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It's a hard act to follow but Ridley Scott does his best with Hannibal.
Instead of nail-bitting tension, Scott serves up a chilling banquet of stylish, hypnotic thrills that ultimately give way to a no-holds-barred visceral assault.
Hannibal is not a film for the squeamish.
It picks up a decade after Hannibal Lecter (Anthony Hopkins) escaped the clutches of the FBI.
He now resides in Florence where he is in line for the prestigious position of museum curator. His predecessor allegedly committed suicide and her death is being investigated by Inspector Rinaldo Pazzi (Giancarlo Giannini).
At virtually the same time back in Washington, Lecter's nemesis Agent Clarice Starling (Julianne Moore) has been reassigned to his case.
For close to 70 minutes, Scott orchestrates a fateful ballet between Pazzi and Lecter that brings the unsuspecting policeman into the grips of the monster of depravity. Meanwhile, Starling does her own dance of doom with the hideously deformed millionaire Mason Verger (Gary Oldman) and the bigoted Justice Department official Paul Krendler (Ray Liotta).
Verger -- Lecter's fourth victim and the only one to survive -- has vowed to use his vast financial resources and the talents of Starling to see Lecter's flesh torn from his body as Lecter once commanded Verger to rip his face apart for their shared amusement.
Krendler is determined to cannibalize Starling's reputation. This incredible introduction to the mayhem that ultimately ensues when Lecter returns to Washington is a sumptuous feast for the senses.
Silence of the Lambs was terrifying because even its most horrifying excesses seemed credible.
Hannibal is wonderfully theatrical, even operatic, but it's not believable. It is more fantasy than reality; more fantastical than frightening.
What compels us to lose ourselves in the guilty pleasures of the moment is the combination of brilliant writing, confident direction and stellar performances. For Hopkins, less is more.
Nothing is rushed in his performance. He modulates his movements as much as he does his voice.
There is a degree of campiness that finds its way into his Lecter as if Lecter or Hopkins is bringing the audience into his confidence.
We share the jokes at the expense of the characters.
Moore's performance is an eerie homage to Jodie Foster who created the role of Starling. She has mastered the same accent, most of Foster's gestures and the woman's inner turmoil that manifests itself in steely resolve.
With Hopkins, Moore and Giannini exercising so much restraint, it's up to Oldman and Liotta to chomp on the scenery and they do whenever possible.
Hannibal is unsettling but it's not scary. It's a cinematic nightmare that lasts for 131 minutes but it doesn't linger to haunt the memory.
(This film is rated AA)