Michael Mann

[Stefen]

Dude, you're the new school Harry Knowles. No diss, just cause your fat, Just props.

[pete]

Exactly why it should've been a comedy. Like I said. Though it certainly held my interest longer that The Life Aquatic.

that sentiment totally made sense...ON OPPOSITE LAND!

[mutinyco]

Pete, you tool, I knew you'd get hooked on that one.

[Gold Trumpet]

I have to say of all the potential films, Collateral has to be the worst movie I've seen all year. Not only was the story implausible as well as dumb, it didn't even work as an action film. The ending twist to Cruise's kill fest in who he has to kill pandered to some of the very worst cliches of the genre. And besides, I know Tom Cruise sometimes tries too hard acting, but I've never seen him this desperate to be the bad guy. Use to be an actor, now just a star seeking bigger roles. But hey, Elephant was the very worst for me last year and many people saw it as the best, but as much as Mutinyco and I disagree, he's not alone on this one.

[MacGuffin]

Surprise abound on the Collateral dvd:

- A Mann commentary track that is not advertised anywhere (found under 'Audio Options')

Just seems silly not to advertise this, especially when I know Mann does commentaries now. I dropped going through the Return of The King extras to listen to it after you posted this. Thanks for the tip.

[socketlevel]

Surprise abound on the Collateral dvd:

- A Mann commentary track that is not advertised anywhere (found under 'Audio Options')

Just seems silly not to advertise this, especially when I know Mann does commentaries now. I dropped going through the Return of The King extras to listen to it after you posted this. Thanks for the tip.

seems like a stupid mistake to make, with early dvds this was more understandable, before the commentary became a selling point.  i remember scream didn't advertise one but had it, not to mention two single layers, both with widescreen on it???  fail to understand that one.

at least in the case with collateral you're getting something extra, unlike the bully dvd released by lions gate that advertised a commentary by larry clarke on the back of the case but never had one.  that was part of the reason i got the disc, i dig his washed up commentaries.

that one had me pissed to the point of emailing the company.  alas, no freebees.

-sl-

[Ghostboy]

unlike the bully dvd released by lions gate that advertised a commentary by larry clarke on the back of the case but never had one.  

-sl-

Lions Gate is becoming famous for that.

[socketlevel]

unlike the bully dvd released by lions gate that advertised a commentary by larry clarke on the back of the case but never had one.  

-sl-

Lions Gate is becoming famous for that.

i didn't know that, can you warn me of other titles?

maybe it's possible they didn't change the box insert paper for the canadian release.  lions gate is a canadian company though, or at least in part/origins.  so i'd imagine they'd get the rights to the commentary for canada.

mind you the "another day in paradise" (trimark) was different in canada, i got it on ebay from the states, but our domestic one didn't have the second side with the directors cut, and therefore didn't have that larry clarke commentary either.

-sl-

[SHAFTR]

Mann is quickly becoming one of my favorite directors.  I had seen Last of the Mohicans and Heat a long time ago, but besides that I hadn't seen much (except Ali, which I disliked).  Collateral kindled my interest in Mann (along with the fact that he went to the same school I am going to) and I have since gone back and watched Thief, Manhunter, Last of the Mohicans and The Insider.

As I have said before, I think Collateral is one of the best films this year.  The Insider blew me away, one of the better films of the 90s and Last of the Mohicans is a great action film with a little more (as are most Mann's films).  It is interesting to watch Thief & Manhunter, both films are flawed but you can see Mann's genius at work.  I'm really glad he has matured into films like The Insider & Collateral.

Spielberg & Mann are the most entertaining directors working today.  Their films are just great cinema experiences.

[Myxo]

Mann is quickly becoming one of my favorite directors.

Yep.

He's on my list of directors who can make a movie that I'll go and see no matter what the subject matter is. Oh, and Will Smith needs to stop pretending he's a dramatic actor and stick to action films.

[ono]

Oh, and Will Smith needs to stop pretending he's a dramatic actor and stick to action films.

*coughsixdegreesofseparationcough*  Excuse me.  That time of year again, I guess.

Because, like, y'know, Wild, Wild West really reinvented the action/western genre seeing as how it succeeded in making it more crap and unbelievable than it already is.

[cowboykurtis]

collateral was a peice of shit - i think mann is overrated -- my opinion was always shaky, his last attempt solidified my opinion --  he's a decent director, but gets more credit then deserved - the insider is his best film -- collateral was just a bad movie all around

[soixante]

How bad can Mann be, if he directed Thief and Heat, two crime films that have been hugely influential on countless crime and action films.  Collateral had a unique nocturnal look that will doubtlessly be imitated by many future filmmakers.

[Myxo]

I have to agree.

Heat, Last of the Mohicans and the Insider are all first rate, quality films. Also, the guy wrote Heat, which is just a terrific script and has been hugely copied the last 9 years. Overated? I think you've gotta be rated period for somebody to be "over"ated. Most people on the street couldn't name a Michael Mann film, let alone having heard of him. He's really only well known to people who are cinephiles and so forth.

M. Night Shyamalan is overated..

Sixth Sense was great..
Unbreakable was great..

Then along came a stinker in Signs..
Uh oh, then he tried the same surprise formula yet again with The Village.

Whatever he makes next is going to define if he's officially jumped the shark. But, there is an example of a well known director to many who is very overated.

[Gold Trumpet]

What was so great about Heat? As a film that speaks about the ability for someone not being able to connect with people, it was average. As a film that is about two people who come from two worlds and are going to head-to-head, storywise nothing really struck me as that good. I personally think two things really made it what it was: 1.) the subject of underworld it explored and 2.) the length it did it too. The second point doesn't mean the film went beyond other films in exploring an underworld, but made the underworld epic in no way another film has. Robert De Niro has to do nothing because he did the same performance he did for every 90s action role he got. He just channeled Humphrey Bogart. Al Pacino was just Al Pacino. No character really had any meat to them at all and any storyline that seemed to develop outside the crux of the underworld story were carried out as meaningful 5 minute scenes only scattered around.

But, there is something to Heat. The story is paced perfectly for what its trying to do and the filmmaking never over steps the story. All Michael Mann was doing was handling a script that could have got very corny or very unbelievable. He managed to keep it all grounded. He did it so well that I think the film is now extremely overrated.