
4. Thief – HR
5. Manhunter – HR
6. Blackhat – HR
7. Collateral – R
8. Miami Vice – R
9. Public Enemies – Fringe R
Finally got to Public Enemies and Miami Vice
1. Heat – easy choice, MP
2. Manhunter, MS
3. Collateral, MS
4. The Insider, MS
5. Thief, HR
6. Public Enemies, HR
7. Miami Vice, Not Recommend
Public Enemies was a pleasant surprise as it exceeded my expectations from critic reviews, the consistent low angle shots were effective along with the score and the performances. It certainly is not at the level of The Assassination of Jesse James… but it does successfully use the mythology of a legend effectively in a similar manner. I have always been a fan of Depp and I think he does some great work here. But more importantly I think this is well directed and suspenseful.
Miami Vice is another story, there are some impressive shots including create close up face shots. However… the story/plot was so incredibly generic that it could have been created by a computer. I love Colin Farrell in many films (The New World, Widows, Minority Report, In Bruge) but here I just could not get into this character I don’t know if it was the long hair or some of the terrible dialogue but it just did not work. Foxx was better but still a generic character himself. And yes I realize that some of this is due to adapting from a well known work but after watching Collateral which was such a fascinating 1-2 punch of such interesting and original characters with Vincent (Cruise) and Max (Foxx) this just cannot measure up
In fact I did not find any characters remotely interesting, it’s a film I have no interest in every revisiting (I don’t say that often)
@James Trapp https://www.theringer.com/2018/2/7/16984482/miami-vice-jamie-foxx-colin-farrell
@Drake –
This is so funny I love Bill Simmons! I am a big NBA fan from age 9. Lakers are my favorite team so Simmons of course trashes them a lot as he is a die hard Celtics fan but I love his writing. He is master of mixing sports, movies, and pop culture. Chris Ryan is great too, the Ringer has a lot of great movie podcasts. I don’t know if you listen to them regularly but they don’t focus much on the technical aspects of filmmaking like this site but it is great as entertainment. I would recommend the hilarious podcast they do on Fatal Attraction and of course:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BxDwzCeTl8Y
@James Trapp- haha yeah I’m a big fan of the rewatchables and have listened to just about every episode. I had to jab back a little with it being an official “rewatchable” (which I agree- it is) with this geting the rare “I wouldn’t rewatch this” designation from you
@Drake – that is funny, but yeah I don’t throw that one out very often but it just did not click for me at all despite the strong cast and it being a Michael Mann film; it had all the necessary pieces but just fell flat for me. It lacked the intricate cop/criminal dynamic of Heat, the fascinating and original lead characters of Collateral, the high stakes for Caan in Thief. I suppose it had some elements of these things but they were not done nearly as well.
@James Trapp – Well I would encourage you to see it again at some point. I say this as someone who has seen it 6 times- but I was very disappointed in 2006 when I saw it for the first time in theater.
Love Simmons and co. If you understand the sport reference it makes it 100% funnier as well.
Oddly enough I was watching the Collateral rewatchable last night (didn’t finish it but got about half way) and there was an insane story about Cruise. https://imgur.com/a/UUOxKmz Here’s the link to the clip. This is DDL levels of method haha.
Drake,
Going by the rankings on this page I assume this was prior to your Mann study.
If you ranked Mann’s films now what would your list look like?
Just finally got to The Insider, very impressive, but still need to see The Last of the Mohicans, Public Enemies, and Miami Vice.
@Pedro – Definitely going to get to Thief soon.
As for Heat (1995) I found I posted this on the 1995 page:
“the film is more than just a heist plot it is a character study of criminal and a look at the co-
dependence between the criminal and crime fighter so the various storylines have purpose
beyond plot. I thought De Niro gives a great performance, I’ll give you that Pacino goes a little
overboard at times though I still enjoyed his performance.
the opening scene and 2nd robbery scene a little more than 1/2 way through are incredible
on a technical level and just absolutely breathtaking
De Niro’s performance is much more internalized, for instance the scene where him and his crew is out with the wives/girlfriends and De Niro is clearly feeling alone (calls the Amy Brenneman character right after). He is always thinking/calculating and he conveys it largely without words, incredibly impressive stuff plus he has his fair share of great lines/speeches.”
The overall point I was getting at is that I don’t think there are really any wasted or unnecessary scenes even if there are scenes that are not essential to the plot. An exception would probably be the side plot of Waingro being a serial killer, we already see that he’s a monster when he unnecessarily kills the hapless security guard in the opening scene so I don’t think we need to learn Waingro just happens to be a serial killer in his spare time, seems like overkill to me (no pun intended)
@James-Trapp – Oh, sure, I don’t think there are wasted or unnecessary scenes, but I think there are scenes that are shot rather blandly, at least more than Thief. And you could say that’s because the film is almost three hours long, and that’s true, but then you could say something along those lines about any movie. It’s like: oh, well.
@Pedro – I still need to see Thief so I cannot weigh in there but I am curious what do you mean there is quite a bit of quiet time?
@James-Trapp – What I mean by quiet time is scenes in which there isn’t a lot (or anything) stylistically significant going on. You should check out Thief, it’s a great film!
I just got to Heat in my Michael Mann study, and, while I think it is a wonderful film, I’m starting to think Thief is slightly better. Heat is gigantic in scope, but there’s quite a bit of quiet time, whereas in Thief pretty much every shot is visually impressive. Does anybody else have the same opinion? Or a reason to disagree? I’d love to hear it.
@Pedro-I would rank Thief higher if not for the shootout in Heat outdoors.
You absolutely are more accurate in your assessment of Mann. Well done.
@Kent Crosier- appreciate it- thanks
I just saw Collateral today. What a phenomenal film. Cruise’s psychopath character was acted out so well. The character development for Jamie Foxx’s character was incredible as well; he went from a timid taxi driver to brave and bold. The nighttime cinematography, the music, the direction etc, everything was brilliant.
@Azman- Agreed here. I’m doing a Michael Mann study this summer.
@Drake – Just curious if you’ve started the Michael Mann study, I’m planning on watching Manhunter (1986) this weekend, it’s on Criterion in the Neo-Noir collection.
@James Trapp- I have started. I’m up through The Insider now. It has been a great study, and yes, I caught Manhunter on Criterion. Post coming for it and the others soon.
@Drake – Did you watch Heat and Thief for the study? And are you going to watch Collateral?
@RK- yes, going to see everything I can find. I have already seen Thief, Manhunter, Last of the Mohicans, Heat, and The Insider… next will be Ali, Collateral, Miami Vice, Public Enemies and then Blackhat,
@Drake – awesome, look forward to it
Since Ali isn’t in the archives as well is there a single archivable film from Will Smith?
@Malith- at least one- Six Degrees of Separation from 1993 https://thecinemaarchives.com/2017/11/06/1993/
My ranking of his films :
1. Heat – MP.
2. Collateral – MS.
3.The Insider – MS.
4. Thief – MS.
5. The Last of the Mohicans – HR.
6. Public Enemies – HR
7. Miami Vice – HR.
8. Manhunter – HR.
9. Ali – R.
10. Blackhat – R.
11. The Keep – Not in the Archives.
@KidCharlemagne – thanks for sharing- really good stuff here.
Why do you think his films dont get enough award attention?De Niro in Heat,Pacino in Heat and the Insider,Day Lewis in Last of the Mohicans,James Caan in Thief,Tom Cruise in Collateral all got snubbed at the oscars.