Anthony, where for art thou?

Thomas Harris certainly knew what he was doing when he dreamed up Dr. Hannibal Lecter that cultured cannibal killer who has become the screen's evil legend and even part of the language. His forth novel in the series "Hannibal Rising" hardly hit the bookshops before it was being filmed in the Czech Republic by Peter Webber director of Girl with a Pearl Earring. We might have expected great things, but Webber is hampered by a mixed Euro/American cast struggling with accents and stilted dialogue in an often ponderous script.

Actually the film is quite faithful to the novel as might be expected since Thomas Harris did the screenplay, although the part of Lady Murasaki Shikibu (Chinese actress Li Gong) has been much embellished and includes a superfluous sequence of samurai practice a la Tarantino which really should have hit the editing room floor. Much suspense in the earlier novels was created by the horrific methods Dr. H. dreams up to dispatch his victims. With the exception of a nasty drowning with a few corpses in a tub of formalin this time a Japanese sword is the weapon of choice and decapitation the way to go.

Briefly the plot tells poor old Hannibal Lecter had a rotten childhood enough to tumble the toys in his attic, and set off his sadistic homicidal tendencies. It all starts in the latter part of World War II, a young Hannibal and his even younger sister Mischa escape the Nazis when they attack the Lecter Castle somewhere in Lithuania. His parents are later killed when a plane crashes near their lodge hidden further up in the hills.

Worse is yet to come when a gang of local desperate looters appear at the lodge lead by the inhuman Grutas (Rhys Ifans). The looters are stranded with the two children starving in the middle of a severe winter with no food in sight, finally hunger and fatigue overcomes any qualms and they decide to have a meal of boiled Mischa despite young Hannibal's protests.

Somehow Hannibal escapes, ends up in a Soviet Orphanage after the war, and swears he will revenge his sister by seeking out and killing the cannibalistic looters. He travels to Paris meeting with his late Uncle's wife, a Japanese woman Murasaki Shikibu whose family have been killed in Hiroshima. The rest of the film concerns how Hannibal finds the traitors and has his bloodthirsty revenge at the same time gaining a taste for human flesh, mushrooms and Chianti. Some very contrived instances include the short scene where Hannibal dons a Japanese mask which bears amazing resemblance to the restraining device that was used so effectively in Silence of the Lambs.

While the film has gripping moments, the central character lacks the sinister charm and charisma of Anthony Hopkins who made Hannibal his own creation. Gaspard Ulliel (A Very Long Engagement) works hard as the youthful Lecter as if trying for a part in American Psycho, yet never quite achieving the sophisticated monster. He simply doesn't scare us anymore than the other heavies in the cast especially Rhys Ifans (Chromophobia, The Shipping News) who comes across just as menacing as Ulliel himself. Li Gong (Memoirs of a Geisha) seems to be chosen for her decorative value and some sort of romantic interest in a male dominated script. For the shock/horror fans the pace set by Peter Webber may seem pedestrian, and there is never a whiff of the clever psychology of Silence of the Lambs.

The early war scenes are well portrayed with the Dolby sound working overtime certainly gets the show off to a good start, but about half way through you can't help thinking "Anthony were art thou ?" Like the novels the first film "Silence of the Lambs" remains the best and everything after is anti-climax, especially since Hannibal Rising is the lightweight among them without the benefit of great acting or snappy direction although visually its often impressive. No doubt however there are many Hannibal Lecter fans out there who will enjoy the picture.

John Bale

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Hannibal Rising

Our rating:

Director: Peter Webber
Cast: Gaspar Ulliel, Rhys Ifans and Gong Li
Release: 8 February 2007
Rated: MA 15+

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