Before Hopkins, there was Cox (Manhunter (DVD))

Member Name: SWSt

Product:	Manhunter (DVD)
Date:	09/02/07 (137 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Great acting, compulsive storyline, Brian Cox gives an alternative Lecter

Disadvantages: Too few scenes for Cox, Mann's obsession with buildings, synth music

What’s it about?
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Will Graham, the man who put the notorious Hannibal “the Cannibal” Lecter behind bars, is persuaded to take up one last case, pursuing serial killer “The Tooth Fairy”.

Who’s in it?
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The principal actor is William L Petersen as Will Graham. Petersen is brilliant, giving a thoughtful, intense and powerful performance. He is in virtually every scene in the film, so carries a large burden on his shoulders. Thankfully, it’s a burden he carries lightly with a career best performance. What makes it so powerful is that it is underplayed. Graham is a man of few words, quietly spoken and limited body language, with only odd moments of passion when he has an insight in the case. Withdrawn and brooding, Petersen captures the role superbly.

Also very good is Tom Noonan as Francis Dollarhyde, the Tooth Fairy. Slightly outlandish looking, due to his height, Noonan is both scary and strangely touching as the villain of the piece. By the time we meet Dollarhyde, we have already seen the brutal murders he has committed. However, thanks to Noonan’s carefully weighted performance, it’s almost impossible not to feel some sympathy for him too, as he just longs for acceptance.

Finally, Brian Cox steps up as Hannibal Lecter. It’s unfortunate that most people didn’t see this film until after Silence of the Lambs (it was actually released five years earlier), by which time Anthony Hopkins’ version of Lecter had seeped into the public consciousness. Although Cox has only a couple of scenes (and is confined to a single location throughout), he is just as good as Hopkins, albeit in a very different way. Whereas Hopkins’ interpretation is all minimalist gestures and clipped delivery, Cox goes down the other route, making Hannibal garrulous and charming – deadly because you find yourself WANTING to trust him, then finding he is in your head, by which time it’s too late. I’m sure a lot of people will disagree with me, but I think it’s a shame that Cox didn’t get the call to reprise his role in Silence.

Is it any good?
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Manhunter is not your usual serial killer/slasher movie in that it is more of a psychological thriller than an actual serial killer movie. It concentrates as much on psychology and police procedure as actual murders. OK, so this might not be particularly innovative now, but in 1986, when the horror movie was dominated by Elm Street and its ilk, it was something different..

The film is not actually that bloody. Apart from a few black and white photographs and very quick flashbacks, the violence is very limited. This actually makes it more powerful, as we only see the aftermath of the violence and its consequences, not the violence itself. In particular, we see the effects it has on the people trying to catch the killer, as they become ever more desperate in the face of a lack of evidence. Graham, in particular, is a study of obsession, a man living on the edge. Although he knows that putting Lecter nearly killed him, he can’t help getting involved deeper and deeper in the Tooth Fairy case. As Lecter points out, Will is simply the flip side of the very criminals he is catching. Again, this might not be a novel perspective in 2007, but back in 1986, it was still a pretty fresh idea that the “hero” could be just as psychologically disturbed as the “villain”.

The film also benefits from the carefully nuanced scripts and performances. The characters essentially ordinary people – all are capable of both good and bad. Graham, for all his good intentions to stop another murder, neglects his family and puts them at risk. The Tooth Fairy, through his unexpected, yet touching relationship with a blind woman, shows that he is capable of love and compassion. It is probably this element which is most tragic, as it shows that, with the right support, redemption could be at hand.

It’s a shame then, that one of the most potentially interesting and powerful characters in the film – Hannibal Lecter -gets only a few scenes. In reality, Lecter is little more than a bit-part character, yet it is his brutal honesty that shows the characters up for who they really are. Obviously, this is due to the source material and, with subsequent books and films, Lecter’s role became ever larger. However, you can’t help but feel that this film is a bit too “Lecter-lite.”

Where the film scores highly, however, is in its minimalist approach to action. Like many Michael Mann films, it is very dialogue heavy, and all the better for it. Take the supermarket scene, for example, where Graham is explaining to his young son what happened to him when he caught Lecter. This is an incredibly powerful and moving scene, as Graham is forced to confront his demons in order to save himself and his son from drifting apart. It’s interesting that in the Red Dragon re-make, these scenes were actually filmed as proper sequences, and lost much of their power. Whilst Mann can sometimes be a little over-wordy, here he hits it spot on.

On the downside, Mann continues his obsession with large, spectacular buildings and it can become a little annoying, seeing yet another shot of an impressive, but ultimately austere and sterile construction.

Equally, the music does not serve the film well. Partly this is because it has dated badly – full of dodgy synth music which, unless you’re into that style, really grates. Partly too, it is because the music is just so intrusive. Virtually every scene is accompanied by loud music which distracts you from the dialogue or on-screen action. It’s also very difficult for synth music to convey all the emotions expressed in the film – anger, fear, loathing, misery, love and so on. As a result, the music in some sequences appears totally mis-matched with what is happening on-screen.

Conclusion
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Although overshadowed by it’s subsequent “sequels” and remakes, Manhunter remains an excellent film. Ignore the bits which have dated badly, and you are left with an interesting and compulsive psychological study. Whilst it is most often remembered as Hannibal Lecter’s first cinematic appearance, it has far more going for it than just that.

Basic Information
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Manhunter
1986
Director: Michael Mann
Running Time: approx. 119 minutes
Certificate: 18

Trivia
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In this film, the spelling of Hannibal’s surname is given as Lecktor. In all subsequent films, it is Lecter. For reasons of consistency, I’ve stuck with the spelling “Lecter”.

© Copyright SWSt 2007

Summary: Far superior to the remake