Since his debut film “Thief” hit theaters in 1981, Michael Mann has enjoyed a reputation as one of the best working directors we have in America.
Across masterfully mounted films like “Heat,” “Collateral,” and “Manhunter,” he’s also earned a somewhat unusual place in the filmmaking pantheon.
He’s become somewhat of a household name, his films generally do good business at the box office, and he tends to work in genre — from the noir to the thriller to the procedural.
And yet his films also compete at prestigious international film festivals, they’ve been given Criterion releases, and he’s often lumped in with “arthouse” directors like Paul Thomas Anderson and Wes Anderson, rather than action helmers like Michael Bay or Tony Scott.All this is to say that Mann’s career is a bit of a paradox, but it’s a wonderful one, and new Michael Mann movies should always be regarded as appointment viewing.
Read full article