What do you think of when I mention Silence of the Lambs? Hannibal Lechter, of course. He was the sociopathic, chilling, cannibalistic, anti-hero of the movie, played by Sir Anthony Hopkins. But what he wasn’t was the bad guy. He was in a brick and glass cage, showing off his prowess and his nearly superhuman psyche as he helped to catch a revolting serial killer. And because of that, we loved him.
Hannibal returns in the new Ridley Scott film of the same name, and, out and about, he is much harder to admire. Behind bars, with only his soft voice and serene smile, he was powerful and sophisticated. On the loose, he not nearly as easy to root for. As a result, seeing this movie may actually lessen your enjoyment of Silence retroactively.
Part of the problem is that there is no real plot. Hannibal is on the run, and Julianne Moore, taking over the role of Clarise Starling from Jodie Foster, is after him. Unfortunately, that pretty much involves just sitting around a basement room at the FBI, looking at photographs and listening to tapes.
The screenplay does attempt to take elements of plot from the book, including a disgrace that falls on Starling at the FBI. She is then supposed to be motivated by the resulting disillusionment with her job. Unfortunately, Moore’s Starling always seems to just take everything in stride; her accepting attitude pulls her motivational teeth and she wanders around the screen for the rest of the film.
This brings up another facet that Foster’s characterization had that’s sorely missing in Moore’s. Foster’s Starling always had a rather obvious sense of discomfort, overcome only by a clenched-jaw determination. That very little seems to faze Moore’s Starling obliterates the chemistry that she and Lechter had in Silence.
Now I can’t not mention the cannibalism. Silence had its gruesome scenes. They were not overdone, though, and quite a bit was left to the imagination. Suffice it to say, Hannibal leaves very little to the imagination, particularly in some of the later scenes. Oddly enough, it is here, when the gore is worst, that Hopkins regains the cold sense of control that made his character so good in Silence.
What about overall? Is it worth it? I suppose it might be, if you’re out for a little queasiness and not much else. If you’re a true fan of Silence of the Lambs or Manhunter, then it’s probably better that you don’t see it.
