Hannibal Rising

I went to a free screening of this movie tonight, Thursday December 12, 2006 at the mall cause they gave out free passes at my work across the street.

I wont give really much away...but the movie itself was great. Great locations, great acting--especially by Gaspard Ulliel as Hannibal. I swear his acting was so good that it was scary and near perfect as the demented Hannibal Lechter.

The story about how he came to be was great also starting with his youth during WW2 in 1944. And 8 years later, the main plot line unfolds showing him becoming a medical school student in France where he begins to learn of the many body parts that make a human work.

All in All this movie is a delectable revenge type movie with scary, dark bad guys and many gruesome deaths.

*two thumbs up*

Like come on, sure it's not silence of the lambs, but nominated for worst sequel/horror movie, that's just dumb. Snobby reviewers who can't judge a movie on its own merits, only a comparison to one of the greatest thrillers ever made. Of course any other Hannibal stories won't compare, doesn't mean they are aweful. This is an interesting tale of revenge that setups the character. Worth the watch if you enjoy the Hannibal movies.

Strange opus with a rather complex feedback: I really like certain aspects of the film while others bother me. First of all, I think it's a critical mistake to explain the origins of an imaginary evil character. Indeed, it's always better to confine a reader or a spectator to the darkness so that he's always able to imagine the worst. Moreover, in doing so, we find ourselves in a rather embarrassing situation of being in empathy with Hannibal Lecter: failing to be forgivable, a revenge is always understandable. Despite this rather negative introduction, the actors are excellent including the enigmatic Gaspard Ulliel and the gorgeous Gong Li, and the film enjoys a particularly neat photography.

I don't put this in the same category as the 3 previous films with Hopkins (counting Manhunter out completely,, even though it is a very good film). This movie is another animal altogether. Not only bc this has a young actor playing a young Lecter,, but bc this is the origin story,, how he became the monster. This movie shows so many new sides to the character. A helpless child,, a traumatized teen,, a deranged young man trying to put his memories together to exact his revenge,,, and also, love. His love for the sister he lost, and also his widowed aunt.

If you are a fan of the Hopkins trilogy,, then you must see this,,,

Truly disturbing and succeeds in making you understand why Hannibal Lecter turned out to be the person he became. Not justified, but understandable. Don't leave this out when revisiting the other movies.