Hannibal (film)

Hannibal

Theatrical release poster
Directed by Ridley Scott
Produced by Ridley Scott
Dino De Laurentiis
Written by Screenplay:
David Mamet
Steven Zaillian
Novel:
Thomas Harris
Starring Anthony Hopkins
Julianne Moore
Gary Oldman
Ray Liotta
Giancarlo Giannini
Music by Hans Zimmer
Cinematography John Mathieson
Editing by Pietro Scalia
Distributed by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Release date(s) February 9, 2001 (2001-02-09)
Running time 131 min.
Country United States
Language English
Budget $87 million
Gross revenue $351,692,268
Preceded by The Silence of the Lambs
Followed by Red Dragon

Hannibal is a 2001 psychological thriller directed by Ridley Scott, adapted from the Thomas Harris novel of the same name. Set ten years after The Silence of the Lambs, the premise is that Hannibal Lecter's only surviving victim, the extremely wealthy Mason Verger, is determined to capture, torture, and kill him. The film's locations alternate between Italy and the United States.

Hannibal was the highly anticipated sequel to 1991's Academy Award-winning The Silence of the Lambs, which introduced Hannibal Lecter to mainstream moviegoing audiences (though the character was first portrayed by Brian Cox in the 1986 film, Manhunter, based on Harris' novel, Red Dragon).[1] The Silence of the Lambs became only the third film in history to receive Academy Awards for Best Picture, Director, Actor, Actress, and screenplay adaptation.[2] The character of Hannibal Lecter became a household name and part of popular culture.[3] The "bumpy" development of Hannibal drew a large amount of attention, with Silence of the Lambs director Jonathan Demme, screenwriter Ted Tally and actress Jodie Foster all eventually declining involvement.[4] Upon release, Hannibal broke box-office records in the United States, Australia, Canada and the UK in February 2001.[5]

Contents

Plot

Ten years have passed since FBI Agent Clarice Starling tracked down serial killer Jame Gumb. Starling is unjustly blamed for a botched drug raid. She and her past connection to Hannibal Lecter come to the attention of Lecter's only surviving victim, Mason Verger, a convicted child molestor whom Lecter had left horribly disfigured and paralyzed after having been assigned by a court as Verger's therapist.

Verger, bedridden, uses his wealth and political influence to have Clarice reassigned to Lecter's case and meets her in his mansion. With the help of his associates, Verger is pursuing an elaborate scheme to capture, torture, and kill Lecter, and he hopes that Clarice's involvement will draw him out.

Indeed, Lecter sends her a mock-sympathetic letter. Though the letter contains no clue to Lecter's whereabouts, Clarice detects a strange fragrance that a perfume expert identifies as a rare skin cream sold only in a few shops in the world. Clarice contacts the police departments of the cities where the shops are located, requesting surveillance tapes. One of the cities is Florence, Italy, where Chief Inspector Rinaldo Pazzi is investigating the disappearance of a library curator. Pazzi meets the new curator, Dr. Fell, who is actually Hannibal Lecter. Recognising Dr. Fell in the surveillance tape, Pazzi (using his special password) accesses the FBI's database of fugitive criminals to learn about Lecter's case. He also learns of Verger's reward of $3 million to anyone turning Lecter over to him rather than the FBI. Pazzi responds to the offer and ignores warnings by Clarice—who has now also recognised Lecter on the tape from Florence—against trying to capture Lecter himself. Pazzi's plan goes awry, as Lecter murders Pazzi by tying him up with electrical cords and then hanging and disemboweling him, before escaping back to the United States.

After this failed attempt, Verger tries to speed things up by having Justice Department official Paul Krendler, Clarice's chief opponent, accuse her of withholding a note from Lecter, leading to her suspension. Lecter contacts her and lures her to Union Station in Washington, D.C. Hidden in the crowds, they converse by mobile phone. Lecter expresses his admiration for her, his sympathy for her treatment by the FBI and suggests forcing those who disrespected her to apologise. Verger's men, who have followed Clarice, capture Lecter and transport him to Verger.

When her superiors refuse to act, Clarice, on her own initiative, infiltrates Verger's estate, where Verger means to have Lecter eaten alive by a herd of vicious boars bred specifically for this purpose. Clarice intervenes and frees Lecter but is herself wounded. Lecter then rescues her from the animals. Verger, furious, orders his physician Cordell to shoot Lecter, but Lecter persuades Cordell to throw Verger into the pen, where he is killed by the boars.

Lecter takes Clarice to a secluded lake house and treats her bullet wound. The house turns out to be Krendler's, who arrives for a Fourth of July break and is immediately subdued by Lecter. Clarice wakes up in an upstairs bedroom and, still disoriented by morphine and dressed in a slinky black-velvet evening gown, calls the police. She searches for Lecter and finds him in the dining room, where he has set the table for an elegant dinner, with Krendler seated in a wheelchair and heavily-drugged watching. Lecter removes the top of Krendler's skull Starling horrifyingly looks on, cuts out part of Krendler's prefrontal cortex, sautees it and feeds it to the Krendler. Krendler chatters merrily, insulting Starling in cruder terms than he had used before, showing the very kind of disinhibition that is classically caused by removal of the prefrontal cortex. After the meal, Lector injects Krendler with a drug, then empties the plates into Krendler's cranium, pushing his wheelchair onto the patio. Clarice attacks Lecter and is quickly overpowered, but manages to handcuff his wrist to hers. Lecter brandishes a meat cleaver in order to chop off her hand and eventually strikes.

As the police arrive, Clarice is outside the house, with her hands intact, looking for Lecter, who had escaped moments before. Lecter is then seen on an airplane, his arm in a sling, with a Fanchon boxed lunch on his pull-down table. As Lecter prepares to eat his food, including what appears to be parts of Krendler's brain, a boy seated next to him asks to try some of his food, to which Lecter obliges.

Cast

Development

Background

The Silence of the Lambs director, Jonathan Demme was asked in 1994 about a possible sequel in Rolling Stone magazine. Demme said that Thomas Harris, author of The Silence of the Lambs, had been working on the follow-up for "seven or eight years." Demme had an idea even at that time that it would not be a straight follow up. Harris told Demme: "I imagine Doctor Lecter going somewhere in Europe...strolling round the streets of Florence or Munich, gazing in the windows of watchmakers..."[6] Demme stated his intention to be involved in the cinematic adaptation of Hannibal in 1998, less than a year before the novel was published.[7]

Dino De Laurentiis produced the film Manhunter in 1986, featuring the first appearance of Hannibal Lecter, played by Brian Cox. The film was directed by Michael Mann. It was based on the Thomas Harris novel Red Dragon. De Laurentiis did not like Mann's version of Manhunter: "Manhunter was no good...it was not Red Dragon", he said. De Laurentiis and his wife Martha (also his co-producer) had no direct involvement in the film The Silence of the Lambs, a decision De Laurentiis came to regret. They did, however, own the rights to the "Lecter character" and reportedly allowed Orion Pictures, which produced Silence of the Lambs, to use the character of Lecter for free, not wishing to be "greedy." When Silence of the Lambs became a commercial and critical success in 1991, winning five Academy Awards, both Dino and Martha De Laurentiis found themselves sitting on a valuable asset and eager for a follow-up novel they could adapt. After a lengthy wait, De Laurentiis finally received a call from Thomas Harris telling him he had finished the sequel to Silence of the Lambs and De Laurentiis purchased the rights for a record $10 million.[8]

The Los Angeles Times reported in April 1999, that the budget for an adaptation of Hannibal could cost as much as $100 million. It speculated that both Jodie Foster and Anthony Hopkins would receive $15 million each to reprise their roles and "$5 million to $19 million for director Jonathan Demme." The newspaper further reported that, although Silence of the Lambs cost only $22 million, this would not deter the studio from going ahead with Hannibal. Mort Janklow, Thomas Harris's agent at the time, told the Los Angeles Times that Jodie Foster, Anthony Hopkins and Jonathan Demme would soon receive manuscripts of the novel, claiming it would make an unbelievable movie.[9]

The book sold out of its initial 1.6 million print run in the summer of 1999.[10] Hannibal went on to sell millions of copies following its release in mid-1999.[11]

Jonathan Demme informed (via fax) the producers of Hannibal that he would pass on directing Hannibal.[7] It has been claimed Demme turned down the project because he found the material "lurid"[12] and was averse to the book's "gore".[13] Dino De Laurentiis said on Demme's decision to decline: "When the pope dies, we create a new pope. Good luck to Jonathan Demme. Good-bye."[8] He has since added that Demme felt he could not make a sequel as good as The Silence of the Lambs.[14]

Ridley Scott

De Laurentiis visited Ridley Scott on the set of Gladiator and suggested to Ridley he read the novel he had bought the rights to.[14] Scott was in the third week before principal photography was due to finish on Gladiator.[7] Gladiator became a commercial and critical success, earning 12 Academy Award nominations.[11] De Laurentiis asked Scott if he would like to direct the film version of Hannibal. Scott misunderstood which Hannibal he meant, thinking De Laurentiis was speaking of the general and historical figure from Carthage who nearly brought down the Roman Empire back around 200 B.C., so he replied: "Basically Dino, I’m doing a Roman epic right now. I don’t wanna do elephants coming over the Alps next, old boy."[7] Scott read the manuscript in four sittings within a week, believing it to be a "symphony", and expressed his desire to do it.[7] Scott further explains how he got involved: "I was shooting Gladiator in Malta and one day, for the hell of it, I went for a walk for half a mile down the road to the Malta Film Studio to see my old buddy Dino. I had not seen him since I’d worked on a version of Dune. This was pre-Blade Runner. Dino had pursued me to direct Dune and another film. He's always enthusiastic and aggressive and came after me when I did both Blade Runner and Alien, but I couldn’t do the films. Anyway, we had an espresso together and a few days later, he called me to ask if he could visit the Gladiator set. He arrived with a manuscript of Hannibal, about a month before it was published in book form. He said: ‘Lets make this one.’ I haven’t read anything so fast since The Godfather. It was so rich in all kind of ways."[10]

Although Scott had accepted the job Jonathan Demme had rejected, he said: "My first question was: ‘What about Jonathan?’ and they said: ‘The original team said it's too violent.’ I said, 'Okay. I’ll do it.'" Scott did, himself, have some uncertainty with the source material. He had difficulties with the ending of the novel in particular—"I couldn’t take that quantum leap emotionally on behalf of Starling. Certainly, on behalf of Hannibal—I’m sure that's been in the back of his mind for a number of years. But for Starling, no. I think one of the attractions about Starling to Hannibal is what a straight arrow she is." (In the novel Lecter and Starling end up an actual couple on the run together.) He also, "didn’t buy the book from the opera scene onwards, which became like a vampire movie." He asked author Thomas Harris if he was "married to his ending". Harris said no, so he changed it.[10]

“ "I always imagined Hannibal likes cannabis, marijuana, opium....to explore his mind palace....needless to say I don’t do either, they are too much for me. I'd rather just have a cigar." ”

—Ridley Scott on his thoughts of the character "Hannibal Lecter".[15]

Script development

Ted Tally, the screenwriter for The Silence of the Lambs, was another key member of the original team to decline involvement in Hannibal (he won an Oscar for his Silence adaptation). Tally, like Demme, had problems with the novel's "excesses".[12]

Steven Zaillian (writer of (Schindler's List) was offered the chance to write the adaptation after Tally passed but he also declined. He explained that "I was busy. And I wasn’t sure I was interested. You can almost never win when you do a sequel."[8] David Mamet was the first screenwriter to produce a draft, which, according to Ridley Scott and the producers, needed major revisions.[8] Stacey Snider, co-chairman of Universal Pictures (a co-production deal was struck between Universal and MGM) said on the rejection of Mamet's screenplay: "There's no way David was going to read 15 pages of our notes and then be available to work on the script day-to-day."[9] Mamet was preparing to direct his own film.[8] A script review at ScreenwritersUtopia.com describes the Mamet draft as "stunningly bad" but found Zaillian's rewrite to be "gripping entertainment".[16] Zaillian, who had already passed, reconsidered and became involved in the project, saying: "It's hard to say no to Dino once and it's almost impossible to say no to him twice."[8]

This question (regarding the script development) was put to Ridley Scott by Total Film magazine: "There were lots of rewrites on 'Hannibal'—what was the main problem with the original material?" Scott replied: "That's inaccurate, because there were very few rewrites once I brought in Steve Zaillian. If you were to ask who were the best three screenwriters in the business, Steve Zaillian would be one of them. We discussed Hannibal endlessly."[10] Asked if he had read Mamet's draft, he said: "Yes. He is very fast, very efficient, but he was off doing a film. 'Hannibal' was green lit and his first draft only took about a month. But I was scared that he would not be able to give me enough attention, because that draft needed a lot of work. So I moved on basically."[10] Scott has said there were writing and "structural problems" as to what they would do with parts of the movie.[15] A key objective of Zaillian, an Academy Award winner, was to revise the script by David Mamet until it pleased all parties—meaning the "love" story would need to be done by suggestion instead of by "assault".[17] Scott worked through the script with Zaillian for 28 days making him "sweat through it with him and discuss every inch of the way with him." After 25 days Scott suddenly realized that Zaillian was "exorcising the 600 pages of the book. He was distilling through discussion what he was gonna finally do...Frankly I could have just made it."[7]

Casting

It was unclear if Jodie Foster (Clarice Starling) and Anthony Hopkins (Dr. Hannibal Lecter) would reprise their respective roles for which they won Academy Awards in The Silence of the Lambs (best actress/actor).[9] It became apparent that the producers and the studio could do without one of the original "stars" (and would go on to find a replacement). The withdrawal of both—Foster and Hopkins, could possibly have been terminal for the project, however. Producer De Laurentiis confirmed this after the film's release: "First and foremost, I knew we had no movie without Anthony Hopkins."[14]

Involvement of Jodie Foster

Jodie Foster confirmed to Larry King (on her potential involvement in Hannibal), in 1997, that she "would definitely be part of it".[10] She told Entertainment Weekly in 1997 that "Anthony Hopkins always talks about it. I mean, everybody wants to do it. Every time I see him, it's like: 'When is it going to happen? When is it going to happen?'"[1] Producer Dino De Laurentiis thought Foster would decline once she read the book (Hannibal), even believing the final movie was better for it.[7] Anthony Hopkins also had doubts Foster would be involved, saying he had a "hunch" she would not be.[7] Foster did turn it down, confirming this in late December 1999.[18] This would cause problems for the studio, Universal and partner MGM.[1][8] "The studio is just back from the holiday and is regrouping based on the news, and has no cohesive game plan at the moment." Said Kevin Misher, Universal's president of production.[8] Misher added that, "It was one of those moments when you sit down and think, ‘Can Clarice be looked upon as James Bond for instance? A character who is replaceable?' Or was Jodie Foster Clarice Starling, and the audience will not accept anyone else?"[8] Foster said in December 1999 that the part of Clarice Starling in Hannibal had "negative attributes" and "betrayed" the original character.[18] Yet there is still uncertainty as to why Foster declined. Some say she had "sequel-itis". Others contended that she didn’t want to do it without Demme or was slated herself to direct another film.[8] Her spokeswoman said the reason was because Claire Danes had become available in Foster's own project Flora Plum.[19] Salary demands may also have played a part in Foster's non-participation. De Laurentiis said: "I call the agent of Judy Foster. He say to me ‘I have instruction. She no want to read the script if you no give her an offer of $20m and 15% of the gross.’ And I say, ‘Give my love to Judy Foster, goodbye.’"[8] (The article makes clear that "Dino comically mispronounces the actress's name")[8] Entertainment Weekly described the project as becoming "a bloody mess, hemorrhaging talent and money" even despite Hopkins being on-board.[1] Jodie Foster talked about Hannibal in an interview with Total Film magazine in late 2005. She said: "The official reason I didn’t do Hannibal is I was doing another movie, Flora Plum. So I get to say, in a nice dignified way, that I wasn’t available when that movie was being shot...Clarice meant so much to Jonathan and I, she really did, and I know it sounds kind of strange to say but there was no way that either of us could really trample on her."[20]

Julianne Moore as Clarice Starling

When it became clear that Foster would skip Hannibal, the production team considered several different actresses,[7] including Cate Blanchett, Angelina Jolie, Gillian Anderson, Hilary Swank, Ashley Judd, Helen Hunt and Julianne Moore.[8] Anthony Hopkins asked his agent if he had any "power" over casting. He informed De Laurentiis that he knew Julianne Moore, with whom he had worked on Surviving Picasso, and thought her a "terrific actress".[7] Although Hopkins' agent told him he had no contractual influence on casting, Scott thought it correct to discuss who would be Hopkins' "leading lady".[7] Scott said he was "really surprised to find that I had five of the top actresses in Hollywood wanting it."[10] Moore would eventually secure the part. Scott said his decision was swayed in favor of Moore because: "She is a true chameleon. She can be a lunatic in Magnolia, a vamp in An Ideal Husband, a porn star in Boogie Nights and a romantic in The End of the Affair "[10] "Julianne Moore, once Jodie decided to pass was always top of my list." said Scott on his female lead.[15] Moore talked about stepping into a role made famous by another actress: "The new Clarice would be very different. Of course people are going to compare my interpretation with that of Jodie Foster's...but this film is going to be very different."[21]

Anthony Hopkins as Hannibal Lecter

Hopkins was generally expected to reprise his Academy Award-winning role. Hopkins did say in June 1999 that he would only be interested if the script was "really good".[9] Hopkins says on the making-of feature on DVD that he couldn’t make up his mind to commit. "I was kind of surprised by this book, Hannibal. I thought it was really overreaching and so bizarre. So I couldn’t make up my mind about it all. Some of it I found intriguing, some I was a little doubtful about."[7] When the producers confirmed that they were going to film Harris' novel, Hopkins told them yes, but added: "It needs some condensing."[7] The Hollywood Reporter would confirm that Hopkins had agreed to reprise his role in late December 1999, saying he had approved the latest draft of the script by Steven Zaillian.[22] Hopkins said he had no difficulty moving back into "Lecter's mind". "I just learned the lines and showed up and walked around as Hannibal Lecter. I thought, 'Do I repeat that same performance, or do I vary it?' Ten years had passed so I changed a bit."[8] In the book, Lecter has had plastic surgery in an attempt to disguise himself. This was left out of the film because Scott and Hopkins agreed to leave the face alone.[23] Hopkins explains why: "It's as if he's making a statement – 'catch me if you can'. With his big hat, he's so obvious that nobody thinks he's Hannibal Lecter. I've always thought he's a very elegant man, a renaissance man."[23] In the film, Lecter is first seen in Florence "as the classical Lecter, lecturing and being smooth", according to Hopkins.[24] When the film moves to the US, Hopkins changed his appearance by building up muscle and cropping his hair short "to make him like a mercenary, that he would be so fit and so strong that he could just snap somebody in two if they got... in his way".[24]

“ He's still the sort of Robin Hood of killers. He kills the—what do they call them? The terminally rude. ”

— Anthony Hopkins on Hannibal Lecter.[24]

Further casting

Other stars subsequently cast included Ray Liotta as corrupt Justice Department official Paul Krendler (a character that appeared in Silence of the Lambs, though original actor Ron Vawter died before the production of Hannibal) and Italian screen legend Giancarlo Giannini as the opportunistic Detective Rinaldo Pazzi. Francesca Neri won the role of Pazzi's wife, Allegra. Frankie R. Faison signed on to reprise his role as former hospital orderly Barney Matthews. (The actor had appeared in Silence of the Lambs in the same role. He also appeared in the film, Manhunter as another character, Lt. Fisk).

Gary Oldman was cast as Mason Verger, one of Lecter's two surviving victims. Co-producer Martha De Laurentiis said they had a "funny situation" with Oldman wanting a prominent "credit".[8] She said: "Now how can you have a prominent credit with Hannibal? The characters are Hannibal and Clarice Starling. So we really couldn’t work something out (at first)."[8] Oldman was apparently "out" of the movie for while, but then came back in, asking to go "unbilled".[8] Oldman would become transformed and "unrecognizable as himself" to play the part of Verger. He would have no lips, cheeks or eyelids. Make-up artist Greg Cannom said: "It's really disgusting... I’ve been showing people pictures [of Oldman as Verger], and they all just say ‘Oh my God,’ and walk away, which makes me very happy."[8] Oldman said that having his name completely removed from the billing and credits allowed him to "do it anonymously" under that heavy make-up.[25]

Key production crew

Scott recruited key production crew whom he had worked with previously. Production designer Norris Spencer had worked on Thelma & Louise, Black Rain and 1492 Conquest of Paradise. Cinematographer John Mathieson, editor Pietro Scalia and composer Hans Zimmer had all worked on Scott's previous film, Gladiator.[26]

Production and post production

Background

Hannibal was filmed in 83 working days over 16 weeks.[27] The film began production on May 8, 2000 in Florence.[27] The film visited key locations in Florence and various locations around the United States.[26] Martha De Laurentiis said the movie has almost a hundred locations and that is was a: "constant pain of moving and dressing sets. But the locations were beautiful. Who could complain about being allowed to shoot in Palazzo Vecchio in Florence? Or President James Madison's farm in Montpelier or the amazing Biltmore Estate in Asheville?"[26] Eighty million dollars and a year and a half in production were spent before director Ridley Scott got his first look at Hannibal in the editing room.[28]

Filming locations

Special make-up effects

Make-up artist Greg Cannom was pleased to be involved in Hannibal as it offered him the chance to produce "incredible and original make-ups".[7] For Mason Verger the make-up team would initially produce 20 different "heads" which looked like "zombies" and did not reflect the vision director Ridley Scott had of the character—Scott wanted Verger to look real with hideous scarring, and not something from the "House of Wax".[7] Scott himself would actually call up the help of expert doctors in an effort to get the look of the character as realistic as possible.[7] Scott showed the make-up team pictures of "foetal things", which he thought "touching"—he wanted to make Mason Verger more "touching" than "monstrous", as he thought the character of Verger as being "someone who hadn’t lost his sense of humour...almost sympathetic."[7] Oldman would spend six hours a day in make-up to prepare for the role.[7]

For one of the final and infamous scenes of the movie an exact "duplicate" was created of the character Paul Krendler, played by Ray Liotta, a scene which blended make-up, puppet work and CGI in a way which director Ridley Scott called "seamless".[7]

Title sequence

The main titles were designed by Nick Livesey a graduate of the Royal College of Art who worked for one of Scott's production companies in London. The sequence, shot in Florence by Livesey himself was intended as the second promotional trailer for the film.[7] The studio thought it not "quite right" however, but it remained on Scott's mind and would eventually end up as the main title sequence.[7] Livesey would gather footage of pigeons in an empty square in Florence early one morning which, in the final cut, would morph into the face of Hannibal Lecter.[7] Scott believed it a good idea as it fundamentally asked the question: Where is Hannibal Lecter? Scott explains: "And of course this story tells it, with pigeons in the cobblestones of somewhere, where you wonder where that is...and there he is his face appears."[7] The titles are said to have been influenced by the film Se7en.[29]

Music

Ridley Scott worked very closely with composer Hans Zimmer, during post-production on Hannibal.[7] Scott believes the music to a film is as important as dialogue—"It is the final adjustment to the screenplay, being able to also adjust the performance of the actors in fact."[7] Zimmer and Scott sat in during the editing process with editor Pietro Scalia to discuss scenes in the film and "not music".[7] Zimmer used a symphony orchestra for the opera sequence, but would mostly use what he described as a "very odd orchestra...only cellos and basses all playing at the extreme ends of their range." This was done to emphasise the character of Hannibal Lecter. He explains: "Anthony's character is for me somebody at the extreme range of whatever is humanly imaginable somehow." Zimmer also did not want the score to sound like a "modern day orchestra".[7] The character of Mason Verger, had his own "theme", which become more "perverted" as the movie progressed according to Zimmer.[7] Dante's sonnet was put to music by Zimmer and Patrick Cassidy for the opera scene in Florence.[3] Tracksounds.com wrote positively of Zimmer's score. "Zimmer truly crafts a score worthy of most fans' full attention...the classical elements, and yes, even the monologue combine to make this an intense listening experience."[16] In a poll by Classic FM (UK) listeners to find the greatest movie soundtrack of all-time, Hannibal ranked at 59.[30]

Themes

Romance

Allegra DePazi: Dr. Fell, do you believe that a man can become so obsessed with a woman from a single encounter?

Hannibal: Could he daily feel a stab of hunger for her and find nourishment in the very sight of her? I think so. But would she see through the bars of his plight and ache for him?

Scott has said he believes the underlying emotion of the film Hannibal is "affection". "In some instances, you might even wonder or certainly from one direction—is it more than affection?"[7] "It is dark, because the story is of course essentially dark, but it's kind of romantic at the same time." He added.[7] Scott openly admits to a "romantic thematic" running though the film.[7] He told CNN that: "Hannibal was quite a different target, essentially a study between two individuals. Funny enough, it's rather romantic and also quite humorous, but also there's some quite bad behaviour as well."[11] During the opera scene in Florence, the wife of "Pazzi" asks Hannibal (upon Hannibal giving her "Dante's first sonnet"): "Do you believe a man could become so obsessed by a woman after a single encounter..." Hannibal replies: "Yes I believe they could..." This scene, in the movie, is one which Scott claims most people "missed" the meaning of. It was in reference to "Clarice" – to their encounter in The Silence of the Lambs[15] The New York Times in its review of the film, said Hannibal, "toys" with the idea of: "love that dare not speak Its name"[29] Composer Hans Zimmer believes there to be "many" messages and subtext in each scene of the film.[7] He says "I can score this movie truly as a Freudian archetypal beauty and the beast fairy tale, as a horror movie, as the most elegant piece, on corruption in the American police force, as the loneliest woman on earth, the beauty in renaissance..."[7] Zimmer ultimately believes it to be a dark love story, centering on two people who should never be together—a modern day Romeo and Juliet.[7] During post-production of the film, Scott, Zimmer and the editor passionately argued about what a single shot meant, where a tear slides down Starling's cheek during a confrontation with Lecter. They could not agree if it was a tear of "anguish", "loneliness" or "disgust".[7] Scott told the New York Post that, the affair of the heart between Lecter and Starling is "metaphorical".[31] Rolling Stone even said in their review: "Scott offers a sly parody of relationships—think "When Hannibal met Sally."[17] Hopkins said: "It's not exactly a romance there is that element. There's that erotic element in the story. I'm told. Ridley says it comes across very clearly."

Retribution and punishment

Ridley Scott has said that he believes Lecter, in his own way, to be "pure" – one of the key motivating factors for the character is the search for "retribution and punishment".[15] "There is something very moral about Lecter in this film", said Scott in his audio commentary. "The behaviour of Hannibal is never insane—didn’t want to use that excuse. Is he insane? No, I think he's as sane as you or I. He just likes it."[15] Scott did say, however, "In our normal terms, he's truly evil."[15] Scott also brings up the notion of absolution in reference to the Lecter character towards the end of the film.[15] The antagonist character of Mason Verger has one overriding objective in life: to capture Lecter and subject him to a slow, painful death.[32]

Corruption

Part of the story, which involves the character Rinaldo Pazzi (Giancarlo Giannini) a Florentine policeman, who becomes corrupted by the prospect of financial gain when he learns Dr. Fell's true identity. His escalating abandonment of morality allows him to countenance and facilitate the death of a gypsy pickpocket, egged on by the desire to have the best for his much younger wife.[15] There is a moment in the film when Pazzi becomes corrupted, despite being what Scott describes as "very thoughtful".[15] Paul Krendler also succumbs to greed and corruption. Starling however does not, and perseveres to the end even refusing to release Lecter when she believes he is about to cut off her hand in order to free himself.

Promotion

Upon the films release, Hannibal was met with significant media attention,[3][33] with the movie's stars and director making serial appearances on television, newspapers and magazines.[34] CBS News claimed in early February 2001 that "the long-awaited sequel to the grisly 1991 thriller Silence of the Lambs is cooking up the hottest Internet and media buzz since the 1999 Star Wars 'prequel'."[34] Stars Anthony Hopkins and Julianne Moore made the covers of a number of magazines, including Vanity Fair, Entertainment Weekly, Premiere[33] and Empire. Hopkins' portrayal of Hannibal Lecter would be chosen as the "unique selling point" of Hannibal, a choice made by the Marketing Department of the studio as being "extremely exploitable" and a "no-brainer."[27] The Lecter character was the key pulling factor to make people pay to see the movie.[27] There was no risk in taking this key marketing decision: he had been seen before, millions of copies of a book with his name for a title has been bought and the actor portraying the character on-screen had won an Academy Award for his first time in the role.[27] "Mr Hopkins is the draw here", said The New York Times.[29] "Hannibal" was a household name[35] and a "brand".[5] The first teaser trailer was released in cinemas and made available via the official website in early May 2000.[36] As the first teaser trailer was released over nine months before the film was released, and the film had only just begun production, footage was used from The Silence of the Lambs. It used the tagline line "Never forget who he is". The first official art-work was also released at the same time as a "teaser one-sheet".[36] It featured the tagline "Break the silence", a direct reference to The Silence of the Lambs, and would only feature the character of Hannibal Lecter.[36] A further trailer, which featured footage from the new movie, was released in late November 2000.[36] A poster released in the UK to promote Hannibal featured Lecter with a "skin mask" covering the right side of his face—a reference to the escape scene in The Silence of the Lambs. The poster was quickly removed from circulation as it was deemed "too shocking and disturbing for the public."[9] While the film was on location in Washington, D.C., Hopkins visited President Bill Clinton for dinner at the White House.[9] The film was released, by no coincidence, on the 10th anniversary of the release of The Silence of the Lambs.[29] It was released in February 2001 in the US, UK and Australia.[36]

Release

Box office

Hannibal grossed $58 million (USA) in its opening weekend (from 3,230 screens). At the time (February 2001) this was the third-biggest debut ever—only 1997's The Lost World: Jurassic Park and 1999's Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace grossed more in an opening weekend.[37] It was also, when it was released, the biggest opening box office for an R-rated movie ever.[37] Final domestic box office gross (USA) reached $165,092,268 with a worldwide gross of $351,692,268.[38] The film spent three weeks at number one in the US box office chart, and four weeks at number one in the UK.[39] Hannibal was the tenth highest grossing movie of the year worldwide,[40] in a year which also saw the blockbuster releases of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone and The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring. Hannibal also made over $87,000,000 in US video rentals following release in August 2001.[41]

The reviews for Hannibal were mixed.[21][37][42] Time Magazine wrote: "A banquet of creepy, gory or grotesque incidents is on display in Hannibal. But this superior sequel has romance in its dark heart." Empire Magazine gave it two out of five stars, calling it "...laughable to just plain boring, Hannibal is toothless to the end." David Thomson, writing in the British Film Institute magazine Sight & Sound, praised the film. "It works. It's smart, good-looking, sexy, fun...dirty, naughty and knowing."[42] Thomson does make clear, however, he is a great fan of director Ridley Scott's work.[42] He adds: "It is, literally, that Hannibal Lecter has become such a household joke that he can't be dreadful again. It seems clear that Anthony Hopkins and Scott saw that, and planned accordingly. That's how the movie was saved."[42] Variety in its review said "Hannibal is not as good as "Lambs"... ultimately more shallow and crass at its heart than its predecessor, Hannibal is nevertheless tantalizing, engrossing and occasionally startling."[43] A negative review in The Guardian claimed that what was wrong with Hannibal the film was carried over from Hannibal the book: "The result is an inflated, good-looking bore of a movie. The Silence of the Lambs was a marvelous thing. This, by contrast is barely okey-dokey."[44] Roger Ebert gave the film a "Thumbs down" rating on the television program Ebert & Roeper and gave the film a 2.5 out of 4 stars rating in his print review, which he began with the following: "Ridley Scott's Hannibal is a carnival geek show. We must give it credit for the courage of its depravity; if it proves nothing else, it proves that if a man cutting off his face and feeding it to his dogs doesn't get the NC-17 rating for violence, nothing ever will."[45]

Hannibal currently has an overall Metacritic rating of 57 out of 100 from 36 reviews, and a Rotten Tomatoes rating of 38 percent, with an average rating of five out of ten from 160 reviews.

Home release

Hannibal is available as a one-disc and two-disc DVD. The two disc DVD contains an array of special features including: Commentary by director Ridley Scott, deleted and alternate scenes, five making-of featurettes and a "marketing gallery" which contains trailers, production stills and unused poster concepts.

A special "steel-book" edition of Hannibal was released in 2007. There are no significant changes made to the DVD itself; only the package artwork was changed.

Differences from the novel

According to Variety the script for Hannibal was: "...for better or worse, quite faithful to the Harris blueprint; fans of the tome may regret the perhaps necessary excision of some characters, most notably Mason Verger's muscle-bound macho sister Margot, as well as the considerable fascinating academic detail, but will basically feel the book has been respected (yes, even the climactic dinner party is served up intact, with the only surprise twists saved for its wake)."[43] Time Out in its review of Hannibal noted: "The weight-watchers script sensibly dispenses with several characters to serve a brew that's enjoyably spicy but low on substance. So much story is squeezed into 131 minutes that little time's left for analysis or characterization."[46] Producer Dino De Laurentiis was asked why some characters were left out of the film: "I think if you get a book which is 600 pages, you have to reduce it to a script of 100 pages. In two hours of film, you cannot possibly include all the characters. We set ourselves a limit, and cut characters which weren't so vital."[47]

In the book, Mason Verger runs an orphanage, from which he calls children to verbally abuse as a substitute for he's no longer being able to molest them. He also has a sister, Margot, whom he raped when they were children and who is a lesbian. When she disclosed her sexual orientation to her family, their father disowned her. As she herself is sterile due to steroid abuse, Verger exerts some control over her by promising her a semen sample with which to impregnate her lover, who could then inherit the Verger fortune. Also, in the novel, Verger literally has no face and has to be kept in a sterile room at all times to keep bacteria from affecting exposed muscle and tissues. At the end of the book, Margot and Starling both help Lecter escape during a shootout between Starling and Verger's guards. Margot, at Lecter's advice, stimulates her brother to ejaculate with a cattle prod, and then kills him by ramming his pet Moray eel down his throat. Following up on Krendler's fate in the book, the crooked FBI official is killed when Lecter shoots him with an arrow.

The book's controversial ending has Lecter presenting Starling with the exhumed bones of her father, which he "brings to life" by hypnotizing Starling, allowing her to say goodbye. This forges an odd alliance between Starling and Lecter, culminating in their becoming lovers and escaping to Argentina. At the end of the novel, Barney (the hospital orderly) sees them at the Teatro Colón of Buenos Aires.

Also gone from the film were the flashbacks to Lecter's childhood, in which he sees his younger sister, Mischa, eaten by German deserters in 1944. These flashbacks formed the basis for the 2007 film Hannibal Rising which portrays Lecter as a young man who eventually becomes the killer of the prior films.

The character of Jack Crawford, while in the book, does not appear in the film.

Hopkins was asked in an interview on the subject of whether or not he believed the idea of Starling and Lecter heading off in to the sunset as lovers (as happens in the book). "Yes, I did. Other people found that preposterous. I suppose there's a moral issue there. I think it would have been a very interesting thing though. I think it would have been very interesting had she gone off, because I suspected that there was that romance, attachment there, that obsession with her. I guessed that a long time ago, at the last phone call to Clarice, at the end of SotL, she said, 'Dr. Lecter, Dr. Lecter...'."[48]

See also

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 "Killer Instinct". Entertainment Weekly. 17 March 2000. http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,275700,00.html. Retrieved 12 June 2007. 
  2. ↑ Fierman, Daniel (2001). "The Gory Details". Entertainment Weekly. http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,279665,00.html. Retrieved 20 June 2007. 
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Clarke, James (2002). Virgin Film: Ridley Scott. Virgin Books. ISBN 0753507315. 
  4. ↑ Jolin, Dan. "Hannibal film review". Total Film. http://www.totalfilm.com/cinema_reviews/hannibal. Retrieved 9 March 2007. 
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 "Taste of success". The Independent (London). 20 February 2001. http://comment.independent.co.uk/leading_articles/article253462.ece. Retrieved 9 March 2007. 
  6. ↑ "Rolling Stone". http://storefrontdemme.com/rollingstone.html. Retrieved 6 March 2007. 
  7. ↑ 7.00 7.01 7.02 7.03 7.04 7.05 7.06 7.07 7.08 7.09 7.10 7.11 7.12 7.13 7.14 7.15 7.16 7.17 7.18 7.19 7.20 7.21 7.22 7.23 7.24 7.25 7.26 7.27 7.28 7.29 7.30 7.31 7.32 7.33 7.34 7.35 Hannibal DVD "Making of feature"
  8. ↑ 8.00 8.01 8.02 8.03 8.04 8.05 8.06 8.07 8.08 8.09 8.10 8.11 8.12 8.13 8.14 8.15 8.16 8.17 "How Hannibal came to be made". The Guardian (London). 9 February 2001. http://film.guardian.co.uk/features/featurepages/0,,435456,00.html. Retrieved 6 March 2007. 
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 9.4 9.5 "News atricles". IMDB. http://imdb.com/title/tt0212985/news. Retrieved 6 March 2007. 
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 10.3 10.4 10.5 10.6 10.7 "Interview with Ridley scott". Total Film. March 2001. 
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 Href=, <A (8 February 2001). "Bloody 'Hannibal' lacks bite of 'Lambs'". CNN. http://archives.cnn.com/2001/SHOWBIZ/Movies/02/08/hannibal.review/index.html. Retrieved 6 March 2007. 
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 "Pleased to eat you". London: The Guardian. 4 February 2001. http://film.guardian.co.uk/features/featurepages/0,,433350,00.html. Retrieved 7 March 2007. 
  13. ↑ Flynn, Gillian (11 October 2002). "Rebirth of Cruel". Entertainment Weekly. http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,357302,00.html. Retrieved 12 June 2007. 
  14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 Prigge, Steven (2004). Movie Moguls Speak: Interview with top film producers. McFarland. ISBN 978-0-7864-1929-6. 
  15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 15.2 15.3 15.4 15.5 15.6 15.7 15.8 15.9 Hannibal DVD "Ridley Scott commentary"
  16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 "Script Review: Hannibal". ScreenwriterUtopia. http://screenwritersutopia.com/modules.php?name=Content&file=print&pid=116. Retrieved 9 March 2007. 
  17. ↑ 17.0 17.1 Travers, Peter. "Hannibal—Rolling Stone Review". Rolling Stone. http://www.rollingstone.com/reviews/movie/5948327/review/5948328/hannibal. Retrieved 9 March 2007. 
  18. ↑ 18.0 18.1 "Lambs 'in doubt' without Foster". BBC. 6 January 2000. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/592904.stm. Retrieved 7 March 2007. 
  19. ↑ "Foster passes on Lambs sequel". BBC. 29 December 1999. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/581813.stm. Retrieved 7 March 2007. 
  20. ↑ "The Total Film Interview: Jodie Foster". Total Film. http://www.totalfilm.com/features/the_total_film_interview__jodie_foster. Retrieved 7 March 2007. 
  21. ↑ 21.0 21.1 Rob, Brian (2005). Ridley Scott: Pocket Essential. Pocket Essentials. ISBN 978-1-904048-47-3. 
  22. ↑ "Sir Anthony set for Lambs sequel". BBC. 21 December 1999. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/573715.stm. Retrieved 7 March 2007. 
  23. ↑ 23.0 23.1 "Movie Interview: Anthony Hopkins". BBC. http://www.bbc.co.uk/films/2001/02/12/anthony_hopkins_hannibal_120201_interview.shtml. Retrieved 9 March 2007. 
  24. ↑ 24.0 24.1 24.2 Rose, Charlie (30 January 2001). "60 Minutes: Actors' Take On Ridley Scott". CBS News. http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2001/01/28/60II/main267669.shtml?source=search_story. Retrieved 8 June 2007. 
  25. ↑ IGN.com: Interview with Gary Oldman
  26. ↑ 26.00 26.01 26.02 26.03 26.04 26.05 26.06 26.07 26.08 26.09 26.10 Official Hannibal production notes
  27. ↑ 27.0 27.1 27.2 27.3 27.4 Official Hannibal Journal
  28. ↑ Rose, Charlie (2001). "60 Minutes: Ridley Scott". CBS. http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2001/01/27/60II/main267597.shtml. Retrieved 7 June 2007. 
  29. ↑ 29.0 29.1 29.2 29.3 Mitchell, Elvis (9 February 2001). "FILM REVIEW; Whetting That Large Appetite for Second Helpings". New York Times. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9B04E2D81431F93AA35751C0A9679C8B63. Retrieved 7 March 2007. 
  30. ↑ "Top 100 movie soundtracks". Classic FM. http://www.classicfm.com/article.asp?id=223575. Retrieved 6 April 2007. 
  31. ↑ id=5800 "Hannibal News". Counting Down. http://www.countingdown.com/movies/1203/news?item id=5800. Retrieved 9 March 2007. 
  32. ↑ Wilson, Mark (6 February 2001). "Lecter's bloody second course has a hollow centre". The Independent (London). http://enjoyment.independent.co.uk/film/reviews/article251440.ece. Retrieved 9 March 2007. 
  33. ↑ 33.0 33.1 "Taking A Bite Out Of Hannibal". CBS News. 8 February 2001. http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2001/02/08/entertainment/main270627.shtml?source=search_story. Retrieved 8 June 2007. 
  34. ↑ 34.0 34.1 "Appetites Whet For Hannibal". CBS News. 2 February 2001. http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2001/02/02/entertainment/main269156.shtml. Retrieved 8 June 2007. 
  35. ↑ Thompson, David. "The doctor will eat you now...". The Independent (London). http://enjoyment.independent.co.uk/film/features/article251822. Retrieved 9 March 2007. 
  36. ↑ 36.0 36.1 36.2 36.3 36.4 "News". Dark Horizons. http://www.darkhorizons.com/2001/Hannibal.htm. Retrieved 7 March 2007. 
  37. ↑ 37.0 37.1 37.2 "Box Office: Hannibal Takes Record-Sized Bite". ABC News. 11 February 2001. http://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/story?id=109619&page=1. Retrieved 2007-06-08. 
  38. ↑ "Hannibal (2001)". Box Office Mojo. http://boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=hannibal.htm. Retrieved 6 March 2009. 
  39. ↑ "Box Office". IMDB Pro. http://pro.imdb.com/title/tt0212985/boxoffice. Retrieved 10 April 2007. 
  40. ↑ "Box-Office data for Hannibal". Boxofficemojo. http://www.boxofficemojo.com/yearly/chart/?view2=worldwide&yr=2001&p=.htm. Retrieved 10 March 2007. 
  41. ↑ "US Video rentals". IMDB. http://pro.imdb.com/title/tt0212985/videorevenue. Retrieved 10 April 2007. 
  42. ↑ 42.0 42.1 42.2 42.3 Thomson, David (2001). "The Riddler Has His Day". Sight & Sound. http://www.bfi.org.uk/sightandsound/feature/84/. Retrieved 9 April 2007. 
  43. ↑ 43.0 43.1 McCarthy, Todd (5 February 2001). "Hannibal Review". Variety. http://www.variety.com/review/VE1117797220.html?categoryid=31&cs=1. Retrieved 9 April 2007. 
  44. ↑ Brooks, Xan (16 February 2001). "Hannibal Review". The Guardian (London). http://film.guardian.co.uk/News_Story/Critic_Review/Guardian_review/0,,438460,00.html. Retrieved 9 April 2007. 
  45. ↑ Roger Ebert (2001-02-09). "Hannibal". Chicago Sun-Times. suntimes.com. http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20010209/REVIEWS/102090301/1023. Retrieved 2009-12-05. 
  46. ↑ "Hannibal review". Time Out Film Guide. http://www.timeout.com/film/dvd/63664.html. Retrieved 16 April 2007. 
  47. ↑ Mattram, James; Al Kehoe (2001). "Interview: Dino De Laurentiis". BBC. http://www.bbc.co.uk/films/2001/02/12/dino_de_laurentis_hannibal_120201_interview.shtml. Retrieved 7 June 2007. 
  48. ↑ "Interview with Anthony Hopkins". IGN. http://uk.movies.ign.com/articles/035/035935p1.html. Retrieved 13 March 2007. 

External links

Thomas Harris' Hannibal series
Novels
Red Dragon (1981) · The Silence of the Lambs (1988) · Hannibal (1999) · Hannibal Rising (2006)
Films
Manhunter (1986) · The Silence of the Lambs (1991) · Hannibal (2001) · Red Dragon (2002) · Hannibal Rising (2007)
Characters
Hannibal Lecter · Will Graham · Clarice Starling · Francis Dolarhyde · Buffalo Bill · Frederick Chilton · Jack Crawford
Films directed by Ridley Scott
1970s
The Duellists (1977) · Alien (1979)
1980s
Blade Runner (1982) · Legend (1985) · Someone to Watch Over Me (1987) · Black Rain (1989)
1990s
Thelma & Louise (1991) · 1492: Conquest of Paradise (1992) · White Squall (1996) · G.I. Jane (1997)
2000s
Gladiator (2000) · Hannibal (2001) · Black Hawk Down (2001) · Matchstick Men (2003) · Kingdom of Heaven (2005) · A Good Year (2006) · American Gangster (2007) · Body of Lies (2008)
2010s
Robin Hood (2010)
See also: 1984 (television commercial) (1984), Boy and Bicycle (short film) (1965)