The trailer for Michael Mann's new movie, Blackhat, is finally here and it is everything Mann fans could ask for. The story is some kind of techno-babble about hacking, but all the expected qualities from America's best living director of lonely men who sometimes participate in gunfights are in place. Let's count the ways that this is a Michael Mann experience.
1. A Hero Who Is Smart, Alone, AND Spent Time Exercising in Jail: Chris Hemsworth working his bod in jail is Chris Hemsworth channeling Robert De Niro in Heat wrapping a napkin around a glass of water, which, as Mann explains on the DVD commentary, is something inmates would do when incarcerated as a sign of affection and humanity. (I'm doing this from memory, but I'm pretty sure that's all factually correct.)
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2. That Guy From Miami Vice: Mann loves to reuse actors likes he loves to revisit themes about men with dreams but not enough time: Wes Studi in Last of the Mohicans and Heat; Tom Noonan in Manhunter and Heat; Al Pacino in Heat and The Insider. In Blackhat's trailer, it's John Ortiz, the dude who almost ate a grenade in Miami Vice. Now he knows about hacking and finance. He is probably also alone in the world.
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3. Go-fast Boats: Michael Mann loves boats.
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4. "The guy we're working will drop the big hammer and not think twice about it.": That's quintessential Mann speak coming from Viola Davis.
5. Human Shapes Made Alien Against Symmetrical Backdrops of Urban Design: Like in the shot below.
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6. Extra Crispy Digital Cinematography: No one shoots cities at night on digital like Mann. Just watch those scenes near the nuclear reactor.
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7. "You have to run.": This is the eternal condition of men in Mann movies. You must always run when you spot the heat around the corner.
8. Romance: But a man in a Mann movie is vulnerable to romance, even when he knows he will always have to run.
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9. Impeccable (But Late) Music Selection: A Dylan cover by Antony and the Johnsons that came out in 2007? Let's do it! This is like all the Audioslave in Miami Vice and Collateral, only so much cooler.
10. Guns: Mann loves guns.
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Blackhat opens on January 16, 2015.
Ross Scarano is a deputy editor at Complex and he is also a cowboy looking for anything heavy. Slide into his DMs here if you got that reference.
