Michael Mann's Time
2024 ж. 22 Мам.
28 850 Рет қаралды
In this video we explore how time plays an essential part in Michael Mann's cinema.
Mouthfilm is a collective that makes video essays deconstructing all types of films and their intersection with culture at large.
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Script & Narration: Filipe F. Coutinho
Editing & Graphics: Mónica Freitas
MUSIC
Stanley Gurvich 'Free Radicals'
2050 'Death Star'
C.K. Martin 'Synthetic Network'
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00:00 Intro
01:31 Thief
04:17 Richard Brody on Michael Mann
05:08 Blackhat
05:48 Heat
06:57 Manhunter
09:13 Final Thoughts
I absolutely loved Manhunter! One of my first psychological thrillers I had seen as a young teenager in the 80s. I literally watched it so many times I knew all the lines. From the music, to the cinema-tics… I thought it was really well done and still holds up today.
I think it’s still fresh
7:10 First of all it is Thomas Harris, not Richard. Secondly, Manhunter is not the first film adaption of one of his works, that would be Black Sunday. Though Manhunter is the first of the Hannibal Lecter films. Also Neil in Heat does not break his own rule leading to his demise. In fact the whole point is him staying true to his code and rules that results in his demise. The heat was around the corner and he walks away from Eady in less than 30 seconds. His demise comes because his code dictates that he has to kill Waingro. This was stated as soon as Waingro gets away at the diner. If Neil had broken his code, he would have kept his attachment to Eady and just left with her, while forgetting about Waingro. This is the point of the end of the film, in that what separates a cop with no code and a criminal with a code is the dumb luck of a shadow falling in the right (or wrong, depending on your point of view) direction.
Thomas Harris, yes absolutely. That was a gaffe on our end. Thanks for pointing it out. "Though Manhunter is the first of the Hannibal Lecter films." This is what we meant. We'll try to be clearer with the language used in the future.
Having watched all his feature films I've gotta say I find myself less and less convinced that Mann *isn't* the best American filmmaker
There's a very strong case to be made in Mann's favor! Thanks for watching and taking the time to leave a comment!
@@Mouthfilm I would agree except for the inconsistency. Manhunter, Heat, Insider, Collateral are outstanding - very few modern filmmakers can top them. Mohicans, Thief, Miami Vice are good. And other films, like Black Hat and some of his 80s stuff, is not great. Mann had a great period from about 95-2005. Before and after that, his films were somewhat lacking - they have elements of greatness, but sum up to average at best.
@@nickfalzone7955 Thanks for your comment. Here at Mouthfilm, we ride hard for films like Thief, Miami Vice, and, after multiple watches, Blackhat. Either way, we'd argue that the period you mentioned ('95-'05) would be enough to make him one of the greatest American filmmakers.
More and more convinced he is the best you mean ?
I personally think Scorsese slightly has the edge on Michael Mann because he made a couple of movies that can be considered best of the decade and incredibly important to the art form. I'm thinking about Taxi Driver, Raging Bull and Goodfellas. For me, Mann has only one such movie: Heat.
The scene in Thief isn’t an all night diner, it’s the oasis rest stop on the way to ohare. There were several oasis stops on the Interstates that surround Chicago, that’s why you see the highway and traffic traveling underneath them in the scene as the oasis stops bridged the width of Illinois tollways with steel and glass pavilions. The last decade a couple have been decommissioned but 4 or 5 are still in operation.
This was very well done. There seem to be so many video essays that talk about the same things over and over, so when I see something like what you've done here, it reminds me that there are others who are interested in the same things I am. I'm a great fan of both Nolan and Mann, but the only connection most people seem to examine about them lies in The Dark Knight (Which is really obvious and over discussed). I love that you compared and contrasted the ways in which they both deal with time. I can see where Nolan was influenced by Mann on this level and I think that's missed by most people. All around good work. 👍
Thanks so much for your comment. That was exactly our thinking and why we went with this concept. Glad it resonated with you. Thanks for the watch and the comment!
This is an incredible video. I'll have to watch it several times to absorb every brilliantly connected piece of information. Thank you!
Thanks so much for watching and the kind words, Rafa! You're the best!
Slow brain you have lol. Once is enough to grasp everything...
A good thing i may add to your explanation is Michael's very first movie Jericho mile... This movie is about being in prison and this played a major role of maturing Michael's opinion about time because it was central in that movie , but even that movie is so deep that makes you know that he was thinking about the idea of "time passing" for a loooong time.
That's a fantastic observation. Thanks for adding to the conversation. To anyone reading this, Jericho Mile is also great, go watch it!
@@Mouthfilm you're welcome, I aim to please😂. Continue the good work, i loved this video because it's not just an observation of art, but an obvious motive that can be applied for everyone's life.
You missed Collateral. Vincent's "suddenly you are old" speech
This video is insane like Mann's movies are
Hemsworth’s character out of Blackhat is molded from Jericho Mile experience Mann had. It’s a discipline and attitude of a career criminal. It’s about maintaining control over your life while you’re incarcerated. Mann was exposed to that world during filming of Jericho Mile and later when doing his research on Thief/Heat.
That's great insight. Mann's a master of this type of character, one he's been perfecting in one way or another throughout his filmography.
first time viewer. After a few minutes in, an instant fan. Your choice of visuals and dialogues are masterful. The Oscars should have a category for videos like this. thank you
What a fantastic comment to read. Thank you so so much for checking out our channel!
Awesome video. Thank you, Sir!
This is a first rate video essay. Great insight, confident delivery and... Perfectly timed.
Thanks for saying so. That's very kind of you. We really appreciate it!
Just came back and watched it again, still first rate@@Mouthfilm
@@J0MBi Thanks so much for giving it another go. We love to hear it!
It's also worth noting the line from Heat's famous diner scene, when Hanna asks what McAuley's dream about drowning means: "Not enough time"
Great catch! Yet another shining example of time's prevalence in Mann's work!
Michael Mann's film is about the obsession of professionalism.
amazing, thank you for this!
When one crosses 40, time suddenly becomes an inescapable reality and dreams must be accomplished at all cost.
I had a good time watching this most excellent analysis.
Great video, excellent.
This is a great analysis of MM
Great essay on Michael Mann and time. A real genius.
Time. The essence of existence. Answer the equation of rate into distance.
Fantastic essay. Subbed, excited for more.
Thanks so much for the words and the sub Tyler. New video coming out this week. In the meantime, check out some of our other work. You might like it too :)
THANK YOU
Wow this is so good ngl Time is everything...
Underappreciated essay. Thank you!
thank you!!
Brilliant. Very well done!!
Thanks so much, Kevin. Appreciate your comment!
Great video! Happy it showed up in my recommendations.
We're happy it's being recommended too! Thanks for watching and thanks for the comment!
Great essay, i feel same to you.
Excellent video!
Thank you so much Bill! We really appreciate the comment!
great work
Thanks so much Colin. Thanks for watching!
No mention of Last of the Mohicans? Regarding time, LotM has almost every dialogue scene beginning mid conversation, so there are no awkward “oh hi Mark”s. I find this gives the effect that we are just seeing a small glimpse of a much longer conversation. And that is kind of the essence of story telling through film, telling a tale that takes place over a few days by showing only 2 hours of that time. Your brain fills in the rest, just like Eisenstein’s montage theory .
We mentioned Mohicans in passing, along with Public Enemies. We wanted a short video about the concept of time in his movies, and ended up focusing on a few select Mann films. But we'll focus more attention on Mann in the future. And yes, he's a brilliant screenwriter and dramatist too, who knows exactly what's essential for each scene.
Excellent.
Thanks for watching!!
Excellent commentary.
Thanks so much!!!
"Time is luck." It's a line of dialogue in at least two of Mann's movies - 'Manhunter' (1986) and 'Miami Vice' (2006). And if it's not being used as dialogue, it's definitely the underlying theme in most of his films. Every day we have on this planet is just a matter of luck. Every morning we wake up means that we said the right things, did the right things, and made the right decisions the day before and therefore the Powers that be still have a purpose for us. When that purpose is fulfilled, or it seems like we will not achieve it, that's when the said Powers that be throw us a curve ball and put us into a situation where we will not say or do the right things, and not make the right decisions. And that's when our time here is up. That's when our luck has officially run out.
Nice work.
Thanks so much!
He is also a great author I'm reading heat 2 and it's wonderful
It's a truly great novel. We can't wait for the upcoming movie.
@@Mouthfilm They are going to do another movie? Do you know who's going to be in it?
@@mgman6000 Yes, as per the latest information, Adam Driver is set to play the DeNiro role and Austin Butler is supposed to do the Val Kilmer part.
Hi Mr Mann you’re cool
In my opinion Heat is the greatest film ever made. And I don't say that lightly.
It's certainly in contention! An incredible and timeless piece of work!
A 'Richard Harris' novel? Thomas Harris.
Yep, we already addressed that gaffe elsewhere in the comments!
Can you make a video on john frankenheimer, he’s one of my favorites
We LOVE Frankenheimer. Seconds is such an incredible, underrated gem. We'll definitely do something on him at some point!
@@Mouthfilm that’s my favorite film off all time, I’ll be there
And that's why you just can't wait to get to work after watching a mann movie...
Reading Heat 2
Let us know what you think!
@@Mouthfilm It's an extraordinary book for a die-hard fan like me. I don't want to give any spoilers, but you get to know all the important characters from the first part again from different angles and much deeper. I'm already looking forward to this being made into a film. Definitely a clear recommendation - an incredibly well-researched deep crime thriller Five Stars
Mann also has a unique relationship with color... not to the lengths of Danny Boyle. But it's still very obvious.
Absolutely! In particular, the color blue. There are entire essays about it out there, and rightly so.
@@Mouthfilm Yes, definitely... I remember reading something about him not wanting to use any red and browns on screen for Miami Vice. I like when directors take risks like that. I also feel like that movie should have gotten more love. His depiction of LA in his films are great too, you'd think he was born there. Thief being his first feature flick is so massive. I remember watching that the first time years ago.
@@michalaleskandr3985 Here at Mouthfilm we view Miami Vice as an undisputed masterpiece. Fortunately, the film's reputation is growing more and more over time. Thief is such a banger too. That diner scene is one of the best things Mann's ever directed.
@@Mouthfilm I'm happy y'all feel that way. I sure do and you are correct that may be his best scene over all. It feels so authentic and honest... I always wondered if that was the same diner from Heat?! I'll have to look that one up... Great content btw!
I think there's a strong argument to be made that Mann was the first director to really use advancements in color film in the early 80s, especially when capturing neon, to a degree that made color itself a more than integral part of the aesthetic design.