Mann does exhaustive research at the beginning of a project (he can still detail the sociology of Iroquois families, which he explored for the 1992 “The Last of the Mohicans”), and he meticulously helps prepare his actors. For his 1995 cop thriller “Heat,” there were intense interrogations before the cameras ever rolled; for “The Insider,” he had Russell Crowe, who plays Wigand the scientist, do chemistry experiments. Mann samples music early in the creative process, and uses still photographs to explore the look he wants. But though he put Don Johnson in a pink T shirt and painted South Beach in pastels for TV’s “Miami Vice,” he insists he doesn’t just impose a style. “It’s a struggle finding the language for each film,” Mann says. “It’s also the most exciting part, and admittedly, I do it intensely.” Among the future projects to which he’ll turn his laser eye: a movie about Howard Hughes to star Leonardo DiCaprio.
