Following up The Silence of the Lambs -- one of the scariest films in movie history -- Hannibal had a lot to live up to. The character, played by Academy Award winner Anthony Hopkins, is a brutal murderer, disgusting cannibal, and a die hard fan of... opera. That just may be the most psychotic thing of all about Hannibal, that he has better taste than most sane people.
Ten years ago, Dr. Hannibal "The Cannibal" Lecter, escaped from his cage in Memphis, Tenn., leaving viewers hanging on for a sequel that would certainly come soon. Well, the sequel to the Oscar winning The Silence Of Lambs, was highly anticipated. America waited, Hollywood waited, the rest of the world waited ... and waited.
Finally, Silence author Thomas Harris came out of hiding to deliver the follow-up. What he turned in was Hannibal, the story of Dr. Lecter's life after his daring escape. The story takes you up to the year 2000, where Hannibal was hiding in Florence, Italy, living a normal life out of the spotlight.
The book was bashed by critics and fans. The ending just didn't fit with the what we had learned about the two main characters. I won't go into great detail about this ending since some people will want to go back and read the book. Nevertheless, it is safe to say that much of America was disappointed in the outcome. Jodie Foster, famous for her role as FBI agent Clarice Starling, decided not to reprise her role as the object of Lecter's affection after reading the book herself. After a few months of searching for a replacement, director Ridley Scott (Gladiator) decided on Julianne Moore.
Moore steps into the role nicely as Clarice. You will not sit through this movie wondering why they chose her. Minus the horrible southern accent, Moore did as well as anyone else could have. Foster did leave quite a big pair of shoes to fill.
So starts the story.
Lecter is in Europe and living a normal life. Mason Verger -- Hannibal's only surviving victim -- is hot on his trail. Gary Oldman plays Verger, a man crippled and deformed (he has no face) from his encounter with Hannibal. His life-long goal is to capture the good doctor and punish him by feeding him to wild pigs.
Back in the States, Clarice finds herself in deep trouble with the FBI for shooting a woman holding her child. While going through that nightmare, she is contacted by Hannibal and is forced to confront her former foe. The first half of the movie is a slow trip through the lives of the characters. However, the second half of the film more than makes up for this, with one incredibly gory scene after another.
Those with a weak stomach, steer clear of this one. You won't want to catch Hannibal removing a man's bowels, stabbing a pick-pocket or taking on human-eating pigs. And if that sounds gross -- well, those three examples combined cannot compare to the gore of the final ten minutes.
On a good note, the movie does avoid the same ending as the book. Completely rewritten, Hannibal the movie ends the way that Hannibal the book should have. The sequel brought in approximately $58 million this past weekend. Will word of mouth help push the movie into the elite category? That is the question that Hollywood is asking this week.
As I left the theater, I noticed many mixed reactions and opinions. Slow and methodical, gory and suspenseful, horrible and incredible could all describe Hannibal. One thing is for sure, the psychological games played between Clarice Starling and Hannibal Lecter in The Silence of the Lambs are replaced by gore and guts in Hannibal.
Which do you like better?
Grade: C
(R, 132 minutes)
