Michael Mann’s Manhunter came out years before The Silence of the Lambs and was overshadowed by its commercial success and critical acclaim. Based on Thomas Harris’s 1981 novel Red Dragon, which was later made into a movie again in 2002 with the book’s original title, Manhunter is a prequel to The Silence of the Lambs and Hannibal and is the first movie to feature Hannibal Lecter (alternatively spelled Lecktor in this adaptation).
The now-familiar plot (thanks to the novel and its 2002 adaptation) follows the investigation of FBI agent Will Graham (William Petersen) into a series of murders by a killer known as the Tooth Fairy (Tom Noonan). To get some clues about the killer’s psyche and motive, Graham is forced to visit the prison and talk to Dr. Hannibal Lecktor (Brian Cox), who had almost killed him and left him living with PTSD.
While viewing the movie without comparing it with The Silence of the Lambs and Red Dragon can be difficult, Manhunter can be appreciated for a number of its merits as well as earlier credits than its successors. The movie has notably different stylistics in both visual and audio departments. Iron Butterfly’s song “In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida” gives the movie a distinct mood of the hunt for the killer and adds a dimension to Will’s character – the transformation of a traumatized survivor into the reborn cop who saves the next victim. At the same time, Brian Cox as Dr. Lecktor offers a template for the evil genius behind bars that would later be taken to perfection by Anthony Hopkins.
At the same time, Brian Cox as Dr. Lecktor offers a template for the evil genius behind bars that would later be taken to perfection by Anthony Hopkins. The Tooth Fairy as the serial killer makes a more mysterious and mentally complex character than Buffalo Bill though they share a thing or two in their personal identities. Tom Noonan has played the role well. Viewers also get to see a very different Jack Crawford in Dennis Farina.
Manhunter is recommended for fans of the Hannibal Lecter movies and particularly for movie critics and analysts who love to perfect their assessment meters by thoughtful comparison and contrasting analyses across the series and their respective novels.
