imagineNATIVE 25 FILM FESTIVAL REVIEW! A dreamy tribute to the work of a great director makes for a breezy experimental experience in filmmaker Ryland Walker Knight’s film essay, Mann’s Sparks. For nearly an hour, the viewer is treated to several visual clips from Michael Mann movies, with each separate movie set to a different electronic dream-pop song. The first film explored is Miami Vice, Mann’s adaptation of the ’80s TV sensation he helped create. Next is Thief, followed by Mann’s other classics, Last of the Mohicans and Manhunter. We are then treated to Public Enemies, Heat, and Collateral, then a pair of underseen Mann movies, Luck and Blackhat, before going to Ali. Knight avoids condensing the films, instead going to images and sequences that have the most magnetism to him. This makes for an unpredictable array of visuals, all decontextualized by the sedating synthesizer scores they have been set to.
“…visual clips from Michael Mann movies… set to a different electronic dream-pop song.”
I definitely agree with Knight’s motivation in the creation of Mann’s Sparks, as Michael Mann is one of America’s greatest film talents. I still think the high point of 80s TV was Mann’s throwback Crime Story, as it was one of the brightest shining stepping stones to the Platinum age. The film that took me to the island of Mann was Thief, with its unworldly aura and electronic pulse. This unlocked a new perspective on the powers of Manhunter, Last of the Mohicans, and The Keep. Knight’s exploration of Mann’s other works was a great chance to reevaluate what were forgettable viewing experiences. I never thought Miami Vice could be so ethereal or Public Enemies so stomachable.
The real revelation was what was waiting beneath the fuse of the notorious box-office bomb Blackhat. We are treated to a trippy series of 2001: A Space Odyssey worthy visuals as Mann imagines what the interactions between computers would look like on acid. I could not discern any changes in the stories through image rearrangement, but neither is there enough context given to communicate anything Mann was trying to get across. It seems like something that was made by someone who fell in love with late-night viewings of rented Mann movie DVDs. The dream pop soundtracks help re-create that sense of subconscious wonder for the audience members. I am not suggesting the pool gets very deep, but it sure is relaxing to lounge in for an hour. Mann’s Sparks is a soothing experimental essay that will give you a new appreciation of some newer old films. You could do a lot worse.
"…a soothing experimental essay that will give you a new appreciation of some newer old films."
