Hannibal

Rating:
Summary: Hello Clarice!
Review: I am a fan of both Ridley Scott and Hannibal Lecture, so naturally, I liked this movie. In Silence of the Lambs, we foucased on Clarice, which made the movie really. But it nice to sort of see Hannibal as the main character, and find out what happened to him after Silence of the Lambs.

Rating:
Summary: To err is human...
Review: Julianne Moore is no Jodie Foster whom she attempted to emulate. The man with deformed face is hideous. The suspense may keep one on edge, with the scary music, but personally I was disappointed with this production.

This may be the sequel to SILENCE OF THE LAMBS, but it is not in the same class. That one, I liked!

Anthony Hopkins (whom my late friend, Roz Mahoney, called 'Tony') is one of my favorite actors. He is marvelous in anything he attempts. He's made a multitude of entertaining films enjoyed by a vast, diverse audience of all ages.

Rating:
Summary: Vegan Nightmare
Review: I avoided this for quite some time. The first one, Silence of the Lambs, moved me very little. A friend in San Francisco alerted me to the Thomas Harris books, which I've never even thumbed. What got me into this was Manhunter, a stylish (and likely much lower-budget) 'Lecter' film with Brian Cox as the doc. Somehow, as a generations-upsmanship over Roger Corman/Vincent Price work, Manhunter managed.

Silence was too pricey, and Jodie Foster from frame one struck me as improbable. Hannibal seemed to offer more of the same. But it did a few things right: Giancarlo Giannini, wonderful; Julianne Moore, double wonderful. Those two, along with the Italian ambience that inserts itself as part of the adventure, added to the presence of Hopkins, made this work for me. The DVD does have some nice features, not least the many potential theatrical poster mockups.

The spectacle parts of this do show how debased our culture is becoming, but I'm not sure any culture couldn't say the same, save those whose titillation comes from exercising puritanical zeal.

Rating:
Summary: Inferior to the book...
Review: MINOR SPOILERS: Book and novel

It can be said that "Hannibal" is only loosely based on Harris' book. Not because it is that different plot-wise or because certain characters are omitted (like Mason's sister) but because the two central characters, Agent Clarice Starling and Dr. Hannibal Lecter, couldn't be more apart from how they are portrayed in the book.
The film makers never bother giving Hannibal a raison de etre (other than staying alive and free), or explain his man-eating ways. In the novel, his little sister Mischa is literally eaten alive by deserting soldiers during the end of WW II. As Hannibal grows older, he decides that God is the ultimate killer and none of his own indiscretions could match those of the Maker. That is his *justification* for killing and eating human flesh. The motive is as disturbing as ever but you actually feel some degree of sympathy for the little boy who found his sister's milk teeth in the stool of her tormentors.
Although Hopkin's delivers a fine performance as usual, you can't help but feel that he's almost parodying his famous role from "The Silence of the Lambs". Lines that are meant to sound chilling ("I'm giving serious thought...to eating your wife") are delivered with comic timing that would befit a black comedy.
Then there's Julianne Moore. I personally felt that Jodie Foster *nailed* the part of Clarice Starling, right down to that country cornpone accent. Tried as I might, I couldn't see Julianne Moore in her shoes. Her accent is too cosmopolitan, her manner too aloof.
And on another point, the novel does a good job of exlaining *and* developing the relationship between Hannibal and Starling. He *does* get inside her head, they both have much in common being orphans and their acquaintance blossoms into a relationship. In the movie, it seems quite pointless. You are left wondering why she would let the most famous serial killer in the world go. Or why he didn't eat her liver with some fava beans?

But Hannibal does have some redeeming qualities. It's a quite excellent horror film. There are scenes that have rightly attained notoriety. I won't spoil those for you. So go on, get your cheap thrills here. Just don't read the book first (if you haven't already).

Rating:
Summary: Hannibal's globe trotting
Review: "Hannibal" is one of those rare cases where I actually liked the movie better than I did the book. The plot is basicly the same. Hannibal Lector has been free for years after his escape from prison. He has been living in Italy, giving art lectures in reletive obscurity. Meanwhile in America, Clearice Starling has been having bad luck with her job at the FBI, especially a horribly botched drug raid. When Lector learns of Starling's disgrace in America, he and sends her a letter, which allows her to go back on his case again. A new aspect is Mason Verger (Gary Oldman), who is Lector's only living victom, and he wants revengence. There are several stories going at once here. One is with Starling and her troubles, one is Mason sending killing teams after Hannibal, and the most interesting of the movie is an Italian cop also after Lector. The end of the movie is far and away better than that of the book. In the book, Lector and Starling fall in love and become a killing team in South America. That is so rediculos that I personally didn't understand why Thomas Harris made that up. Ridley Scott's end is much more true to the characters. Yes, I think that Hannibal can be in love with Clarice; she is, if not his equal, certainly a respected advicsary. But there is no way Starling would ever return those feelings. Anyway, enough on that. All the actors here are wonderful. Anthony Hopkins has certainly made Hannibal Lector his own. Lector is one of Hollywood's best villians, ranking up there with Dracula and Freddy Kruger. He is smart, charismatic, safisticated, and one hundred percent evil genuis. The cannibalism makes him that much weirder, but certainly fascinating. Julianne Moore is an excellent actress, and although this version of Starling is a little underwritten, she takes what is there and she more than excelles with it. She is believable as a the only "normal" character in the movie. Gary Oldman is once again off the wall as Mason Verger. I don't understand why he wanted his name taken of the credits. He did a great job, maybe he was upset over all the make-up he had to wear. The Italian cop (sorry, I can't remember his name right off hand, but played wonderfully by Giancarlo Giannini) is a great character. He is always in over his head, with his work, with his wife, and now more recently, with trying to catch Lector himself. Giannini and Hopkins scenes together are just magic, not a false note anywhere. And finally the weak link in the movie. Ray Liotta as Paul Krendler. He is a one note slime ball, his character could have been fleshed out much more. The extras on the DVD are wonderful, and really flesh out the movie a lot more. My favorite was a montage of scenes that was eventually left out altogether. It is where the Italian cop is hunting down a serial killer (not Lector) in Florence, which was the original reason for him to see Lector in the first place. Lector figures out who the killer is, but allows him to continue. It was taken out because it dosn't really have a real purpose and dosn't flow well with the rest of the movie. All in all, this is a great movie, but it is filmed much differently than "Silence of the Lambs" was. This one is a character study of Lector, not really a police procedual. The violence is more stylized and graphic (not that "Silence" was easy to take, right), and looks like it came out of a Dario Argento movie. "Hannibal" is a wonderful horror thriller, and I recomend it to anyone who liked the first and wanted more of Hannibal chewing scenery (among other things).

Rating:
Summary: This is what comedy is all about!
Review: This is one of the funniest movies I have ever seen! You've got this one funny faceless dude riding around in a wheel chair that gets eaten by wild boars. You've got this FBI yankee chick running around pretending to be southern with a dumb accent. You've got this weird cop that hates the yankee chick. Then you have the absolute hilarious Hannibal who runs around and eats people. HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA. This is really funny stuff. But the greatest most hilarious part is the ending. Hannibal has the weird cop guy all drugged up but he's awake. Hannibal cuts the scalp off of the cop guy and cuts a piece of his brain out and then cooks it and makes the cop guy eat his own brain! HAHAHAHA. Hilarious! Then the cop guy says "MMM, that is good." I laughed so hard when I watched the cop eat his own brain. I'm laughing about it right now just thinking about it. I gave this movie 4 stars just because it was so funny all the way through. A great comedy movie recommened for comedy fans.

Rating:
Summary: They should have had the guts to follow the book
Review: This movie is a paen to political correctness (believe it or not). Those who have read the book have an idea where I'm headed. First, like most of the other reviewers, I would agree that this is a very well done movie from a purely technical standpoint. I don't think anyone could take issue with the cinematography, direction, acting, etc.
HOWEVER
The people who made the movie blinked when it came to staring at the ending.
The book took a road that made a lot of politically correct folks really uncomfortable and basically eliminated Jodie Foster outright. She simply would never play a part that required her to embrace the weaknesses and depths of the character that the book outlined. No matter that the Starling of the book actually becomes the dominant member of the pair in the end, Ms Foster as the rest of the PC crowd, saw only the mid process. There was a period of manipulation and subjugation that was uncomfortable to observe, and descriptions of the relationship that were brutally straightforward. Too bad, really, as I was keenly anticipating watching Clarice become someone that could make Dr Lechter fall under the spell of his own creation and become subject to the need to serve a perfect "mate". I believe Foster missed a complex Oscar possibility.

Rating:
Summary: Bad Taste
Review: This is an uneven movie. It almost works. The atmosphere and music are intriguing and adequate, some moments are visually stunning and a few thrills truly engage and surprise. However, the rythm of the narrative is too slow and the plot is basically just another cat-and-mouse game with an anticlimatic ending that`s way too out there and doesn`t connect with the rest of the movie. Anthony Hopkins is again a convincing Hannibal Lecter but Julliane Moore plays an uninteresting, bland Clarice Starling that shows little sparkle. There are some genuine moments of tension and suspense to find here, though as a whole it`s too flawed and not very captivating. The baroque feel is an edgy and well-accomplished idea, creating some tension, darkness and weirdness that unfortunately don`t work very well in the end. This movie wants to be a rich banquet, yet ultimately is just another happy meal. Tasty enough, but leaves you wantig more.

Rating:
Summary: Sequel does not measure up with Silence of the Lambs...
Review: The escaped Dr. Hannibal Lecter (Anthony Hopkins) once again contacts Agent Starling (Julianne Moore), who has come under public scrutiny after an FBI operation gone bad. This opens up a new opportunity to catch Dr. Lecter for those who seek to catch him. Hannibal is a suspenseful thriller with some gruesome scenes that will remind the audience of Hannibal's psychological state long after they have seen the film. In addition, Hopkins offers a solid performance as Hannibal once again, but this sequel does not measure up with the original Silence of the Lambs.

Rating:
Summary: Never in a Million Years
Review: The replacement of Jodie Foster (Silence of the Lambs)with Julianne Moore in the role of Clarice Starling, an FBI agent framed to lure Hannibal Lector (Anthony Hopkins) out of hiding, intensifies the attraction between the two. Lector, an insane cannibalistic pyschopath who nevertheless possesses a genius level intelligence, uses grotesque methods of vengenance with a wit and humor to avenge those who plot against both he and Clarice. The film has moments of gore, but it's never boring and the tension intensifies as the film climaxes in a surprise ending. Although the ending differs from that of Thomas Harris' novel, it, nevertheless, is compelling and leaves the viewer asking for yet another sequel.