COLLATERAL is a different flavor for Michael Mann, yet it’s still familiar territory for the tortured auteur. There are enough distinct ingredients, for sure: Some mixture of Stuart Beattie’s script, a blend of film and digital aesthetics, and Tom Cruise’s real-life sociopathy resulted in a critical and commercial darling (something of a rarity in Mann’s body of film work).

In this episode, Jason, Cody, and Harry recap what we’ve watched lately and then hop in the back seat on a long night’s journey through COLLATERAL’s bristling version of Los Angeles. It’s a discussion replete with takes: On the relationship between the meek Max and the vicious Vincent; on the vices and virtues that define Michael Mann movies; and a pretty okay analysis of the coyote scene. You didn’t think we wouldn’t have an answer for that, didja?

Then, as we so often do, we finish with some trivia about craft brewery offerings that have some tangent connection in name to the films of Tom Cruise. I guess that means this episode is 21+! Haha. Just joshin’.

Give to these causes in need during ICE’s occupation of Minnesota:

Support Minnesotans defending their communities from ICE: https://www.standwithminnesota.com/
@sanctuarysupplydepot: Mutual aid group in Mpls getting basic necessities to our houseless neighbors https://linktr.ee/sanctuarysupplydepot
@mplsmutualaid: Clearinghouse of mutual aid for our neighbors: https://linktr.ee/mplsmutualaid
ISAIAH, an interfaith group fighting for racial and economic justice in MN: https://secure.everyaction.com/G8TCnxFlE0qd9zlUEYjjeg2
Show love to North Minneapolis families in crisis: https://www.gofundme.com/f/show-love-to-north-minneapolis-families-in-crisis

References:

“Collateral’s Unintentional Influence on No-Budget Digital Cinema” by Tim Schwagel for Perisphere, the Trylon blog
“The Cabbie and the Hitman: How Jamie Foxx and Tom Cruise Created Memorable Characters in Michael Mann’s Collateral” by Dan McCabe for Perisphere, the Trylon blog
“Hell on Wheels: Paul Cameron and Dion Beebe, ACS push hi-def video to its limits for Collateral, which chronicles a hit man’s nocturnal killing spree” by Jay Holben for American Cinematographer (August 2004)
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Show art by Emily Csuy. Theme: "Raindrops" by Huma-Huma/"No Smoking" PSA by John Waters. Outro: “Briefcase” by Tom Rothrock from the COLLATERAL soundtrack.

Timestamps

0:00 - Episode 379: COLLATERAL (2004)

4:28 - Whadja Watch This Week?

27:43 - The Patented Aaron Grossman Summary (under exclusive license from AG Enterprises, Ltd.)

30:49 - Different stakes than your usual Mann movie

42:04 - Our Mann-kings rankings and what Tom Cruise’s casting does for this movie

51:49 - How COLLATERAL changes the calculus of Michael Mann’s mechanical men

58:38 - Vincent: Everything is performance and there is no self

1:05:27 - The one-sidedness of change in COLLATERAL

1:10:23 - Max, the malleable man

1:21:40 - Fate, coincidence, and coyotes

1:34:11 - The ending

1:47:18 - The Junk Drawer

1:56:36 - To All the Loves We’ve Tried Before: 2004

2:02:11 - Cody’s Noteys: Tom Brews (Tom Cruise-adjacent craft brewery trivia)