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NOTE to NON-MEMBERS: Interested in joining the SHERDOG MOVIE CLUB? Shoot me a PM for more info.
Here's a quick list of all movies watched by the SMC. Or if you prefer, here's a more detailed examination.
Newcomer @usulrah is on tap this week and he brings us the Club's first exposure to Michael Mann.
Thief is directed by MICHAEL MANN.
From Biography.com:
Early Career
Director, producer and screenwriter Michael Mann was born on February 5, 1943, in Chicago, Illinois. Raised in the working class Chicago neighborhood of Humboldt Park, Mann graduated from high school in 1960 and attended the University of Wisconsin, where he received his BA in English literature. After college, Mann did graduate work at the London Film School, earning his master's degree in 1967. While in England, he worked at an advertising agency and honed his directorial skills on commercials, short films and documentaries.
Mann moved back to Chicago in 1971 and relocated to Los Angeles a year later, where he began writing for television, scripting the prime time crime dramas Starsky and Hutch and Police Story and the pilot for a 1978 TV movie, Vega$. His first TV directorial effort, a drama called The Jericho Mile (1979), won Mann a Director's Guild of America Award as well as an Emmy for co-writing. In 1981, Mann made his feature film directorial debut with Thief, a crime drama starring James Caan; the film received good reviews but never took off commercially.
His next offering as a director, The Keep (1983), was both a commercial and a critical disappointment. Mann's third effort was Manhunter (1987), a little-seen film based on Thomas Harris's novel Red Dragon that introduced the character of serial killer Hannibal Lecter (made famous by Anthony Hopkins in the Oscar-winning 1991 film version of Harris's second Lecter novel, The Silence of the Lambs).
Television Success
Though directing feature films was Mann's first love, he had considerably more success early on as a producer for television, especially with his work as executive producer for the mid-1980s crime series Miami Vice. Mann served as the mastermind behind the slick, stylized drama, which aired on NBC from 1984 to 1989 and starred Don Johnson and Philip Michael Thomas as Detectives Crockett and Tubbs.
A then-hip, fast-paced cop drama for the MTV generation, Miami Vice almost immediately became a full-fledged cultural phenomenon; Crockett and Tubbs, with their pastel shirts and Armani suits, became icons of '80s fashion. Mann also executive-produced another cop series, Police Story, which aired from 1986 to 1988. Mann compounded his TV success in 1990, when he served as executive producer for the Emmy Award-winning NBC miniseries Drug Wars: The Camarena Story and its sequel Drug Wars: The Cocaine Cartel (1992).
Feature Film Success
In 1992, Mann had a certain measure of big-screen triumph with his ambitious adaptation of James Fenimore Cooper's novel The Last of the Mohicans. He co-wrote, directed and produced the action-packed film, which starred Daniel Day-Lewis. Mann also wrote and directed the long-awaited pairing of Al Pacino and Robert DeNiro (the two actors appeared in 1974's The Godfather Part II but never had a scene together) in the crime drama Heat (1995), which met with mixed reviews.
In 1999, Mann co-wrote, directed, and produced The Insider, a film based on the true story of an ex-tobacco company executive (played by Russell Crowe) who is convinced by a TV news producer (Pacino) to blow the whistle on the powerful tobacco industry. Mann and Eric Roth (who penned the 1994 Oscar winner Forrest Gump) adapted the screenplay from a 1996 Vanity Fair article written by Marie Brenner. Although it failed to attract audiences, the film was lauded almost universally by critics, receiving Academy Award nominations for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor (Crowe) and Best Adapted Screenplay.
In the new millennium Mann made such films as Collateral (2004), Miami Vice (2006), Public Enemies (2009) and Blackhat (2015).
James Caan: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001001
Film Overview and YouTube Videos
Premise: Coming closer to his dream of leading a normal life, a professional safecracker agrees to do a job for the Mafia, who have other plans for him.
Budget: $5.5 million
Box Office: $11.5 million
* After The Godfather (1972), this is James Caan's favourite film of his own. He has stated that his monologue in the diner is the scene he is most proud of in his career.
* In the hospital scene, James Caan decided to stare coldly at J. Jay Saunders who played the doctor. This really frightened Saunders and his reaction in the scene is genuine.
* James Caan made sure to speak slowly and clearly and tried to avoid using contractions in his words. He decided that Frank would do this so he would save time by never having to repeat himself.
* The burglary tools used throughout the film (such as the hydraulic drill used in the opening sequence) were not props, but actual tools which the actors were trained to use. The tools were supplied by actual thieves who served as technical consultants on the film, principally John Santucci, who also portrays Sgt. Urizzi on screen.
* The screenplay for this film was adapted from the novel "The Home Invaders", written by Frank Hohimer, himself a professional thief. Hohimer was serving time in prison at the time this film was in production.
* When Frank tries to light his cigarette in the diner scene, the lighter does not work. This was not scripted. The prison story that Frank tells in his monologue is based on a letter Michael Mann received from a real inmate.
* In the scene in Leo's house, James Caan improvised mispronouncing "elected" as "elected-ed" to show that Frank was an uneducated man who tried project an air of sophistication.
* The vault which Frank breaks into in the opening scene was a real vault, purchased at a cost of $10,000, specifically so that James Caan could break into it, using the tools and techniques supplied by John Santucci.
* James Belushi's brother, John Belushi visited the set often. The cast and crew would often hang out at Belushi's speakeasy, The Blues Brothers Bar, after work.
* Jeff Bridges was Michael Mann's choice to play Frank in thief but was rejected due to the fact he was very young and wasn't experienced enough to play a hardened criminal.
* Film debuts of James Belushi, William Petersen, Dennis Farina, John Kapelos, and Robert Prosky
* The house that was blown up was actually a fake structure in front of the real house; nevertheless, when it blew up it heavily damaged the real house behind it. The residents and neighbors were moved to a hotel during filming.
* A 60,000 gallon water truck was used to keep the streets constantly wet.
* While James Caan liked the movie, he found the part challenging to play. "I like to be emotionally available but this guy is available to nothing."
* Al Pacino turned down the role of Frank due to scheduling conflicts.
* According to James Belushi, on the documentary series Directors, Michael Mann drove the costumer crazy trying to get Belushi a Hula shirt for the scene where they are casing the last vault.
* The only film shot by Michael Mann to be presented in a 1.85:1 standard widescreen ratio. After this film, he has shot all of his movies in 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen ratio.
* The long "sparkler" used to melt into the big jewel safe is a real tool, known as an oxy-lance.
* The scene where Frank blows up his car lot was filmed at 4 AM in below-freezing temperature. Still over 2,000 spectators showed up to watch the explosions.
Members: @shadow_priest_x @europe1 @jeicex @MusterX @Coolthulu @Scott Parker 27 @the muntjac @Caveat @RabidJesus @usulrah
Here's a quick list of all movies watched by the SMC. Or if you prefer, here's a more detailed examination.
Newcomer @usulrah is on tap this week and he brings us the Club's first exposure to Michael Mann.
Our Director
Thief is directed by MICHAEL MANN.
From Biography.com:
Early Career
Director, producer and screenwriter Michael Mann was born on February 5, 1943, in Chicago, Illinois. Raised in the working class Chicago neighborhood of Humboldt Park, Mann graduated from high school in 1960 and attended the University of Wisconsin, where he received his BA in English literature. After college, Mann did graduate work at the London Film School, earning his master's degree in 1967. While in England, he worked at an advertising agency and honed his directorial skills on commercials, short films and documentaries.
Mann moved back to Chicago in 1971 and relocated to Los Angeles a year later, where he began writing for television, scripting the prime time crime dramas Starsky and Hutch and Police Story and the pilot for a 1978 TV movie, Vega$. His first TV directorial effort, a drama called The Jericho Mile (1979), won Mann a Director's Guild of America Award as well as an Emmy for co-writing. In 1981, Mann made his feature film directorial debut with Thief, a crime drama starring James Caan; the film received good reviews but never took off commercially.
His next offering as a director, The Keep (1983), was both a commercial and a critical disappointment. Mann's third effort was Manhunter (1987), a little-seen film based on Thomas Harris's novel Red Dragon that introduced the character of serial killer Hannibal Lecter (made famous by Anthony Hopkins in the Oscar-winning 1991 film version of Harris's second Lecter novel, The Silence of the Lambs).
Television Success
Though directing feature films was Mann's first love, he had considerably more success early on as a producer for television, especially with his work as executive producer for the mid-1980s crime series Miami Vice. Mann served as the mastermind behind the slick, stylized drama, which aired on NBC from 1984 to 1989 and starred Don Johnson and Philip Michael Thomas as Detectives Crockett and Tubbs.
A then-hip, fast-paced cop drama for the MTV generation, Miami Vice almost immediately became a full-fledged cultural phenomenon; Crockett and Tubbs, with their pastel shirts and Armani suits, became icons of '80s fashion. Mann also executive-produced another cop series, Police Story, which aired from 1986 to 1988. Mann compounded his TV success in 1990, when he served as executive producer for the Emmy Award-winning NBC miniseries Drug Wars: The Camarena Story and its sequel Drug Wars: The Cocaine Cartel (1992).
Feature Film Success
In 1992, Mann had a certain measure of big-screen triumph with his ambitious adaptation of James Fenimore Cooper's novel The Last of the Mohicans. He co-wrote, directed and produced the action-packed film, which starred Daniel Day-Lewis. Mann also wrote and directed the long-awaited pairing of Al Pacino and Robert DeNiro (the two actors appeared in 1974's The Godfather Part II but never had a scene together) in the crime drama Heat (1995), which met with mixed reviews.
In 1999, Mann co-wrote, directed, and produced The Insider, a film based on the true story of an ex-tobacco company executive (played by Russell Crowe) who is convinced by a TV news producer (Pacino) to blow the whistle on the powerful tobacco industry. Mann and Eric Roth (who penned the 1994 Oscar winner Forrest Gump) adapted the screenplay from a 1996 Vanity Fair article written by Marie Brenner. Although it failed to attract audiences, the film was lauded almost universally by critics, receiving Academy Award nominations for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor (Crowe) and Best Adapted Screenplay.
In the new millennium Mann made such films as Collateral (2004), Miami Vice (2006), Public Enemies (2009) and Blackhat (2015).
Our Star
James Caan: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001001
Film Overview and YouTube Videos
Premise: Coming closer to his dream of leading a normal life, a professional safecracker agrees to do a job for the Mafia, who have other plans for him.
Budget: $5.5 million
Box Office: $11.5 million
Trivia
(courtesy of IMDB)
(courtesy of IMDB)
* After The Godfather (1972), this is James Caan's favourite film of his own. He has stated that his monologue in the diner is the scene he is most proud of in his career.
* In the hospital scene, James Caan decided to stare coldly at J. Jay Saunders who played the doctor. This really frightened Saunders and his reaction in the scene is genuine.
* James Caan made sure to speak slowly and clearly and tried to avoid using contractions in his words. He decided that Frank would do this so he would save time by never having to repeat himself.
* The burglary tools used throughout the film (such as the hydraulic drill used in the opening sequence) were not props, but actual tools which the actors were trained to use. The tools were supplied by actual thieves who served as technical consultants on the film, principally John Santucci, who also portrays Sgt. Urizzi on screen.
* The screenplay for this film was adapted from the novel "The Home Invaders", written by Frank Hohimer, himself a professional thief. Hohimer was serving time in prison at the time this film was in production.
* When Frank tries to light his cigarette in the diner scene, the lighter does not work. This was not scripted. The prison story that Frank tells in his monologue is based on a letter Michael Mann received from a real inmate.
* In the scene in Leo's house, James Caan improvised mispronouncing "elected" as "elected-ed" to show that Frank was an uneducated man who tried project an air of sophistication.
* The vault which Frank breaks into in the opening scene was a real vault, purchased at a cost of $10,000, specifically so that James Caan could break into it, using the tools and techniques supplied by John Santucci.
* James Belushi's brother, John Belushi visited the set often. The cast and crew would often hang out at Belushi's speakeasy, The Blues Brothers Bar, after work.
* Jeff Bridges was Michael Mann's choice to play Frank in thief but was rejected due to the fact he was very young and wasn't experienced enough to play a hardened criminal.
* Film debuts of James Belushi, William Petersen, Dennis Farina, John Kapelos, and Robert Prosky
* The house that was blown up was actually a fake structure in front of the real house; nevertheless, when it blew up it heavily damaged the real house behind it. The residents and neighbors were moved to a hotel during filming.
* A 60,000 gallon water truck was used to keep the streets constantly wet.
* While James Caan liked the movie, he found the part challenging to play. "I like to be emotionally available but this guy is available to nothing."
* Al Pacino turned down the role of Frank due to scheduling conflicts.
* According to James Belushi, on the documentary series Directors, Michael Mann drove the costumer crazy trying to get Belushi a Hula shirt for the scene where they are casing the last vault.
* The only film shot by Michael Mann to be presented in a 1.85:1 standard widescreen ratio. After this film, he has shot all of his movies in 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen ratio.
* The long "sparkler" used to melt into the big jewel safe is a real tool, known as an oxy-lance.
* The scene where Frank blows up his car lot was filmed at 4 AM in below-freezing temperature. Still over 2,000 spectators showed up to watch the explosions.
Members: @shadow_priest_x @europe1 @jeicex @MusterX @Coolthulu @Scott Parker 27 @the muntjac @Caveat @RabidJesus @usulrah
