Michael Mann

Blu-Ray Review: Michael Mann’s ‘Heat’ a Modern Masterpiece

BrianTT — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 14:23:31 -0700

CHICAGO – Michael Mann might first seem the ideal fit for Blu-Ray. He’s a notorious perfectionist, apparent in every frame of his remarkable output of films that includes such great modern classics as “Manhunter,” “The Insider,” “Collateral,” and “Public Enemies”. But one of Mann’s best films, “Heat,” recently released on Blu-Ray, is an interesting example of a director who has a vision that shouldn’t necessarily be overly polished by the HD format. The film looks like Mann wants it - gritty, dark, and like, well, actual film. It’s a release that some buyers may think doesn’t look “HD enough,” but to this Mann aficionado thinks that it looks just right.

Blu-Ray Rating: 4.5/5.0

As for the film itself, it’s one of the rare ’90s films that gets better every time I see it. It’s a battle of wills between two of the most legendary actors of all time - Al Pacino & Robert De Niro - and it is arguably the last time they would ever be this good. It saddens me deeply to think about a young generation who may only know De Niro as the old guy from “Meet the Fockers” and the reputation Pacino must have after junk like “88 Minutes” is something I don’t even want to think about. This is the final gust of wind from when these two were still not just actors, they were forces of nature.

Heat was released on Blu-Ray on November 10th, 2009.
Photo credit: Warner Brothers Home Video

Two of the best actors of all time star as a cop and his number one criminal in Mann’s modern crime epic. Densely plotted, incredibly detailed, and perfectly acted by an ensemble that also includes Val Kilmer, Tom Sizemore, Jon Voight, Ashley Judd, and Amy Brenneman, “Heat” is one of the best movies of its kind ever made, a contemporary action classic.

Before he finalized “Public Enemies,” Mann went into a studio and personally oversaw a detailed remastering of “Heat” for this Blu-Ray release. The result is a 1080p transfer (in 2.40:1) that looks simply amazing. There’s been a bit of controversy as to the lack of detail in it but Mann has made a film that he wants to look gritty and dark and, ultimately, the format shouldn’t be built around presenting the most polished picture but the one that most captures the intention of the filmmaker. I believe the “Heat” Blu-Ray does just that.

As for special features, it’s an extensive lot including a commentary by Mann, 11 additional scenes, and 5 documentaries - “True Crime,” “Crime Stories,” “Into the Fire,” “Pacino and De Niro: The Conversation,” and “Return to the Scene of the Crime”.

There was much controversy surrounding the quality of Mann’s last two films - “Public Enemies” and “Miami Vice” - and, as I mentioned before, the legacy of Al Pacino and Robert De Niro simply must be tarnished by some of the choices these two great actors made in the ’00s. Anyone turned off by any of the recent work by these three gentlemen shouldn’t keep that from going back and seeing what they accomplished when they got together. And anyone who still likes Mann’s films, shouldn’t miss a great Blu-Ray for one of his best.

‘Heat’ is released by Warner Brothers Home Video and stars Al Pacino, Robert De Niro, Tom Sizemore, Diane Venora, Amy Brenneman, Ashley Judd, Mykelti Williamson, Wes Studi, Ted Levine, Jon Voight, and Val Kilmer. It was written and directed by Michael Mann. The film was released on Blu-Ray on November 10th, 2009. It is rated R.

By BRIAN TALLERICO
Content Director
HollywoodChicago.com
brian@hollywoodchicago.com

Johnny Depp’s ‘Public Enemies’ Delivers Bona Fide Chicago Powerhouse

HollywoodChicago.com — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 15:53:26 -0600

CHICAGO – Was John Dillinger an Adolf Hitler-level criminal mastermind or a modern-day Robin Hood superman? In the authentic reality portrayed by the god-like Johnny Depp in the Chicago-filmed “Public Enemies,” he’s a little bit of both for blockbuster filmmaker Michael Mann.

Unfortunately, Depp’s nemesis – special agent Melvin Purvis as played by “The Dark Knight” mainstay Christian Bale – falls flat. Bale rolls through the motions with a monotone and monotonous role that needed the tension of a World War conflict rather than a rubber band.

Rating: 4.0/5.0

The French actress Marion Cotillard, on the other hand, delivers yet another intoxicating performance as Billie Frechette this time in a supporting role. We’re reminded why she ever-so-definitely deserved her 2008 Oscar for so absolutely embodying Edith Piaf in 2007’s “La Vie en Rose”.

Leelee Sobieski is thrown in toward the end as the downplayed character Polly Hamilton in a relatively wasted and unnecessary cameo. In addition, Matt Craven – who you’ve almost certainly never heard of, has no relation to Wes Craven and looks strikingly like Sean Penn – is merely being mentioned in this review for the three aforementioned points of comedy.

Read Adam Fendelman’s full review of “Public Enemies” in our reviews section.

Giovanni Ribisi from “My Name is Earl,” “Friends” and the underrated film “Heaven” (that too many people haven’t seen but should rent tomorrow) methodically portrays Alvin “Creepy” Karpis. While John Dillinger was public enemy No. 1 for the FBI, Karpis was the final public enemy to be nailed.

Karpis’ capture catapulted FBI director J. Edgar Hoover – portrayed with spot-on calculation by Billy Crudup of “Watchmen” and “Almost Famous” fame – and the FBI to national eminence. In the “Public Enemies” period piece, J. Edgar Hoover and his FBI both have a tall task: proving to the American government and people that they should exist and are competent crime stoppers.

“Public Enemies” from director Michael Mann stars Johnny Depp, Christain Bale, Marion Cotillard, Leelee Sobieski, Giovanni Ribisi, Billy Crudup, Channing Tatum, James Russo, Stephen Dorff, Stephen Graham, Bill Camp, Chandler Williams, Branka Katic, Jason Clarke, Christian Stolte and David Wenham. The film, which was released nationwide on July 1, 2009, is rated “R” for gangster violence and some language with a 140-minute running time.

Continuing reading for Adam Fendelman’s full “Public Enemies” review.

Christian Bale stars as special agent Melvin Purvis – the nemesis of the legendary Depression-era outlaw John Dillinger – in “Public Enemies” from filmmaker Michael Mann.
Photo credit: Universal Pictures

Continuing reading for Adam Fendelman’s full “Public Enemies” review.

Slideshow: 36-Image Gallery For ‘Public Enemies’ With Johnny Depp, Christian Bale

HollywoodChicago.com — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 16:38:45 -0600

CHICAGO – Just a day after the red-carpet Chicago premiere of the Chicago-filmed “Public Enemies,” Universal Pictures has released to us 36 high-resolution production stills from the highly anticipated film. “Public Enemies” stars Johnny Depp, Christian Bale, Marion Cotillard, Channing Tatum, Leelee Sobieski, Billy Crudup, Emilie de Ravin, Giovanni Ribisi and Stephen Dorff from director Michael Mann (“Miami Vice,” “Collateral,” “Ali,” “Heat” and “The Last of the Mohicans”).

You can either click “Next” and “Previous” to scan through this slideshow or jump directly to individual photos with the captioned links below. All photo credits for this slideshow go to Peter Mountain and Universal Studios.

The “Public Enemies” synopsis can be found below (source):

In the action-thriller “Public Enemies,” acclaimed filmmaker Michael Mann directs Johnny Depp, Christian Bale and Academy Award winner Marion Cotillard in the incredible and true story of legendary Depression-era bank robber John Dillinger (Depp).

Dillinger is the charismatic bank robber whose lightning raids made him the No. 1 target of J. Edgar Hoover’s fledgling FBI and its top agent, Melvin Purvis (Bale), and a folk hero to much of the downtrodden public. No one could stop Dillinger. No jail could hold him.

His charm and audacious jailbreaks endeared him to almost everyone from his girlfriend, Billie Frechette (Cotillard), to an American public who had no sympathy for the banks that had plunged the country into the Depression.

But while the adventures of Dillinger’s gang (later including the sociopathic Baby Face Nelson [Stephen Graham]) thrilled many, Hoover (Billy Crudup) hit on the idea of exploiting the outlaw’s capture as a way to elevate the FBI his bureau of investigation into the national police force that became the FBI. He made Dillinger America’s first public enemy No. 1 and sent in Purvis (the dashing “Clark Gable of the FBI”).

However, Dillinger and his gang outwitted and outgunned Purvis’ men in wild chases and shootouts. Only after importing a crew of Western ex-lawmen (newly baptized as agents) who were real gunfighters and orchestrating epic betrayals from the infamous “Lady in Red” to the Chicago crime boss Frank Nitti were Purvis and the FBI able to close in on Dillinger.

See our 12-image “Public Enemies” slideshow at the Biograph in Chicago.
Video: Watch the “Public Enemies” trailer now!

By ADAM FENDELMAN
Editor-in-Chief
HollywoodChicago.com
adam@hollywoodchicago.com

Video: ‘Public Enemies’ Trailer With Johnny Depp, Christian Bale

BrianTT — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 08:07:11 -0600

CHICAGO – One of our most highly anticipated films of 2009 has to be Michael Mann’s “Public Enemies” and we just had to share one of the best movie trailers in a long time. The film, a lot of which was shot in Chicago, stars Johnny Depp, Christian Bale, Marion Cotillard, Billy Crudup, Channing Tatum, Leelee Sobieski, Giovanni Ribisi, Emilie de Ravin, and Lili Taylor. The film opens on July 1st, 2009. Not soon enough.

Synopsis:

“In the action-thriller Public Enemies, acclaimed filmmaker Michael Mann directs Johnny Depp, Christian Bale and Academy Award® winner Marion Cotillard in the story of legendary Depression-era outlaw John Dillinger (Depp) — the charismatic bank robber whose lightning raids made him the number one target of J. Edgar Hoover’s fledgling FBI and its top agent, Melvin Purvis (Bale), and a folk hero to much of the downtrodden public.

No one could stop Dillinger and his gang. No jail could hold him. His charm and audacious jailbreaks endeared him to almost everyone — from his girlfriend Billie Frechette (Cotillard) to an American public who had no sympathy for the banks that had plunged the country into the Depression.

But while the adventures of Dillinger’s gang — later including the sociopathic Baby Face Nelson (Stephen Graham) and Alvin Karpis (Giovanni Ribisi) — thrilled many, Hoover (Billy Crudup) hit on the idea of exploiting the outlaw’s capture as a way to elevate his Bureau of Investigation into the national police force that became the FBI. He made Dillinger America’s first Public Enemy Number One and sent in Purvis, the dashing “Clark Gable of the FBI.”

However, Dillinger and his gang outwitted and outgunned Purvis’ men in wild chases and shootouts. Only after importing a crew of Western ex-lawmen (newly baptized as agents) and orchestrating epic betrayals — from the infamous “Lady in Red” to the Chicago crime boss Frank Nitti — were Purvis, the FBI and their new crew of gunfighters able to close in on Dillinger.”

See our 36-image “Public Enemies” slideshow with high-quality stills.
See our 12-image “Public Enemies” slideshow at the Biograph in Chicago.
Watch more HollywoodChicago.com-hosted A&E videos.
Watch more movie videos on HollywoodChicago.com hosted elsewhere.

By BRIAN TALLERICO
Content Director
HollywoodChicago.com
brian@hollywoodchicago.com

In the Forums: ‘The Dark Knight,’ ‘Public Enemies’ in Chicago, ‘Iron Man,’ James Bond Secrets

HollywoodChicago.com — Wed, 02 Apr 2008 11:19:29 -0600

CHICAGO – In this edition of In the Forums, we bring you news from our discussion boards about “The Dark Knight” continuing to heat up with its comprehensive viral marketing campaign, Michael Mann’s “Public Enemies” with Johnny Depp and Christian Bale turning heads in Chicago from local filming, new production stills for the hotly anticipated “Iron Man” film with Robert Downey Jr. and news about the unveiling of new James Bond secrets.

“The Dark Knight” celebrates April Fool’s Day with enthusiasts in style.

Read our full coverage here!
(Photo credit: IMDb)

“Public Enemies” is live and loud on the Chicago scene.

Read our full coverage here!
(Chicago Tribune photo by John Smierciak)

“The Dark Knight” viral marketing phones have been ringing off the hook.

Read our full coverage here!
(Photo credit: IMDb)

New “Iron Man” photos with a Paramount watermark have mysteriously surfaced online.

See them all here!
(Photo credit: Superhero Hype!)

A second Joker phone for “The Dark Knight” viral marketing has been snagged in Chicago and in cities across the U.S.

Read and see our photos here!
(Photo credit: IMDb)

James Bond revealing his own secrets? No, but an author will in a new book.

Get the full scoop here!
(Photo by Keith Hamshere on Nov. 17, 2002)

What’s the purpose, by the way, for this In the Forums package? While our discussion forums are an unfettered venting ground for all of our readers, we also originate a wide array of must-read news there from other trusted, high-quality entertainment publications.

For those of you who don’t frequent our forums and for those of you who typically read us via RSS or our daily mailing, the purpose of this package is to bring the news we’re publishing in our forums front and center into our news section, RSS feed and daily mailing.

By ADAM FENDELMAN
Editor-in-Chief
HollywoodChicago.com
adam@hollywoodchicago.com

‘The Dark Knight’ IMAX Prologue Leaks Online; Inspiration Drawn From ‘Heat’

HollywoodChicago.com — Sun, 16 Dec 2007 15:37:00 -0700

CHICAGO – A bootlegged recording of “The Dark Knight” IMAX prologue, which is showing in theaters before “I Am Legend,” is now on YouTube. My review of the prologue is here.

Jeffrey Wells at Hollywood Elsewhere makes these comparisons:

It was clearly shot with impressions of the legendary bank-heist sequence from Michael Mann’s “Heat” in mind.

I love how William Fichtner’s reading of the line “do you have any idea who you’re stealing from?” (which refers to the fact that the bank has lots of mafia money in its vaults) is very similar to Warren Beatty’s yelling during the “bark like a dog” sequence in “Bugsy”.

JoBlo has also picked this up and noticed the inspiration from “Heat”. This is also on /Film and AICN.

4:59 p.m. update: Another WhySoSerious.com poster has emerged. These are from RopeofSilicon.com. They have also been picked up on Film School Rejects and /Film.

The second WhySoSerious.com poster above I already posted on Dec. 14, 2007. I’m posting it again because this version is better quality. A high-resolution version of the first poster is here.

5:42 p.m. update: In the few minutes this post has been live with the posters, I have received several e-mails all saying the following:

The first poster with the Joker’s palm pressed against the window is a fan-made [manipulation].

It was created by Barney at the Superhero Hype! forums. He also created the Batman poster holding a Joker card that was widely believed to be real.

Several other people on various forums have confirmed this, too.

By ADAM FENDELMAN
Editor-in-Chief
HollywoodChicago.com
adam@hollywoodchicago.com

News You Need: ‘Enemies’ in Chicago, NBR Awards ‘Old Men,’ Filming ‘Freakonomics’

HollywoodChicago.com — Thu, 06 Dec 2007 10:35:30 -0700

Mann to Ambush Depp Outside the Biograph: Michael Mann and Johnny Depp have agreed to film “Public Enemies”. It’ll be a Chicago-based film about Depression-era gangsters set in 1933 to 1934.

Depp will play John Dillinger, according to Variety. The film is slated to start shooting in Chicago on March 10, 2008.

Michael Mann.
Photo credit: IMDb
Mann wrote the script based on the book by Bryan Burroughs. Depp recently backed out of Mira Nair’s “Shantaram” due to WGA strike-related script problems.

Since 2006’s “Miami Vice,” Mann has been jumping on and off abandoned projects. “Public Enemies” sounds close in tone and period to an untitled Hollywood noir written by John Logan that stars Leonardo DiCaprio. That project fell through due to a budget climbing in excess of $100 million.

Mann also was attached to “Empire” – a media-mogul drama again written by Logan (which its proposed star, Will Smith, recently compared to “Richard III”) – along with a former Martin Scorsese project entitled “Frankie Machine”. “Frankie Machine” was due to star Robert De Niro and be rewritten by Alex Tse (“Watchmen”).

Mann was possibly to step in and direct “Edwin A. Salt,” which is a CIA thriller to star Tom Cruise.

Its original director, Terry George (“Reservation Road,” “Hotel Rwanda”), recently dropped out due to script problems. Despite the strike, Mann also wouldn’t commit without a rewrite to the screenplay by Kurt Wimmer (“Equilibrium,” “Ultraviolet”).

Depp and Mann previously almost collaborated on an adaptation of “Death of a Dissident” about the assassinated former Russian intelligence officer Alexander Litvinenko.

Mann, who was born in Chicago, previously filmed “Thief” and “Manhunter” in the Windy City.

Then the NBR Woke Up: The National Board of Review (NBR) – annually the first film awards organization announcing its prizes – has named its best film of 2007: the Coen brothers’ “No Country For Old Men”. Other awards follow.

Javier Bardem in “No Country For Old Men”.
Photo credit: IMDb
Top 10 films (in alphabetical order): “The Assassination of Jesse James By the Coward Robert Ford,” “Atonement,” “The Bourne Ultumatum,” “Into the Wild,” “Juno,” “The Kite Runner,” “Lars and the Real Girl,” “Michael Clayton” and “Sweeney Todd”

Best actor: George Clooney, “Michael Clayton”

Best actress: Julie Christie, “Away From Her”

Best supporting actor: Casey Affleck, “The Assassination of Jesse James By the Coward Robert Ford”

Best supporting actress: Amy Ryan, “Gone Baby Gone”

Best adapted screenplay: Joel and Ethan Coen, “No Country For Old Men”

Best original screenplay: Diablo Cody, “Juno,” and Nancy Oliver, “Lars and the Real Girl”

Best director: Tim Burton, “Sweeney Todd”

In recent days, the NBR was rumored to have ousted influential member Annette Insdorf. She’s the head of the Columbia University film department and an acclaimed scholar on Francois Truffaut and Krzystof Kieslowski.

Documentarists to Get Their ‘Freak’ On: A who’s who of documentary filmmakers will each take on the non-fiction best-seller “Freakonomics,” according to Variety.

The film has enlisted Morgan Spurlock (“Super Size Me”), Rachel Grady and Heidi Ewing (“Jesus Camp”), Alex Gibney (“Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room”), Laura Poitras (“My Country My Country”), Eugene Jarecki (“Why We Fight”) and Jehane Noujaim (“Control Room”) to each direct a documentary segment on chapters in the book.

The film will be produced by Chad Troutwin and Seth Gordon (“The King of Kong”). The controversial book, which is written by University of Chicago economist Steven Levitt and New York Times journalist Steven J. Dubner, is full of lateral thinking.

It uses pop culture and data to argue (among other things) that legalized abortion might lead to a lower crime rate or that beginning drug dealers on Chicago’s south side make less money than the starting counter wage at Burger King.

The authors also maintain a blog for further debate.

Spurlock has been the talk of movie blogs recently. Speculation spread that his next film, “Where in the World is Osama bin Laden?,” actually contains an interview with bin Laden.

Morgan Spurlock.
Photo credit: Rebecca Sapp, WireImage.com
This sudden news was based on two things: first, a conveniently truncated Variety quote from June.

Most sites reported the film’s director of photography, Daniel Marracino, as saying: “We’ve definitely got the Holy Grail.” Still, the majority neglected to continue the quote: “Visually, this film is just going to be gorgeous.”

Secondly, there was a bidding war for the film at the Berlin Film Festival won by the Weinstein Company – last February. AICN alleges that the Weinstein Company spent $25 million on a 15-minute preview.

It took blogs from both The Guardian and the New York Times to debunk the rumor.

“Where in the World is Osama bin Laden?” debuts at the Sundance Film Festival in Jan. 2008. “Freakonomics” plans to shoot in the beginning of January and hopes to be completed by the summer of 2008.

By Shane Hazen
Staff Writer
HollywoodChicago.com

News You Need: ‘Frankie Machine,’ ‘The Love Guru,’ ‘The Da Vinci Code’ Sequel, ‘Untitled’

HollywoodChicago.com — Thu, 25 Oct 2007 11:11:13 -0600

Michael Mann has inked a deal with Paramount Pictures to develop “Frankie Machine” as a star vehicle for Robert de Niro.

The drama is an adaptation of the Don Winslow novel “The Winter of Frankie Machine” and De Niro will play a mob hitman who has retired to run a bait shop.

The first photo has been released for “The Love Guru,” which stars Mike Myers and Jessica Alba. Myers plays an American who was left at the gates of an ashram in India as a child and raised by gurus.

Mike Myers and Jessica Alba in “The Love Guru”.
Photo courtesy of Paramount Pictures
Columbia has made official a Feb. 2007 fast-tracked European start to “Angels & Demons,” which is Ron Howard’s sequel to “The Da Vinci Code”. The film is slated for release in Dec. 2008.

Jamie Foxx has signed on for “The Zebra Murders: A Season of Killing, Racial Madness and Civil Rights” for DreamWorks.

Based on a 2006 book, the story chronicles the series of racially motivated, black-on-white serial killings from 1973 to 1974 in San Francisco.

Celtic Rose Entertainment has optioned the rights to young-adult fantasy book series “Leven Thumps” by Obert Skye.

As a 14-year-old boy, the fate by Leven Thumps is to save the ailing Foo, which is a world that allows mankind to dream and imagine.

Adam Goldberg (from “2 Days in Paris” with Julie Delpy; our Delpy interview on that film can be found here) and Marley Shelton will star in the indie feature “Untitled”.

The film is centered around a tortured musician at odds with his successful brother.

Adam Goldberg
Photo by Jeff Vespa, WireImage.com
Paramount Pictures has begun casting for a G.I. Joe film and plans to begin filming in the middle of Feb. 2008 in Prague and Los Angeles.

Stephen Sommers (“Van Helsing,” “The Mummy Returns,” “The Mummy”) will direct the film from a script by Stuart Beattie. Paramount is currently calling the film the “Untitled Stephen Sommers Project”.

Jim Caviezel (Jesus in “The Passion of the Christ”) and Claudia Karvan will star in the suspense thriller “Long Weekend” for Arclight Films.

The Everett de Roche story centers around a young couple on a camping trip who remorselessly disregard the local environment by shooting guns and wounding wildlife. The animals fight back.

The 11-year-old Kodi Smit-McPhee will play young Logan in “X-Men Origins: Wolverine” from 20th Century Fox. Smit-McPhee, who starred in “Romulus, My Father,” will start filming for the “X-Men” spin-off in Dec. 2007.

Kodi Smit-McPhee
Photo courtesy of Superhero! Hype
Freestyle Releasing has scored domestic theatrical rights to Rick Yune’s (“Die Another Day”) martial arts film “The Fifth Commandment” with plans to launch it into 1,000 U.S. theaters in March 2007.

Yune stars as a trained assassin who declines an assignment to off a pop singer because her bodyguard is his half brother.