Manhunter (1986)
Directed by Michael Mann
Mann’s blend of the painstakingly researched and vividly stylized is most clearly evinced in the first Hannibal Lecter film. Cobalt forensic lasers and slow-motion POV shots infuse realism with generic flourishes, while the Iron Butterfly-scored shootout shows up modern action filmmaking by flinching with instant trauma while maintaining geometric precision. For such a visually driven film, much is given to the actors, especially William Petersen, whose Graham compounds Method acting intensity to empathize with monsters. The thriller always makes time for its characters, be it a killer symbolically stroking a sedated tiger, or a lawman attempting to explain his PTSD to his pre-pubescent son in a cereal aisle. Jake Cole (Jan 13, 8pm at IFC Center’s “Celluloid Dreams”)