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I was torn on the title for this, as it could have easily been
“adventures at the dollar theater,” but that wouldn’t have
necessarily been about the movie. See, I had done quite a bit of
Christmas shopping and was feeling the need to be thrifty about
something, so husband and I went to the dollar movies.
For the uninitiated, this is the way to see a movie for as little as
50 cents (Tuesday nights), or a whopping $1.50 at the peak
movie-going times. Here, you can see films that have lived their
first-run lives. The sound isn’t as good, the seating isn’t as
comfortable, and the floors are sticky. It’s like going to the
movies in the mid-80s.
Red Dragon is the third installment in the Hannibal Lecter films.
The first one, “Silence of the Lambs,” won a boatload of Oscars and
brought one of the scariest bad men to film. If you doubt me, go and
rent that and tell me you weren’t equally drawn to and repulsed by
Dr. Lecter – all of that charm and
intelligence with a side of cannibalism? Well, film number two was,
smartly, a sequel simply called “Hannibal” set after “Silence of the
Lambs.” I’ve been assured numerous times by husband that the book
was much better than the movie, but “Hannibal” depended too heavily
on gore to shock and scare. Still, we liked watching Lecter tick.
Well, where to go after Hannibal? I mean, wouldn’t you logically
decide to do a prequel, set ten years before “Silence of the Lambs”
and still use Anthony Hopkins as Hannibal? Okay, some of you are
probably thinking, “I would get a younger actor to play Hannibal,
since having someone play themselves as twenty-years younger during
an entire film would be stupid.” Apparently, none of you have seen
those Grecian Formula for Men commercials…after all, you’d be amazed
at how simply dying Sir Anthony Hopkins hair brown AND having him
grow a ponytail would make him look, uh, younger.
Ah, but the movie is called “Red Dragon” – it’s not really about Dr.
Lecter. At least this is what husband assured me when we went to see
the movie. You see, Thomas Harris wrote this book about the Red
Dragon killer and this minor character, Dr. Lecter, shows up to
offer our FBI agent some help.
It was only in later books that Thomas Harris made Lecter a full
character. Luckily, those Hollywood writers know when a novelist is
wrong.
So, here we are, watching Dr. Lecter help a young, troubled ex-FBI
agent with a talent for profiling (he can see inside the killer’s
minds like no one else) track down a killer that specializes in
doing the whole family. The FBI calls this killer “The Tooth Fairy,”
a nickname the killer despises, as he’s really “The Red Dragon.” I
seem to remember this same anger from “Buffalo Bill,” in “Silence of
the Lambs,” but who am I to point out something a tad bit overused?
Really, I am already having problems with this movie. Much as I like
Ed Norton, how many of these young, troubled FBI agents are there? I
mean, don’t they do some sort of psych screening to avoid these
exact problems? I mean, sure, you might be the best profiler ever,
but if you’re so unstable as
to need a prolific sociopath cannibal to help you along the way –
well, we can find someone else to do your job almost as well.
This question is a good bridge to problem number two. Just how many
serial killers are concerned with their nicknames? After all, this
is the scrub-FBI nicknaming you…it’s not like everyone that works
there is exactly stable. Also, do we not have spree killers anymore?
This movie was making me long
for the anti-heroes of “Natural Born Killers.” At least Mickey and
Mallory killed for no good reason. They still became
celebrities for their actions – no full-body tattoos, domineering
mothers or facial disfigurements required.
Husband assures me that the original book and TV miniseries did a
much better job explaining why the Red Dragon had become what he
was. Husband assures me that I would not have been so annoyed with
everything in either the book or that movie (which is called “Manhunter,”
for those looking for something to rent at Blockbuster this
weekend).
To top it all off, Sir Anthony Hopkins does an incredible disservice
to Hannibal Lecter. The character that was once enough to scare
anyone with a simple sneer has now become the “Saturday Night Live”
version of himself. Now, the director, Brett Ratner, has directed
both Mariah Carey and Madonna in videos – along with both of the
Rush Hour movies. Perhaps “over the top,” is the only direction that
Brett ever learned. Still, this is not an excuse. As humans, we are
all expected to learn as we live life
– it is time for Brett to learn restraint. It’s either learn or
discover that his directing talents will best be applied to new-hire
training videos for sub-par companies.
The Usual:
What it’s Worth: Don’t worry, this will make the HBO mult-view.
Main Reason To See This Film: Emily Watson. She’s a bright spot in
this film as a blind woman that has a few humanizing moments with
the Red Dragon.
Main Reason Not To See This Film: This is really a rule for all
films of this type, but when an aging star agrees to do a prequel
instead of stepping aside for a younger actor, you should know
better than to think it will be good.
MPAA Rating: R
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