‘Blackhat’: Revisiting Michael Mann’s Underrated Crime Thriller | Memory Holed

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Welcome to Memory Holed, a weekly column by me, Britt Hayes, from MovieWeb. Each week, I’ll be looking back at films (and sometimes TV shows) that briefly captured the public’s attention before fading into relative obscurity. These movies—often featuring famous actors, generating awards talk, based on well-known stories, or causing some kind of debate—have essentially been forgotten by popular culture. That’s what I mean by ‘memory-holed’.

The movie Blackhat didn’t perform well in theaters when it came out in January 2015, and several things likely contributed to its failure. The trailers made it look like a typical action film, focusing on Chris Hemsworth’s popularity from the Marvel movies, but the film itself was more of a complex techno-thriller. Universal Pictures also didn’t do a great job promoting it, so many people didn’t even know it existed. To make matters worse, it was released around the same time as American Sniper, which was a huge hit. Some viewers also felt Chris Hemsworth wasn’t a convincing choice to play a skilled hacker, despite the potential of casting an actor against their usual type.

The movie Blackhat begins with a cyberattack on a nuclear plant in Hong Kong, quickly followed by a hack of the Chicago stock exchange that causes soybean futures to unexpectedly skyrocket. Chinese investigator Chen Dawai recruits his sister, Lien, a skilled engineer, to help him work with the FBI in the United States. Dawai persuades the FBI to temporarily release Nicholas Hathaway, a former hacking partner and convicted bank fraudster, from prison. Hathaway originally wrote the code used in the attacks, and they need his expertise to decipher the modified version and find the person responsible.


Universal Pictures

Let me tell you, Michael Mann delivers again with Blackhat. I was immediately hooked as the team, alongside Agents Barrett and Jessup – and seriously, Holt McCallany is perfect in this role – discovered they weren’t dealing with your run-of-the-mill hackers. The case takes them all over the globe, from California to Hong Kong and finally Jakarta. Mann expertly mixes his trademark, high-octane action – those nighttime shootouts are incredible – with the suspense of a good detective story. Even if you’re not a tech whiz and some of the hacking stuff goes over your head, trust me, this movie is absolutely gripping.

What makes the film so captivating is how Mann portrays digital technology. Instead of sleek, futuristic visuals, he focuses on the tangible, almost retro feel of older tech – a surprising choice considering this is his first movie filmed entirely digitally. This attention to detail is visible everywhere, from Hathaway’s bulky headphones in prison to the slightly outdated computers and the mechanical displays on the stock exchange floor. These elements, like many aspects of Blackhat, recall Mann’s earlier film, Manhunter, which adapted Thomas Harris’ Red Dragon. However, instead of focusing on physical violence and intense scenes, this film centers on cybercrime and the world of digital screens.


Universal Pictures

In Blackhat, director Mann frequently draws viewers into the digital world, visually representing computer networks as intricate pathways and landscapes. This makes the impact of the cybercrimes and the flow of information feel more real. The film also balances its intense subject matter with surprisingly funny moments, such as when Hathaway’s character playfully greets Davis’ Agent Barrett with “Hola, chica.” There’s also a humorous exchange when Hathaway, posing as “Ghostman,” communicates with the anonymous hacker, who childishly responds with, “Piss off and die, Ghostman.”

Revisiting the film in 2026, I find Hemsworth’s performance interesting, though not consistently strong. When he’s at his best, he reminds me of Kurt Russell in the 1990s, who was starting to move away from purely charismatic roles into more complex thrillers. At times, Hemsworth has trouble making Hathaway’s beliefs – essentially, accepting the consequences of one’s actions – feel genuine. But it’s precisely because he doesn’t fully convince us, or even the character Lien, that she challenges him. It makes you wonder: did director Mann intentionally cast Hemsworth because he isn’t completely believable, or was that moment of doubt just a fortunate accident?


Universal Pictures

Okay, let’s talk performances. While everyone is solid, Chris Hemsworth feels a little off compared to Wang Leehom and Tang Wei, who both really shine. And Yorick van Wageningen? He’s fantastic as the villain, Sadak – you might recognize him from The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo. What’s really interesting about Sadak isn’t his grand plan, because he doesn’t have one. He’s not driven by politics or any clear ideology. It’s unsettling, honestly, because he feels very modern – like a product of that online, nihilistic extremism we’ve seen bubbling up in recent years, especially post-4Chan. He’s a truly disturbing villain because his motives are so…empty.

The editing in Blackhat isn’t very smooth, and this is especially noticeable during action sequences. For example, a large fight scene in a restaurant feels awkwardly pieced together. I haven’t seen the director’s cut yet, so I don’t know if it fixes these problems, but I’m hoping it does.


Universal Pictures

It’s fascinating to revisit a movie after many years and wonder if you’d have enjoyed it differently when it first came out. While reading old reviews can offer some clues, it’s hard to know for sure. So much influences how we feel about a film – not just things like genre or actors, but also what we were expecting, what was happening in our own lives at the time, and even how we’re feeling on the day we watch it.

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I’m not sure if I would have immediately loved Blackhat when it first came out, as I’ve only recently become a fan of Michael Mann’s films. But I’m really drawn to his unique style and the ideas he explores in his work. I especially love how he shoots scenes around sunrise and sunset, and how his daytime scenes have a hazy, sun-bleached look – it feels like waking up groggy after a nap, when the sun seems strangely bright. I also appreciate how straightforward Mann portrays relationships between men. Even when they’re rivals, his characters always seem to have a genuine respect for each other, which is a refreshing change from typical action movies.


Universal Pictures

While not Michael Mann’s strongest work – it’s tough to compare to classics like Heat and Collateral, or even Miami Vice (which might have been forgotten without Jamie Foxx and Colin Farrell) – Blackhat feels like a film for dedicated fans. A friend’s review on Letterboxd hit the nail on the head: it’s not for casual viewers. Having enjoyed Mann’s more popular films, I understand why. The more familiar you are with an artist, the more you can appreciate what makes their style unique.

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2026-02-13 21:41