Blackhat (2015)
Directed by Michael Mann
Nicholas Hathaway, a furloughed convict, and his American and Chinese partners hunt a high-level cybercrime network from Chicago to Los Angeles to Hong Kong to Jakarta. As Hathaway closes in, the stakes become personal as he discovers that the attack on a Chinese nuclear power plant was just the beginning.
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What critics say influenced Blackhat
Director Michael Mann has proven to be the oddest stylist of his generation, starting with the stunning Thief, achieving velocity with Heat, and then following those by searching for a certain kind of pastel monotone.
Cyber terrorism thriller Blackhat sees director Michael Mann continuing to explore themes found in his earlier works like Heat and Thief, but with a firm foot in the stylistic experimentation that has characterised his 21st century output to date.
Blackhat is a cyber-thriller, but for Mann, the thriller part is just the access point through which he can explore a changing world, and modify the themes that run through films like Thief, Manhunter, Heat , and Collateral.
That's the stylish auteur in charge here, and compared to his previous genre accomplishments — not just the uber-'80s "Miami Vice," but the almost existential "Thief" and "Heat" — "Blackhat" occasionally feels like a bit of a letdown.
Mann has subverted genres, often brilliantly, starting with his first feature, “Thief” (1981).
The device recalls the opening of his first theatrical film, Thief, way back in analog days, with its dive into the inner workings of machinery.
Blackhat is not a sci-fi film, but this comes close to being what a Michael Mann live-action take on Ghost in the Shell might look like – and until a final act reveal, it shares with that cyberpunk cornerstone the concept of a cat-and-mouse chase with an unknowable malevolent force.
Michael Mann’s best movies ( Heat , Collateral , The Insider ) are a masterful combination of style and substance, gorgeously shot, artfully orchestrated blends of thrilling plots, compelling characters and stunning images.
There’s also a lazy reflex for the villain to be an amoral dark reflection of the hero; in Michael Mann’s cinematic universe it’s a recurring theme, and when it’s done right, it’s sublime (Heat (McCauley and Hanna, Manhunter (Graham and Lecktor [they use a unique spelling in the film for some reason]/The Red Dragon), Collateral (Max and Vincent).
Blackhat is a cyber-thriller, but for Mann, the thriller part is just the access point through which he can explore a changing world, and modify the themes that run through films like Thief, Manhunter, Heat , and Collateral.
On the one hand, it’s directed by Oscar-nominated Michael Mann, a smart filmmaker with some established credibility (Heat, Collateral, The Last of the Mohicans).
Hollywood tends to bury its dead in January (and late August), but I was holding out hope for "Blackhat" because it stars the winning Chris Hemsworth (dropping Thor's hammer for a few hours) and is directed by Michael Mann, the gifted filmmaker behind "Thief," "Heat," "The Insider," the great "The Last of the Mohicans" and the underappreciated "Collateral," among many others.
Director Michael Mann (who brought us “Heat,” “Collateral” and many others) struggles here to make computer hacking visually interesting and thrilling.
In Hemsworth, of Thor and Sexiest Man Alive fame, Mann probably has a star better suited to the likes of Bay’s Bad Boys II .
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Lensed with a sweeping exotic lushness by cinematographer Stuart Dryburgh (2013's " The Secret Life of Walter Mitty "), "Blackhat" brings a compelling criticality to a story that requires its protagonists spend an inordinate amount of time typing away in front of computer screens.
Abstract cybercrime thrillers may not be your thing, but if your partner is into Michael Mann, then odds are high you saw Blackhat.