MANHUNTER

Will (William Petersen) has quit his job as a criminal psychologist for the FBI, having suffered a breakdown following the traumatic events that led to the arrest of his last quarry, the cannibalistic genius Dr Hannibal Lektor (Brian Cox).

Now living a quiet life with his wife Reba (Joan Allen) and kid in a house on the beach, Will is visited one afternoon by former boss Jack (Dennis Farina). Jack practically begs Will back to the job, saying he needs his help to catch a serial killer who works on a lunar cycle. He’s known to them only as the Tooth Fairy (Tom Noonan).

Persuaded by photographs of the victims and their families, Will eventually agrees to take on the job - despite his own and Reba’s reservations about whether or not he can mentally cope with the task.

Jack arranges for Will to stay in a hotel room nearby, armed with more photographs and a VCR to play home videos of the victims on too. These give Will a feeling for those he seeks to avenge; but nothing comes close to the insight he gains when he actually sets foot in the crime scenes themselves and begins to envisage how and why the Tooth Fairy did the things he did. This is, after all, what Will is famous for.

But the cracks are starting to show. Breaking out in a sweat and suffering from insomnia, the increasingly unshaven Will soon looks ever more fragile as he places himself closer and closer to the Tooth Fairy’s mindset. Regular telephone calls from his lonely wife are not enough to pacify him.

Sensing that he needs help to get his old skills fully working again, Will makes a peculiarly unwise move: he chooses to visit Lecktor in his high-security prison cell and ask for his help in understanding this new killer. But this begs the question: how different are Will and Lecktor, really?

Meanwhile, the Tooth Fairy goes about his business in scarily casual fashion – seemingly hoping for an inevitable showdown with his pursuer ...

MANHUNTER is Michael Mann’s breakout 1986 film, based on Thomas Harris’ celebrated novel "Red Dragon". It became an instant cult classic upon its original release, before having its profile considerably bolstered five years later by its Oscar-winning follow-up, Jonathan Demme’s THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS.

Purists still believe Cox to be the definitive screen Lecktor (before Anthony Hopkins made him a more charming proposition, and the spelling of his surname was inexplicably changed to Lecter); it is believed by many to be the best adaptation of any Harris novel.

It’s certainly stylish, as is true of any Mann film, from THE KEEP to COLLATERAL and everything in-between. Horizons are painted in swathes of gold and blue; the camera moves effortlessly through some amazing tracking shots, and captures beautiful compositions whenever it stands still. It has the look of a very attractive TV commercial at times.

But the film has aged. Its synthesiser-led score is reminiscent of 80s TV scores such as that for "Miami Vice", while hairstyles and clothing throughout betray the bad fashions of the decade. Add in a cheesy fluorescent RE-ANIMATOR-type title card at the film’s beginning, and the casting of the likes of Farina, to provide further evidence of the film’s mid-80s origins.

But these are minor quibbles – as is Mann’s rather obvious screenplay and the fact that it’s now impossible to look upon Petersen without thinking of Grissom from "CSI Whatever". MANHUNTER holds up well despite its age and apparent low budget. Performances are solid and the pace is taut, with tension being built superbly along steady, unrushed lines.

Later scenes that reveal more of what the Tooth Fairy is capable of rank among the best Mann has ever directed, in terms of sheer, tight suspense, and a downbeat ending fits well with a tone that manages to be sombre but not alienating.

I still prefer THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS, but the purists have a point to a degree: this is a very good film too.

Studio Canal’s 25th Anniversary blu-ray edition of MANHUNTER presents the film uncut in its original 2.35:1 aspect ratio, and is enhanced for 16x9 televisions.

Despite the opening scene threatening the worst – the Tooth Fairy’s handheld camera shakily ascends a flight of stairs and creeps into an unsuspecting victim’s bedroom – the rest of the film actually looks great in this 1080p presentation. Day scenes in particular are filled with vibrancy and warmth, while Mann’s traditionally cool interiors come across as smooth without trace of excessive DNR having been employed.

Overall, the picture here is a pleasingly consistent and faithful one. The extra detail evident in many scenes is remarkable.

English audio is proffered in a new 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio mix, and the original 2.0 variant. Both are good, although the former doesn’t really exploit its capabilities to the fullest. Optional English subtitles are well-written and easy to read.

An animated main menu page contains pop-up menus, including a scene-selection menu which allows access to MANHUNTER via 12 chapters.

Extras begin with the option of viewing the film in its "director’s cut". This variant of the film is ever-so-slightly shorter than the theatrical release (by less than a minute, in fact), including lengthier scenes and additional dialogue here and there, while taking out bits Mann was unhappy with elsewhere.

Unfortunately this version of the film is presented in standard definition and the print used is not in as good a shape as its HD counterpart.

Still, it does come with an optional commentary track from Mann. His dialogue is a little monotone and academic, so don’t expect to be entertained. But fans of the film will learn a lot, from the technical side of filming to his clear preferences for his (original) director’s cut.

The film’s original theatrical trailer runs for two minutes, in standard definition.

"Inside Manhunter" is a windowboxed archive 17-minute exercise in back-slapping from many of the principal cast members. Titbits of info include a bald Noonan revealing how he based his character on Ted Bundy, and Cox claiming he was up against the likes of John Lithgow and Brian Dennehy for the role of Hannibal. Unfortunately there is no sign of Mann here, but it’s an engaging watch nevertheless.

"The Manhunter Look" is a 10-minute chat with cinematographer Dante Spinotti. It was one of the first film he worked on and his intelligent, considered approach to conveying the material and moods comes across well. He went on to shoot the likes of L.A. CONFIDENTIAL and Mann’s HEAT, as well as the ill-advised MANHUNTER remake, RED DRAGON.

MANHUNTER has aged, there’s no question about it. And yet it still stands as one of the best thrillers of the 1980s and will always be fondly thought upon as (a) the film that introduced Hannibal Lecktor to the cinema world, and (b) Michael Mann’s breakthrough movie.

"It’s all about the seeing", as Will says. And seeing MANHUNTER in HD is a very nice proposition indeed. Despite a lacklustre set of extras (and the disappointing fact that the director’s cut of the film only gets the standard definition treatment), this set still comes recommended.

Review by Stuart Willis