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This movie was so downright middle-of-the-road it's un-entertaining. There's not much to complain or rave about. There's a little suspense, , but not much. The story is kinda OK (former FBI agent returns to duty to help stop a serial killer, largely by playing a mental chess game with Hannibal Lecter), but not great, co-stars the beautiful Kim Greist, , fully clothed at all times. A little action, , but not much. Hannibal is a little coniving, , a little, , and little manipulative, nothing special IMO. The killer was a bit creepy, , but not overwhelmingly.

If Andrew started a "Medium Movies" board, this would be the first one reviewed in it I believe. For some reason this has a place on Film4's "50 films to see before you die" list.

Has anyone else seen this, and if so, did I miss something? Watching it was like someone shoved a handful of thorozine into my DVD player just before the movie started.

I like Manhunter better than SOTL, but I'm a little biased toward Michael Mann.  :teddyr:

What did you like about it? I'm beginning to believe I was abducted by aliens and my memory erased because this flick has left a void in my head.

I thought the acting was very good, with many scenes being effective in unsettling the viewer. I also thought the score was quite cool, it added to the tension. Will's entrance through the glass was awesome too, when he goes after the toothfairy. Brian Cox was much more intimidating than Hopkins as Lecter. Overall, this is a fine film, nothing to really rant and rave over though.  :smile:

I've always been a big fan of Manhunter. It's much better than that dreadful remake that was done years later as Red Dragon (which is the title of the original book).

William Peterson gives an appropriately understated performance and the movie just oozes creepy atmosphere during numerous scenes.

I liked this movie, it really wasn't special but it wasn't terrible. It provided adequate distraction at the time...

I could not disagree more with the post that started this thread.  I love this movie and I've watched it many times. It was plenty suspenseful for me, and I insist on good suspense.  This movie also has one of the most perfect soundtracks ever, rivalled only by Kill Bill, Vol I.

I know I'm not the only one who considers the Brian Cox Dr. Lecter superior to the Anthony Hopkins version.  Seriously, would you go to the Hopkins version for therapy?  You'd go to Cox, and he'd do a good job, unless he decided your therapy was going nowhere or that you were free-range rude and he might as well eat you.

I, personally, do not need to see Kim Greist nekkid.

I did think Cox did well, he should have been used a bit more I thought. What he did was good, , there just didn't seem to be enough of it. . That seemed to be the theme of the entire movie to me.

besides the seemingly-rushed ending, where things come together a little too easy, this is one of my favorite films.

torgo: i'm with you, man. red dragon was so s**tty. remember that big revelation we get late in manhunter about why the tooth fairy does what he does, and how they essentially throw it away within the first 20 mins of red dragon? horrible

I have to agree that the Lecter in "Manhunter" is infinitely better than the Hopkins version.  Cox made Lecter seem utterly normal, which is what would allow a man to catch people off-guard. Hopkins made Lecter stand out in such a way that women would yank their children off the street at the sight of him. Cox had just a casual way that, when you saw the crazy in him, it made you afraid of "normal" people.

Love this movie.

ghouk I totally agree with you man, I saw this twice after being told it was the 'original and superior' SOTL and your post sums up my feelings on it as well... I dont really like SOTL much either, tbh.

SOTL was awesome, but it has become so overhyped and parodied that its hard to take it seriously (especially for those who are expecting to see a straight up horror movie, when that was never the original intent). At the same time, Manhunter tends to get more attention than it really deserves, simply because it presents an alternate version of lecter that hasnt been parodied to death, and more action, which isnt necessarily a virtue.

Manhunter is my personal favorite of the series. Loved Mann's direction, loved Peterson n' Cox, and I especially loved Noonan. Silence Of The Lambs is a good movie, but it's become so much a part of pop cultural consciousness that it's hard to watch it with the same enthusiasm or effectivness that one would've had when it was first released. Even someone seeing it for the first time of their life can only view with a diminished impact due to how much it has become a part of our social landscape. I thought Hannibal was competently made, and Ray Liotta added a lot to the proceedings, but ultimately I thought it was poorly concieved, tired, and bland. Hannibal Rising sucked royal donkey balls on virtually every level. I thought Red Dragon was okay, but I think it was too overwrought and tried too hard to be dark and smart. Manhunter I felt succeeded at being dark and smart without trying. Very moody, and there's some mystifying about its quiet simplicity. Furthermore, I thought that every single performance was superior to the ones in Red Dragon. William Peterson did a better job than Edward Norton. Tom Noonan was better than Ralph Fiennes. Brain Cox is better than Anthony Hopkins, though I think the point of discussing who is the better Hannibal in regards to Manhunter/Red Dragon is almost a moot point, seeing as how the character is rather minor in that storyline, so I'm not going to get too bent out of shape either way (I will let my pro-Cox vote stand, however). The only problems I have with Manhunter is its rather abrupt climax, and the scenes in which Peterson sits in front of the T.V., trying to get into the killer's head, talking to the television screen melodramatically. Peterson did his best with that scene as possible, but he didn't have much to work with. It's hard to make the act of calling a T.V. a son of a b***h natural, but that's really a writing thing anyway. Should have been excised but, hey, that kind of over-the-top talking-to-yourself was much more common back when Manhunter was made. So it's forgiveable.