Michael Mann

[william kent]

Have you not seen any Michael Mann films, Craner?

 

[craner]

Have you not seen any Michael Mann films, Craner?

Last of the Mohicans and Heat.

 

[william kent]

Surprised you've never seen Thief or Manhunter. What did you think of Heat?

 

[craner]

The heist is fantastic. The smeary atmospheric shots of L.A. are good. I liked the music. But it gets far too distracted by the fact that Pacino and De Nero are in the same film. The basic idea - cops and criminals, they're basically the same! - seemed trite. It was too full of itself. Nobody wants to see Natalie Portman slit her wrists. Other things I can't remember now. It's one of my mother's favourite films.

 

[william kent]

The smeary atmospheric shots of L.A. are good.

“I love Los Angeles. Eighty per cent of it is unexplored. People who make films don’t go out into the city. They think they do but they don’t. You just drive down the right streets and you’ll see images of alienation. But they are beautiful images of alienation. They become paradoxical but they present themselves to you.”
-- Michael Mann

Collateral's good for shots of LA too.

 

[blockhead]

name another filmmaker who has used in-a-gadda-da-vida successfully in a movie

 

[blockhead]

alex cox calls mann an “incorrigible faddist” before introducing manhunter on moviedrome lol. 2 years after making repo man!

 

[IdleRich]

The heist is fantastic. The smeary atmospheric shots of L.A. are good. I liked the music. But it gets far too distracted by the fact that Pacino and De Nero are in the same film. The basic idea - cops and criminals, they're basically the same! - seemed trite. It was too full of itself. Nobody wants to see Natalie Portman slit her wrists. Other things I can't remember now. It's one of my mother's favourite films.

Another one I saw in the cinema when it came out. It's been on here recently and I couldn't make it through.
Much preferred To Live And Die in LA as a desolate LA gangster film.

 

[william kent]

name another filmmaker who has used in-a-gadda-da-vida successfully in a movie

I drifted off watching Manhunter last night and was woken by Petersen crashing through Tom Noonan's window to it.

 

[luka]

Manhunter reminds me a bit of Windom Earle.

 

[william kent]

I had an English teacher who looked like Windom Earle.

 

[luka]

Very kooky film manhunter

 

[william kent]

I couldn't work out whether there were issues with the transfer or whether certain scenes were really weirdly edited. I noticed the picture 'jumping' a few times, particularly during the shotgun shootout at the end. There were also brief moments of slow-mo, like Dollarhyde walking through this paper or canvas mural thing in his house.

 

[craner]

 

[william kent]

 

[polystyle]

All in all , i end up liking Mann's work - in general - to Marty S.
The Keep is hokey nazi biz but some scenes and Tangerine Dream music worked.
Black Hat - better then expected and not as bombastic as some.
Heat yep, the heist - using Einsturzende Neubauten 'Armenia' as sdtk,
also almost liked Pacino there.
Last of Mohicans - DDLewis transformed in American Indian ....almost
still, some good scenes ( ambush , the waterfall maybe sorry 4 spoilers ).
Manhunter ... Tom Noonan loomed but other casting bit weak.

A film artist like Nolan , but that's about it in terms of comparision

 

[craner]

The ambush scene in Mohicans has the same build of tension and then release into extreme brutality as the Heat heist. He's definitely good at that dynamic.

 

[catalog]

What about the insider? That's as good as heat imo. Sort of a slow boiler, and crowe playing against type, but typically ott performance from pacino that somehow works. I love it.

Last of the mohicans is one of those where it gets really bogged down in the details after an hour and goes all sluggish, but the bit towards the end,

Spoiler

where magua does the kid and then you think the dads fucked when he goes for revenge, but the mohican comes up with that crazy spin

is brilliant cinema, music is great too.

Not seen the keep or black hat, might check em.

 

[IdleRich]

The Keep was totally cut to pieces wasn't it? I think I read an interview with Mann about trying to piece back together a director's cut that was something like what was originally intended but apparently too much is totally lost and it simply can't be done.

 

[polystyle]

The Keep was totally cut to pieces wasn't it? I think I read an interview with Mann about trying to piece back together a director's cut that was something like what was originally intended but apparently too much is totally lost and it simply can't be done.

Oh, didn't hear that. Shame ... maybe because he was not so big / known then - *ucking Studio's. it's kitsch y in it's way , but seeing what Dissensus crew does watch , maybe good for a ' what the hell watch something' night.
Def some moments and again there is at least one cool Tangerine Dream track in there in the crucial scene ( half spoiler - 'the unleasing' ).
Made many samples from that sdtk : )
Not bad cast either