| | | | Manhunter
(1986) |
etired, FBI agent, Will Graham (William L. Petersen) is visited in his Florida Home by his former head, Jack Crawford (Dennis Farina).
Prior to his retirement Graham was one of the best agents for tracking down serial killers. In possession of an ability to 'enter the mind' of the killer using a form of empathy, Graham was able to stop the murderous rampage of various 'serial' killers including the notorious 'Hannibal the Cannibal' (Brian Cox - Hannibal Lecter, herein spelt Hannibal Lecktor). But as a by-product of that encounter Graham had retired - both physically and mentally scarred.
In Crawford's hands are the photographs of 2 dead families. A serial killer, dubbed the 'Tooth Fairy' (Tom Noonan), is on the loose targeting families. He's working on an a lunar cycle so the FBI have until the next full moon to stop him before he kills again. But to do this, Graham must re-enter the mind of a killer and in order to jump-start the process his first stop is... Hannibal Lecktor.
The movie was adapted from the novel by Thomas Harris and written/directed by Michael Mann (the man behind Miami Vice). The wardrobe is pure 80's Miami Vice. The style - lot's of neon and garish colours oftentimes sharply contrasted with sleek modernism.
Indeed one of the accusations sometimes levelled at it is that it's an episode of Miami Vice transferred to the big screen.
But to do that would be a terrible, terrible injustice. At the core of this film is the haunted Will Graham - played to perfection by Petersen. Hannibal Lecktor, whilst only having a few minutes of screen time is awesome. Ably supported by Noonan, Farina, Greist et al. this is a combination of great acting/style and story combined and that's a combination that doesn't come along very often
Re-titled to Manhunter by the producer, Dino De Laurentiis, the film opened to so-so box office and over the years has become widely acknowledged as a true classic.
Don't forget that Manhunter is now available to order on Widescreen DVD using our special 80s Retro Assistant...
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| | | |  This is a superior movie in every way. It's almost faultless.
The good: the acting, the direction and the writing.
The bad: the 80's fashion-style hasn't dated very well nor has the music but that's not to denigrate it and it still complements the movie very well.
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Frankie Faison is the only actor to feature in all 4 Hannibal Lecter movies to date (2003). In Manhunter he play's Lt. Fisk but would go on to play Barney Matthews in the subsequent 3 movies.
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"Manhunter" director of phography, Dante Spinotti, would later also be the cinematographer for "Red Dragon" (2002). -Thanks to Darren J Seeley
To my recollection, Manhunter is the only movie in this series to have Hannibal's name spelled with a 'K': "Lecktor". In every other one, including Red Dragon (2002), it's spelled "Lector". -Thanks to Sara
This film features a lot of neon lighting and speakerphones, Michael Mann is known for including these in all of his films. -Thanks to Rich Emmerson
Manhunter was the springboard that X-files creator Chris Carter used in his t.v. series Millennium. The character Frank Black played by Lance Henriksen is based on the Manhunter antagonist. -Thanks to Yegan Kander
William L. Peterson who plays Will Graham in "Manhunter" also plays Gil Grissom on the CBS hit tv show C.S.I. -Thanks to William Stroud
Now with Petersen as Gill Grissom, the head of the CBS series CSI (note similarities in the character names of Gill Grissom v Will Graham), the character traits are more than coincidental. In watching Manhunter I thought I was watching a younger Gill Grissom as he learns his trade as the master of Crime Scene Investigations. Even the physical characteristics are carried over, as the bearded and angst ridden piercing eyes of Grissom... err.. Graham, take in every detail. Certainly Petersen, as the prime creative power behind CSI, has revisited his former role as Manhunter Will Graham in a serial format, including episodes that strongly reflect The Hannibal Lektor (sp) series (The Paul Millander episodes) while carefully skirting copyright infringement. -Thanks to Ray Bailey
Brian Cox, who of course plays Hannibal Lecktor, plays a totally opposite character type in the Broken Lizard movie, "Super Troopers". -Thanks to Robert Moore
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Find much more great trivia in the filmmaker's commentary on the Manhunter DVD.
Rediscover your favorites! If you like
Manhunter or 80's Drama / Historic classics, then be sure to
check out this list: ..... Outsiders ..... Elephant Man ..... Rain Man ..... Drugstore Cowboy ..... Stand By Me ..... Wall Street ..... Mask ..... Amadeus ..... Full Metal Jacket ..... Witness ..... Breakfast Club ..... Glory ..... Platoon ..... Scarface ..... Six Weeks ..... Urban Cowboy .....[More]
| | | | During principal photography, Tom Noonan asked that no one in the cast, either people who are after him or whom he is after, be allowed to see him. The first time Noonan met William Petersen is when Graham crashes through the window of Dollarhyde's home. Noonan admits that because of his request, the atmosphere on set became so tense, people actually became afraid of him. -Thanks to Cubs_fan
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|  |  |  | | Manhunter
Locations |
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| | | Manhunter was filmed on location in a wide variety of places including Georgia, Florida, Missouri and North Carolina.
Scenes concerning Will Graham's residence were filmed on Sanibel-Captiva, Florida - I'm from the area & the scenery is unmistakable! They were filmed on the property of artist Robert Rauschenberg. [Thanks to Sara]
The insane asylum where Lector is located in this film is actually the "High Museum of Art" in Atlanta.
The scene where Will meets with Hannbal Lector in prison/jail was filmed at the High Museum of Art in Atlanta, GA. Will runs down the ramp (from the gallery levels) to the atrium and out the main entrance of the museum. High Museum 1280 Peachtree Street Atlanta, GA 30309 [Thanks to Tina and Barry Plunkett]
The locations of the initial murders in the film - Atlanta and Birmingham - were both shot in Atlanta. [Thanks to John Thomas]
The hotel in Atlanta that Will stayed in was the Marriot Marquis in downtown Atlanta. [Thanks to Will]
Can you help? Do you know any of the filming locations used for Manhunter? [Please send them in]
|  | | | | ![[16:9 -Widescreen Enhanced]](16_9.gif) | ![[5.1 CH SURROUND]](dd5.gif) | Trailer, Commentary, Featurette, OutTakes |
| Our
Comments: Latest 2-disc SE has 2 versions |
| | ![[16:9 -Widescreen Enhanced]](16_9.gif) | | Trailer, Commentary, Featurette, OutTakes |
| Our
Comments: Latest 2-disc SE has 2 version |
| | | | | Very 80's. Very brooding. Here's the listing:
1. Strong as I Am - The Prime Movers; 2. Coelocanth - Shriekback; 3. This Big Hush - Shriekback; 4. Graham's Theme - Michael Rubini; 5. Evaporation - Shriekback 6. Heartbeat - Red 7; 7. Lector's Cell - The Reds; 8. Leed's House - The Reds; 9. In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida - Iron Butterfly.
However, certain music featured in the soundtrack of the movie did not feature on the LP/Cassette soundtrack e.g. Seiun by Kitaro, Freeze by Klaus Schulze but, I believe, they can be acquired separately.
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Click here to add new music trivia for Manhunter
Soundtrack Available:
Used Vinyl LP / Tape
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