Customer Reviews

Manhunter [Import]

5 star:		(90)
4 star:		(62)
3 star:		(28)
2 star:		(31)
1 star:		(41)

 

 

For once i am in agreement with other reviewers... This adaptation of the book Red Dragon is a great deal closer to the mark to the work of harris then SOTL was. I liked the book alot better then SOTL and so too do I like the movie better. the acting was magnificant, the story line didnt stray to far from the book. over all a must. I own it for vhs, and AS soon as the DVD comes out I will own that too. if you like thrillers you wont be let down.

In his novel "Silence of the Lambs", author Thomas Harris revisted the character of Hannibal "The Cannibal" Lector, a super-intelligent, super-sick serial killer locked up in a hospital for the criminally insane. Revisted, because Lector first appeared as a supporting character in a previous novel called "Red Dragon," which is the source for Michael Mann's film, "Manhunter."

Before "Heat," before "Last of the Mohicans," Mann informed film fans that he was a huge talent with "Manhunter." This taut, slick thriller tells the story of Will Graham, a burnt-out retired FBI agent with a terrible gift. Graham can empathize with murderers so clearly that he can start to think like them, and eerily predict their next move. The problem is, by the time he starts to think like them he has put his sanity and soul in peril.

If this sounds a little gimmicky, the combination of Harris' story, Mann's direction, and William Petersen's performance as Graham keep it real. Graham is brought back by his former boss to help the bureau with a pattern killer. Unlike "Silence of the Lambs," which pushed the pursuit of Jame Gumb into the background, "Manhunter" is almost entirely about the pursuit of a serial killer known as the Tooth Fairy.

Mann's direction is nothing like Jonathon Demme's; despite the presence of a few common characters (Lector, FBI commander Jack Crawford, psychiatrist Dr. Chilton) the movies are totally dissimilar in their "look and feel." Yet Mann's film is terrific. Visually clearer and more brightly lit, "Manhunter" proceeds more as a straight-ahead crime drama than the psychological thriller of "Silence of the Lambs."

Like "Silence of the Lambs", "Manhunter" is about two monsters, and as in second film, Dr. Lector here is the FBI's key to finding a killer still at large. Brian Cox portrays the bad doctor as more outspoken and confident. It isn't Hopkin's portrayal -- it's quite different -- but it's so effective that, when I learned of the casting of Hopkins, I felt disappointment. Cox, I thought, was the obvious choice. (Live and learn).

As good as Cox is, perhaps the biggest draw of "Manhunter" is the hypnotic performance by Tom Noonan as Francis Dolarhyde. Noonan is touching, tragic and terrifiying as the man driven to murder entire families.

Noteworthy too is a piece of music: Mann uses Iron Butterly's acid rock classic "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida" to score the action climax. If that sounds like an odd choice, it isn't; it's one of the most exciting sequences on film.

I recommend "Manhunter" highly, both to fans of "Silence of the Lambs", and to anyone who likes a good crime thriller.

I first came across Michael Mann's version of Thomas Harris' "Red Dragon" in the fall of 1987. I was mesmerized from the first scene of the movie as the "Tooth Fairy" Francis Dollarhide began his ascent up Charles and Nancy Leeds staircase and it did not let me loose for 3 years. I became obsess with finding as much information about this film, the Author, the music. There is only one other movie of this genre that has had the same affect on me and that was the David Fincher masterpiece "Seven". I realized what they both had in common was that neither film showed any of the murders. They forced the viewer, through the forensic evidence & it's detectives, to reconstruct these horrific crimes in their own mind...boy does it work! I spent months with the images of the Jacobys and the Leeds and how they were killed and same as Will Graham suffered for a resolution. I than finally, by accident, came across a copy of "Red Dragon" and read the book cover to cover in three days. I could not put it down! It helped somewhat in filling in the holes left by the movie. Than in 1988 the cable movie channel "ShowTime" began a series called "Director's Cut's" and one of the first movies was Michael Mann's "Mannhunter". They opened with a 10-minute conversation with Mann and ended with a brief discussion. The movie itself ran 2:07 long and included 8 minutes of added footage removed from the theatrical and video release. This extra footage included a conversation with a real estate agent, inside the Jacoby's house. Another scene was with Ton Noonan and Joan Allen on the evening of their first date after they visited the tiger. The most important scene added was at the end, with the third chosen family and was a very very powerful scene and displayed the emotions of Will Graham brilliantly. As far as a comparison between Manhunter and Silence of the Lambs I favor Manhunter, but that is not to say that Manhuter didn't suffer from what sererval Michael Mann project do...Substance. In his earlier work, Thief, The Keep, Miami Vice, Mann constructs amazing sights and sounds at a break-neck pace. At the end of all of these works the viewer needs to catch their breath and check their pulse. It was why the removed ending, with the third chosen family, would have lent itself to the substance of the film. My only copy of this particular version Manhunter is on VHS and was taped on a 6-hour speed. My hope is that the DVD version of this film, release date 10-10-00, includes these scenes and is remastered in 5.1 and/or DTS. A director commentary track would be nice also. We'll see when 10-10-00 comes round. If these things occur I give this film a 9.5 out of a possible 10 and strongly recommend it to any one who is/was a fan of these Thomas Harris novels/films. By the way the third installment "Hannibal", being directed by Riddley Scott, is also a great read, and I can't wait for the movie! Mason Verger, referenced in Manhunter as one of two Lector victims still living, is being played by Gary Oldman.

A precursor to Silence of the Lambs, this film is less Hollywood-ish, but much more chilling and realistic: the mental turmoil Peterson goes through, the serial killer's personality, Dennis Farina as the head FBi officer... all are down-to-earth and believable.

While "The silence of the Lambs" was a great thriller, i've always prefered this film adaptation of the earlier Thomas Harris novel "Red Dragon". It was directed by Michael Mann (Heat,The Insider) and he manages to get closer to the book than the more famous sequel ever did. By having the character record his thoughts onto tape during the film, the viewer gets right inside the mind of the FBI agent Will Graham as he tracks down a serial killer. So good is the script, that even a scene of FBI agents sitting in a room talking about the case can be more tense and exciting than most action sequences you will see elsewhere! The acting is great (check out the first screen appearance of a certain Hannibal Lector played by Brian Cox), and the ending will have you on the edge of you seat. Anyone looking to add a scary,intelligent movie to their collection should check out this DVD.

A made for TV thriller which should have made it to theater. Fantastic look into forensic science. This movie is not for the faint of heart. Can't wait to get the DVD. If you liked Silence of the Lambs you will love Manhunter. Chilling look into the mind of a vicious killer and the cunning it took to find him. Don't watch it in the dark, alone in the night.

Manhunter, An over-acclaimed piece of garbage that I will never attempt to watch again. If you say this is better than Silence of the lambs, you are seriously screwed up in the head. This shouldn't even count as a movie. This is a horrible attempt to make a film out of a great book. For those of you who didn't know, this is based on the book, Red Dragon by Thomes Harris. First off, I want to say the acting was bad. But I can't. The acting was putrid. This has some of the worse acting I've seen since the matrix reloaded. The only person who got even the slightest bit close to being an actor was Brian Cox, who still didn't pull it off. Anthony Hopkins is much better and creates a personality to Lecter in the other 3 movies. Brian Cox talks like he's been taking drugs. Second, the acting was putrid. Did I already say that? Well I mean it!Third, it dragged. It was annoying and outdrawn. Those two things can just destroy a movie. For a better movie try...well, just about any movie is better than this one. Try the other 3 SUPERIOR installments in the Hannibal Lecter series.

Ok, Back when this movie was released on DVD as the Limited Edition Director's cut, I was thrilled. I bought it and noticed that the director's cut was only a minute longer than the original.......ok........and just between you all and I, its not that big of a groundbreaking minute. And even worse, the liner notes with scenes from the movie showed the "Tooth Fairy" with a LOT of tatoos over his front chest and back (really cool!), and when I popped the DVD in, no tatoos. Which means, we were all robbed of the actual way the film was cut. Hold out everybody, maybe this will be like the Stargate DVD and the 5th time its released we will get what we want.

Don't waste your money on the poorest excuse for 80's crime dramas ever. This movie has the worst of every element, poor plot development, poor acting, bad over acting, no character development, bad lighting. Scenes that are entirely colored, green, blue and red, I understand it's "artistic", but unles you live next door to a Kenny Rogers Roasters (Seinfield Reference) the entire room will not be red. Don't even get me started on the music, ... And though Brian Cox does a great job as Hannibal, with the other "actors" it is hard to tell if he is even acting or just board with the script. It is just a tiresome movie that was a good idea in the 80's, but with a ending that all but mimicks the end of "Silence of the Lambs" and with too many events in the movie that just happen, assuming the viewer had read the book, without explination as to why this movie deserves less than "Killer Tomatoes Eat France" or any Earnest Movie.

Many reviews portray this movie as a masterpiece. WOW- don't be fooled. This is a terrible movie. The acting is bad.....really bad. It almost becomes commical at times because this movie is so terrible. I recommend that you save your money and watch the version with Anthony Hopkins in it.