The Manhunter Soundtrack
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Michael
Mann's "Manhunter" is the adaptation of the best
thriller ever
written - "Red Dragon", by Thomas Harris. An adaptation
that many consider to
be the best movie thriller ever made, thanks to Michael Mann's
traditionally
superb and stylish direction - and his choice of music.
This text concerns "Manhunter" - the movie AND its
soundtrack. It may be
especially helpful to those still on the lookout for the elusive
track.
Firstly, let me clear a certain confusion regarding the "Manhunter"
soundtrack. The movie's listing of the tracks differs from the
actual
contents of the MCA soundtrack release.
This is what the movie credits say:
"Graham's Theme" by Michel Rubini
"Seiun" by Kitaro
"Freeze" by Klaus Schulze
"Evaporation" by Shriekback
"Coelocanth" by Shriekback
"The Big Hush" by Shriekback
"Strong As I Am" by The Prime Movers
"In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida" by Iron Butterfly
"Heartbeat" by Red 7
And this is the listing of the actual soundtrack released by MCA
(MC/LP):
"Strong As I Am" by The Prime Movers
"Coelocanth" by Shriekback
"This Big Hush" by Shriekback
"Graham's Theme" by Michel Rubini
"Evaporation" by Shriekback
"Heartbeat" by Red 7
"Lector's Cell" by The Reds
"Leed's House" by The Reds
"In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida" by Iron Butterfly
As you can see, the two tracks by The Reds appear only on the
soundtrack's
listing, and not in the movie credits. However, they can be heard
in the
movie. I could not locate the two tracks listed in credits -
"Seiun" by
Kitaro and "Freeze" by Klaus Schulze - in the movie
until Mike Pitt provided
me with this information: Seiun appears during Will and Molly's
conversation
in the beginning of the movie and during Will's dream on the
plane. "Freeze"
appears when Will and Hannibal talk in the latter one's cell.
Mike has also
discovered that there is a "mysterious" theme used when
Will
mistakenly catches the jogger in the trap set for the Dragon.
Part of this
music appears in Michel Rubini's "Graham's Theme" but
the rest is
unidentified.
"Seiun" is the only track from the above listing that I
have not heard in the
full version. Knowing Michael Mann's talent for choosing the
music to set the
mood, I _know_ it's worth getting.
I expect that the lack of those tracks on the official soundtrack
is due to
copyright reasons.
FLASH: Carl Payne informed me that the "missing" tracks actually appeared on the *LP* edition of the original soundtrack - pre-released by Sony Music, not by MCA!
There
are said to be two or more versions of "Manhunter",
including some
scenes cut out in the final release - perhaps other music appears
there.
Certainly, there is a version with an additional sequence at the
end - where
Will Graham goes to visit the family he has saved from death. I
have heard
that a few scenes dwelling on the Red Dragon theme were also cut
from the
final release: notably, there is a supposed scene where Dolarhyde,
just as he
does in the book, displays a large tattoo of the Red Dragon's
tail on his
back, all the way down to his foot. So I've heard, but I have
recently seen a photo from a fresh
UK edition of "Manhunter" where Francis shows the
tattoo on his chest, not
his back. Judging by the mask he is wearing, the scene takes
place right
after Lounds is kidnapped - just like in the book.
This makes sense, since the Red Dragon theme is heavily
elaborated on in the
book and seems to be missing from the film. However, some
references to it
(the sign, the flash of Blake's painting) seem to say that the
topic was
indeed important for the movie's structure and was only removed
in the final
version. This could be because Dino deLaurentiis did not want
anything
connected with dragons in movies he produced at that time -
shortly before
"Manhunter" was released, another production of Dino's
turned out very
poorly, and it was titled "Year of the Dragon". This is
why the original
title - "Red Dragon" - was changed to "Manhunter",
and perhaps this is why
the references to the Dragon have been left out, too.
Anyway, these are the tracks:
"Strong
As I Am" was recorded by a group named "The Prime
Movers". I dare say
it sounds somewhat more atmospheric in the movie than on the
soundtrack. It
used to be my favourite track from "Manhunter" until I
got the tape: now it's
my second choice. :) This is the song that plays when there is
the "break" in
Francis Dolarhyde (I am using the spelling from the book - in
movie his name
is spelled "Dollarhyde" - and Lecter is changed to
"Lektor"), when he thinks
he's been betrayed, and when he shoots the man in front of Reba's
house. The
song is powerful and dangerously appealing.
"Coelocanth", by Shriekback - a popular band from the
80s - is
the music that plays when Reba and Dolarhyde come to the sleeping
tiger.
Dreamy and calm.
"This Big Hush", also by Shriekback, plays during the
night when Reba and
Dolarhyde are at the latter's house. Calm and whispered rather
than sung,
this song is similar in its spirit to the previous one.
"Graham's Theme" by a composer Michel Rubini (sometimes
spelled "Michael") is
currently my favourite. It can be heard playing when Will
realises how the
killer choses the families to attack - by watching their films.
The music is
at some moments similar to "Crockett's Theme" from Mann's
"Miami Vice"
series, and changes its style a few times, adding to the overall
effect.
"Evaporation", again by Shriekback, plays when Will
Graham scours the woods
and finds the Red Dragon sign on the tree. Very moody and perfect
for the
surrounding.
"Heartbeat" is, I think, the favourite of most "Manhunter"
viewers. Played by
"Red 7", it's the song that can be heard while the
final credits rolls. Very
interesting - sung by someone whose voice is strikingly similar
to Phil
Collins.
"Lector's Cell", by someone/a band? named "The
Reds" plays when Will runs out
of Hannibal Lecter's cell and of the hospital. Chilling and
uneasy in spirit,
very appropriately chosen (as any theme in any Michael Mann film).
Note that the spelling of the good doctor's name differs from
both the movie version and from the actual spelling. I've seen
the name misspelled in numerous other ways as well. People seem
to have strange problems remembering Lecter's name... :)
"Leed's House" (should be "Leeds' House",
actually) is the music that plays
in the opening - when Dolarhyde enters the Leeds house at night -
and then
later, when Will investigates the house. It's by "The Reds",
again, and it's
even more chilling and even frightening.
"In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida" by Iron Butterfly
is so well-known and easy to get that
there is no need to dwell on it. :) If you're using IE, it should
be playing right now. This is, of course, the song that Francis
Dolarhyde plays at the very ending - and the one to whose sounds
he dies. The version on the soundtrack is about 4 minutes shorter
than the original
release; the cut part is mostly silence and a bit of lazy
drumming. One of
the most powerful songs ever - and after watching "Manhunter"
one that you
will always associate with the movie.
Now for those missing ones. "Seiun" is probably one of
the most difficult to
find tracks by Kitaro. I haven't heard it. The only record I know
of that has
"Seiun" is Kitaro's CD "Millennia", sometimes
called "Millennium". It's a
soundtrack for an obscure Japanese cartoon - some kind of manga,
obviously (I personally detest manga ;). The CD is even more
difficult to find than the "Manhunter" soundtrack
itself. In
fact, it was apparently released only in Japan.
FLASH: Enter Carl Payne again, with more information on "Millennia"! Carl provided me with this listing of the "Queen Millenia" CD (Geffen 9 2484-2): Prologue, Space Queen, Seiun, Hikari No Sono, Maboroshi, Cosmic Love, Jiyu Eno Kakehashi, Puromesyume, Epilogue.
"Freeze" by Klaus Schulze is the second track. This is
quite easy to find.
Klaus Schulze recorded a number of CDs, and "Freeze"
appears on, I think, two
of them: "The Essential" and something along the lines
of "Klaus Schulze -
Live in Poland '93" (it's a concert recording, anyway - I
really dislike all
those "live", "in concert", etc., recordings,
so I got "The Essential").
"Freeze" is quite good - calm, moody and atmospheric.
****
Please note that I cannot say I am willing to sell my copy of the soundtrack ;-). As for copying it, I can't say I feel good about the idea, either - after all, it would be piracy and copyright infringement (even though it's been out of print for years)! Sampling the tape as .MP3s is, I'm afraid, not legally possible for the same reason :-(. But I have some tips on obtaining it: if you live in US, you might go for E-Bay auctions and see if there's someone offering the tape or LP for sale there. If you live in Europe, some online stores may still be able to get a few copies of the tape (try some Scandinavian and Swiss shops).
If you can't find or don't want that MCA release, contact Mike Pitt to learn what he has to offer. Tell him I sent you.
Jaromir Król - a.k.a. "Jerry King" | \//\SS/\GO
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