Michael Mann (1943 - )

Date of Birth: 5 February 1943
Place of Birth: Chicago, Illinois, USA
Date of Death:
Place of Death:
Also Known As:

After graduating from the London International Film School, Mann returned to the States where he began writing episodes of popular TV shows like Starsky and Hutch. It wasn't until 1979 that he got a chance to make his debut as director, helming the powerful prison drama The Jericho Mile for American television.

Thief followed in 1981 and earned much admiration for its memorable portrayal of a safecracker (well played by James Caan) and his dangerous dealings with organised crime. Quickly proving himself capable in any genre he cared to turn his hand to, Mann made the wonderful horror film The Keep (1983) before helping to create the inexplicably popular TV crime series Miami Vice.

Altogether better was his second attempt at a TV series, the superb and criminally under-valued Crime Story (1986). Later that same year he brought Hannibal 'the cannibal' Lektor to the screen for the first time in the shape of Brian Cox in Manhunter (1986), a film that still stands head and shoulders above its follow up, the over-rated The Silence of the Lambs (1991).

Switching back and forth between television and cinema, Mann has continued to defy expectations and has tried out many genres, though the crime thriller has seemed to his genre of choice. In 1989 he made L.A. Takedown, then remade it in 1995 as Heat, with Al Pacino, Robert De Niro and Val Kilmer. Drug Wars: The Camarena Story, a mini-series that Mann produced in 1990, bagged an Emmy or two and The Last of the Mohicans (1992) provided Mann with the blockbuster that had thus far eluded him.

Following Heat, Mann was briefly linked with the ill-fated attempt to bring William Gibson's novel Count Zero to the screen as The Zen Differential. Recovering from that non-started he drew a superb performance from Russell Crowe for The Insider (1999) before embarking on the bio-pic of boxer Mohammed Ali.

No matter what genre they may be in, Mann's films all exhibit a unique style - his shots are composed in unexpected ways (look at the strange close ups of partially seen faces in Manhunter for example) and bathed in strong, powerful lighting. His use of hand-held cameras (often operated by himself) give his films an edgy, almost documentary feel.

* = television

1983
The Keep (script; director)

1986
Manhunter (script; director)

1986 - 1987
Crime Story (executive producer) *

1987
Crime Story: Top of the World (director) *

1975
Starsky and Hutch: various episodes (scripts) *

1976
Kojak: By Silence Betrayed (performer - Dave) *

1978
M*A*S*H: Major Topper (performer - Sergeant Glassberg) *
Vega$ (script; director) *

1979
The Jericho Mile (script; director) *

1980
Swan Song (script)

1981
Thief (executive producer; script; director)

1984
Miami Vice (executive producer; director) *

1986
Band of the Hand (executive producer)

1989
L.A. Takedown (executive producer; script; director) *

1990
Drug Wars: The Camarena Story (producer) *

1992
The Last of the Mohicans (producer; script; director)
Drug Wars: The Cocaine Cartel (executive producer) *

1998
Chicago Filmmakers on the Chicago River (performer - himself)

1995
Heat (producer; script; director)

1999
The Insider (producer; script; director)

2001
Ali (director)

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