The weight-watchers script sensibly dispenses with several characters to serve a brew that's enjoyably spicy but low on substance.
Hannibal (2001)
Runtime: 2 hrs 11 mins
Synopsis:
There is a grace to his life now. An elegance which suits him nicely. And yet, he thinks of her and wonders if his life can ever be complete without her.
Her strength comes from a regimen of discipline and a clarity of purpose. Yet there is a shadow that follows her everywhere. A faint...
There is a grace to his life now. An elegance which suits him nicely. And yet, he thinks of her and wonders if his life can ever be complete without her.
Her strength comes from a regimen of discipline and a clarity of purpose. Yet there is a shadow that follows her everywhere. A faint distraction – making her feel...vulnerable.
Ten years later, he is still her most terrifying nightmare.
Ten years later, she is still his fondest fantasy.
Ridley Scott directs a Scott Free production Hannibal, based on the best-selling novel by Thomas Harris, starring Anthony Hopkins and Julianne Moore, with Giancarlo Gianinni, Francesca Neri and Ray Liotta. Produced by Dino De Laurentiis and Martha De Laurentiis and Scott, with Branko Lustig as executive producer, the novel was adapted for the screen by David Mamet and Steven Zaillian. MGM will distribute the film in the United States and Universal Pictures is the international distributor.
Hannibal continues the story begun in The Silence of the Lambs. Ten years have passed since Dr. Hannibal Lecter (Anthony Hopkins) escaped from custody, ten years since FBI Agent Clarice Starling (Julianne Moore) interviewed him in a maximum-security hospital for the criminally insane. The doctor is now at large in Italy, gloriously at liberty in an unguarded world. But Starling has never forgotten her encounters with Dr. Lecter – his cold voice still haunts her dreams.
Mason Verger remembers Dr. Lecter too. Verger was Dr. Lecter’s sixth victim, and, though hideously disfigured, has survived. The solitary heir to his family’s fortune, he uses the resources of his inheritance to exact his revenge. Verger realizes that in order to draw Lecter out into the open, he must dangle an irresistible bait: Clarice Starling.
Anthony Hopkins reprises his Oscar ®-winning role as Dr. Hannibal Lecter, and two-time Academy Award® nominee Julianne Moore joins him in the part of Special Agent Clarice M. Starling. Ray Liotta (Goodfellas, Field of Dreams) stars as Justice Department official Paul Krendler who is drawn into Verger’s vengeful scheme with promises of money and power. Directed by Ridley Scott (Blade Runner, Thelma & Louise, Gladiator), produced by Ridley Scott and Dino and Martha De Laurentiis (U-571, Breakdown) and written for the screen by David Mamet and Academy Award® winner Steven Zaillian (Schindler’s List), Hannibal is Thomas Harris’ third novel featuring the fearsome Lecter. -- © 2001 MGM
Genre: Horror/Suspense
Starring: Anthony Hopkins, Julianne Moore, Ray Liotta, Gary Oldman, Giancarlo Giannini
Screenwriter: David Mamet, Steven Zaillian
Producer: Dino De Laurentiis, Martha De Laurentiis, Ridley Scott
Composer: Hans Zimmer
Reviews
Fails to live up to the original: gorier, flashier, funnier, even -- but nowhere near as exciting.
Like many sequels, it's a slick, well-crafted film ... with no soul.
Hannibal announces fairly early on that it isn't going to be a worthy sequel to The Silence of the Lambs, proceeds as acceptable fluff, then plunges as low as possible to turn into an unwholesomely smarmy geek show.
Ranging from laughable to just plain boring, Hannibal is toothless to the end.
A dark and complexly entertaining ride, highly generous to multiple viewings.
The near-impossible taks and insurmountable problems have been handled by Scott in a proficient if unexciting way. Aware that he can't possibly meet viewers' expectations, Scott has made a different film, more florid, baroque, and tongue-in-cheek.
Scott's elegant, shadowy atmosphere and deliberate pacing make the film a delightfully spooky experience.
There are moments of a good movie buried amongst this over the top thriller. But these moments are all too rare.
Hannibal doesn't grip the audience with the macabre wit and pervasive sense of impending evil of its predecessor
Where the book kept you wondering and marvelling at the intricacies of the human mind and heart, the film has a sour, smart-alecky conclusion which highlights (what else?) the gore.
Some of the most exciting parts of the film are when Lector's about to kill someone. Morbid, sure. Exciting, definitely!
Perhaps Scott should have rented out Se7en before he yelled 'action' - the best horror is often what you don't see.
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