Michael Mann At BAM: The Recut 'Blackhat,' The Authenticity Behind 'Thief,' 'Heat,' ‘Ali,’ 'Collateral,' & More

Last night at the Brooklyn Academy Of Music, as part of their “Heat & Vice: The Films of Michael Mann” retrospective, the legendary filmmaker himself graced the stage for an engaging one-hour-plus talk. The conversation spanned his entire career tracking the very early days (TV movie “The Jericho Mile”), his debut feature (“Thief”), his crime classics ("Manhunter," “Heat,” “Miami Vice”) and his latest film, the cyber hacker movie “Blackhat,” which he recently recut for the retrospective (read our review here).

READ MORE: Retrospective: The Films Of Michael Mann

Fiercely intelligent and an autodidact known for his near-mythic levels of research when immersing himself in a project — he’s only made eleven features in thirty-four years and abandoned several projects despite years of investigation — Mann’s films often center on the codes of men and their professions, usually revolving around crime. These men often live what Mann constantly refers to as an “authentic...