History YMMV / Manhunter

** BrokenBase: Other viewers find it quite an effective scene. It happens after the "scariest scene" because its meant to be an example of FromBadToWorse, and Crawford is not being casual but just being subdued and yet professional, giving the hidden message appropriate gravitas yet trying to assure Will that [[spoiler: his family will be safe and there is no need to panic, possibly keeping in mind that if the Tooth Fairy keeps to his pattern they are in no immediate danger. One might even say the 2002 movie misses the point by making everyone freak out- it might make them more human, but it also makes them look less like the elite law enforcement agents they are supposed to be. In addition, 2002 is so ineptly directed and paint-the-numbers by Brett Ratner, that the scene tells the audience "THIS IS BAD! YOU SHOULD BE SCARED!", rather than the trusting the audience in the 1986 film.]]
** For some viewers (especially on rewatch), part of the problem is the knowledge that [[spoiler:in this version Dolarhyde never gets the chance to use the information, making the subplot rather a waste of time]].
*** However, it does result in a supremely BaitAndSwitch scene in which it seems like Dolarhyde is stalking Peterson's wife and son outside their beach house. (It's the cops.)

* VindicatedByHistory: Didn't do very well at the box office and dealt with mixed reviews from critics upon intial release, now it's considered a classic in it's own right and left quite an impact on films and TV shows of the same or similar genre, and is generally regarded the best Hannibal Lecter related adaptation aside from ''Literature/TheSilenceOfTheLambs''.

* CompleteMonster: [[ArchnemesisDad Walter "Walt" Pratt]] was the [[BastardBastard illegitimate son]] of the Justice Society heroes Phantom Lady and Iron Munroe. Growing up in a series of foster homes, Walt gained a streak of [[HeManWomanHater violent misogyny]] that manifested in brutally killing women later in life. [[DomesticAbuse Abusing]] and eventually murdering his own wife, Walt was sent to prison for the majority of his daughter [[TheProtagonist Kate]]'s life. When Kate was an adult with a young son, Walt returned to her life, revealing he was dying of bone cancer. Seeking to extend his life, Walt tried to kidnap his own grandson Ramsey to harvest his bone marrow to save his own life while paying the two supervillains he hired to do the transplant with Kate's ex-husband Peter, allowing the villains to torture him to death on camera. When he learned Ramsey was not a match, he tried to blackmail Kate to sacrifice herself in the transplant by threatening to beat Peter to death using Ramsey. When he realized there was no further way to survive, Walt proceeded to attempt to kill both [[OffingTheOffspring Kate]] and [[WouldHurtAChild Ramsey]] just to ensure his whole bloodline would be extinct.

** BrokenBase: Other viewers find it quite an effective scene. It happens after the "scariest scene" because its meant to be an example of FromBadToWorse, and Crawford is not being casual but just being subdued and yet professional, giving the hidden message appropriate gravitas yet trying to assure Will that [[spoiler: his family will be safe and there is no need to panic, possibly keeping in mind that if the Tooth Fairy keeps to his pattern they are in no immediate danger. One might even say the 2002 movie misses the point by making everyone freak out- it might make them more human, but it also makes them look less like the elite law enforcement agents they are supposed to be.]]

* BrokenBase: Creator/BrianCox' portrayal of Lecktor is weird to see for someone who has seen Creator/AnthonyHopkins' Lecter first, but while Hopkins has an Oscar to back his version, more and more people are starting to let Cox's Lecktor in from the cold as ''Manhunter'' achieves cult status.

** [[Series/{{CSI}} Gil Grissom]] confronting Hannibal Lecktor.

** Dolarhyde's [[OneManArmy one man rampage]] as he battles it out with what seems to be a small army of police, absorbing at least one [[FeelsNoPain point blank bullet]] with seemingly no effect, qualifies too. As does the moment when Graham [[{{BFG}} puts six explosive rounds through him]].

** LoveItOrHateIt: Other viewers find it quite an effective scene. It happens after the "scariest scene" because its meant to be an example of FromBadToWorse, and Crawford is not being casual but just being subdued and yet professional, giving the hidden message appropriate gravitas yet trying to assure Will that [[spoiler: his family will be safe and there is no need to panic, possibly keeping in mind that if the Tooth Fairy keeps to his pattern they are in no immediate danger. One might even say the 2002 movie misses the point by making everyone freak out- it might make them more human, but it also makes them look less like the elite law enforcement agents they are supposed to be.]]

THE COMIC

* BrokenBase: Brian Cox' portrayal of Lecktor is weird to see for someone who has seen Hopkins' Lecter first, but while Hopkins has an Oscar to back his version, more and more people are starting to let Cox' Lecktor in from the cold as {{Film/Manhunter}} achieves cult status.
* BulletsDoNotWorkThatWay: Glaser Safety Slugs are not the OneHitKill DepletedPhlebotinumShells portrayed in the novel. The movie also makes an error by having the rounds go through Dolarhyde; the Glaser is specifically designed to avoid this.

* HilariousInHindsight: [[Series/{{CSI}} Gil Grissom]] confronting Hannibal Lecktor.
** Brian Cox would later have another major role as a villain in a [[VideoGame/{{Manhunt}} similarly named video game]].
* LifeImitatesArt: William Peterson found the role of Will Graham mentally exhausting and had trouble shaking Graham's characterisation even when he went on to other roles (he had to radically change his own appearance in order to look in the mirror and see someone else, according to Wiki/TheOtherWiki). Very appropriate, given that he's playing a criminal profiler who was institutionalised because he couldn't shake the thoughts of the serial killers he hunted.

* LifeImitatesArt: William Peterson found the role of Will Graham mentally exhausting and had trouble shaking Graham's characterisation even when he went on to other roles (he had to radically change his own appearance in order to look in the mirror and see someone else, according to TheOtherWiki). Very appropriate, given that he's playing a criminal profiler who was institutionalised because he couldn't shake the thoughts of the serial killers he hunted.

* VindicatedByHistory: Didn't do very well at the box office and dealt with mixed reviews from critics upon intial release, now it's considered a classic in it's own right and left quite an impact on films and TV shows of the same or similar genre, and is generally regarded the best Hannibal Lecter related adaptation aside from ''Literature/TheSilenceOfTheLambs''.

* VindicatedByHistory: Didn't do very well at the box office and dealt with mixed reviews from critics upon intial release, now it's considered a classic in it's own right and left quite an impact on films and TV shows of the same or similar genre, and is generally considered the best Hannibal Lecter related adaptation aside from ''Literature/TheSilenceOfTheLambs''.

* [[OneSceneWonder Three Scene Wonder]]: Lecktor appears in only three scenes, but he casts a pall over the entire film. Cox's take on him is a slimy, reptilian version, with cold, black eyes and a seemingly toothless mouth.

!YMMV tropes for the film ''Film/{{Manhunter}}'':

* NightmareFuel:
** The opening scene in which the killer goes to his victim's bedroom - seen through his video camera - just as the mother awakens, Freddy Lounds' fate, Lecktor's subtle lines ("''Dream'' much?") and his phone call are all well and frightening, but Tom Noonan as the Tooth Fairy is pure NightmareFuel, ''especially'' when he captures Freddy Lounds.
** Just the way Cox delivers some of his lines, like, "Operator, I have lost the use of my arms and can't dial a phone..."
** Meta example: Tom Noonan didn't want to interact with any of the other actors unless they were filming, to make their reactions to his character's disturbing behavior more realistic. He even went as far as to sequester himself in his trailer between scenes, take different flights to filming locations than the rest of the crew, and staying in different hotels. The results speak for themselves.
*** Noonan has joked about this though and implied that some of the "steps" he took to this effect were not meant to be taken seriously- for instance, he was asked about the lighting in some of the scenes and replied "Francis doesn't like the light" as a bit of a gag, only to find out later that they really did turn the lights down and he ended up having to do all of his scenes in darkened rooms, because he was too embarrassed to correct them.

* BulletsDoNotWorkThatWay: Glaser Safety Slugs are not the OneHitKill DepletedPhlebotinumShells portrayed in the novel.

* FridgeBrilliance: You might find all of the stark colors strange, and attribute it to Michael Mann's TheEighties standard, but then you have to understand that the entire film is about perception and seeing ("Ever see blood in the full moonlight? It's quite black"), and Dollarhyde works as a photo developer. It's purposeful irony that his object of lust ''is blind''.

** The film adaptation of RedDragon is also this more specifically because of the [[PublisherChosenTitle renaming of the novel to Manhunter.]]

* CoveredUp: This film, and specifically Brian Cox's take on the Hannibal "Lecktor" character, has been covered up by the later Thomas Harris adaptations and Anthony Hopkins' portrayal of Hannibal "Lecter".\

** The film adaptation of RedDragon is also this more specifically because of the [[PublsherChosenTitle renaming of the novel to Manhunter.]]

* CoveredUp: This film, and specifically Brian Cox's take on the Hannibal "Lecktor" character, has been covered up by the later Thomas Harris adaptations and Anthony Hopkins' portrayal of Hannibal "Lecter".

*** Noonan has joked about this though and implied that some of the "requests" he made to this effect were not meant to be taken seriously- for instance, he was asked about the lighting in some of the scenes and replied "Francis doesn't like the light" as a bit of a gag, only to find out later that they really did turn the lights down and he ended up having to do all of his scenes in darkened rooms, because he was too embarrassed to correct them.