HANNIBAL
Rated
R - Running Time: 2:15 - Released 2/9/01
Jonathan Demme's 1991 classic thriller The Silence Of The Lambs
is no doubt one of the most famous films of its genre; it features
career-changing performances for both Jodie Foster and Anthony
Hopkins, and swept the Oscars in all the "major" categories.
It followed Michael Mann's less well-known but critically acclaimed
1986 film Manhunter, which introduced the character of
cannibalistic genius/serial killer Dr. Hannibal Lecter (played
by Brian Cox) and the writing style of Thomas Harris, who wrote
the novels on which all three films are based.
Producing a sequel to such monumental films would be a daunting
task even if one were able to reassemble Lambs's entire
creative team intact. Hannibal, directed by Ridley Scott,
is perhaps the best that could be done lacking Foster, but that
isn't saying much. The presence of Hopkins, reprising his role
as fava-bean-and-Chianti connoisseur Dr. Lecter, helps, but his
performance is not up to the level of Lambs (though it's
still satisfyingly unsettling to hear him say "Clarice"
in that way he does), and while Scott's direction and the eye-pleasing
cinema of John Mathieson (who worked with Scott on last year's
Gladiator) give the film an
impressive look, it struggles greatly to live up to the legacy
of its predecessor.
The most obvious weakness, of course, is Julianne Moore as
FBI agent Clarice Starling, the role previously held by Foster.
Her performance (especially her relationship with Hopkins) is
nowhere near the intensity of the previous pairing; Moore is a
favorite performer of mine, but she can't possibly hope to achieve
the chemistry Foster shared with Hopkins — and they both
seem acutely aware of that. Furthermore, writer Harris has replaced
Lambs's secondary villain, played creepily by Ted Levine,
with a character so outlandishly goofy he's almost comical. I
don't know if it was just Gary Oldman's over-the-top performance
or his ill-fitting prosthetic disfigured face makeup, but his
portrayal of wheelchair-bound Mason Verger, one of Lecter's former
victims who wants revenge, inspires more chuckles than horror.
It's 10 years after Agent Starling's famous connection with
the now-escaped Lecter helped her solve a major case and made
her a name in the agency, but lately she has fallen out of favor,
having participated in a botched sting operation resulting in
a fatal shootout. Meanwhile, Lecter is still at large. Just as
Clarice is about to be put on probation, her old friend decides
to "come out of retirement," appearing in Florence,
Italy, and giving her a call to see if she's still interested.
She contacts the Italian authorities, but FBI agent Rinaldo Pazzi
(Giancarlo Giannini) is already on Lecter's trail, mainly for
Verger's $3 million reward. While Clarice tries to convince him
how dangerous Lecter is, her new sexist boss, corrupt Justice
Dept. agent Paul Krendler (Ray Liotta), is working in cahoots
with the vengeful, diabolically wacky Verger, who wants Lecter
for himself so that he may repay him for the plastic surgery.
As if painfully aware of the weaknesses in his production,
director Scott has used his considerable talent to dress up this
film into an artful, visually impressive affair, but except for
the startlingly macabre and much publicized shock scene near the
end, the movie is dull and lifeless, with pretty scenery and scary
music creating a kind of artificial tension that lacks the visceral-yet-cerebral
quality of the previous Lecter flicks.
Moore is an excellent actress, but this just isn't her role. Hopkins seems to know he's in a second-rate re-hash of one of his most memorable triumphs; until the final reel, he's just putting in time. And Oldman — well, his portrayal is so cartooney, I expected him to jump out of the wheelchair and say, "Ssssssmokin!" ***½