MOVIE REVIEW

Hannibal (2001)

Starring: Anthony Hopkins, Julianne Moore, Ray Liotta
Director: Ridley Scott
Rating: R

Studio: MGM

Review Posted: 2.10.01

By Dennis Landmann

"Hannibal serves up some brain, but not all of it"

Ten years ago, The Silence of the Lambs shocked a nation. The sequel tries to aim for the same reaction. Hannibal, easily one of the most anticipated movies of the year, is stylishly directed by Ridley Scott but fails to capture the intensity of its predecessor.

Hannibal (Sir Anthony Hopkins) is now an art curator in Florence, Italy. Clarice Starling (Julianne Moore), awarded best female FBI Agent for having shot the most people by Guinness or something to that effect, became somewhat of a disgraced FBI agent. Mason Verger (too good to give away), Hannibal’s victim, is extremely disfigured and seeks revenge on the Cannibal.

Italian cop Rinaldo Rizzi (Giancarlo Giannini) discovers Hannibal’s true identity and acts upon himself to turn in the Cannibal for a ransom of $3 million. However, Rizzi is not so fortunate. This forces Hannibal to escape Florence and return to the States. On the run from authorities and Verger’s henchmen, Hannibal still finds time to pay Starling a visit at her home. Luckily, she's asleep while he leaves something for her.

Silence of the Lambs introduced us to one of the most menacing fictional psychopaths in recent history. In Hannibal however, the character doesn’t have the same menacing feel it had ten years ago. Granted, people change over time. And a long time it has been. Yet, Hannibal feels different and not as captivating as a prisoner. Nevertheless, Hopkins turns in a great and menacing performance. The same applies to Starling, who is not as likeable as she was ten years ago. The character feels second-hand and for the first hour was given almost nothing substantial to do.

Maybe it’s unfair to compare these two movies in such great detail. On the contrary though, maybe it's a just thing to do. Moreover, Hannibal doesn’t play with your head as much as its predecessor but plays more on the dramatic side. It didn't exactly achieve that, but I could sense the amount of 'trying.' Hannibal also lacks pace. It takes too long to shift gears from exposition to excitement.

The much talked-about violence and gore is glorified in the last haunting, yet daunting 30 minutes. In fact, everything before it was kind of pointless. Hannibal manages to shock and gross out, but to frighten and create enough suspense. It definitely seemed like it favored style over substance.

Rating: 6/10

Note: Second Viewing Rating is 8/10.

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