Hey folks, Harry here... well Quint isn't smoking the same grade crack that Massawyrm has... he doesn't think this film is up there with SILENCE OF THE LAMBS, but he's still heaping loads and loads of praise on it... Just like those sell-out bastards at Variety! I tell ya, the nerve... As we've been reading Talkbacks recently we all know Ratner can't direct... I mean, surely he's just paid for all these reviews... Or else... he's made a really wonderful film... But that just couldn't be. Naaaah. Perish the thought!
Ahoy squirts! 'Tis I, everybody's favorite dish... seaman with a hard crust and lotsa salt... Quint here to give my opinion of the newest Hannibal Lecter film, RED DRAGON.
As most know, RED DRAGON is a prequel, a remake of Michael Mann's MANHUNTER... In a sense. What it really is is the first real adaptation of author Thomas Harris' book of the same name. I had read all three Harris/Lecter books before I saw MANHUNTER and after reading RED DRAGON, I found myself very let down. Don't get me wrong, I still respect Mann's version of the film. I love Dennis Farina as Crawford, I love how creepy Tom Noonan is (even though he's gonna be creepy no matter what... the man could be surrounded by rainbows and sunshine and still scare the piss out of little children and grown men alike), I love the use of Iron Butterfly... But Mann's film is not Harris' book. Mann made a good movie, but a piss-poor adaptation.
That's why I didn't go into batshit when I heard Dino De Laurentiis was remaking the film to capitalize on the success of HANNIBAL. I knew there was still a great story that hasn't really been told. I followed the project closely, using a connection deep inside that world I was able to get a copy of Ted Tally's script, which I fell head over heels in love with (you can read that early review here... http://www.aintitcool.com/display.cgi?id=9061). Tally had written an amazing screenplay adaptation of Harris' novel. I was psyched. Then came word through a different source, even more trustworthy than the first, that Michael Bay was in talks to direct which didn't really make me flip out, but it definitely had me scared. This was also the time when Nicholas Cage was the front runner for the role of Will Graham. Scary times for RED DRAGON indeed. Those negotiations fell through and Brett Ratner was brought on board.
All I knew was that Ratner had made some really fun comedies with the RUSH HOUR series. They were great visually and tonally perfect for the genre they were in, wacky comedy. I wasn't really sold on Ratner pulling off RED DRAGON, but I knew he'd have to work really hard to fuck up Tally's excellent script. Plus he was starting to hire some really great actors.
It wasn't until I heard Ratner say the reason why he made the film that I started putting my trust in him. He said that Mann's film failed as an adaptation because it focused on the Will Graham character instead of Francis Dolarhyde. The book is Dolarhyde's story more than anything else. Sure, there is that element of Graham having to face his biggest fear by working with the man who damn near killed him to catch a brutal serial killer, but what made RED DRAGON such a great read was how Harris treated Dolarhyde. He gave us a background on him, but didn't make any excuses for the character. We know why he turned out the way he did, but that doesn't excuse his actions. We see his humanity sneak through, his inner conflict. He's not just that freak that makes a woman suit and tucks his cock between his legs for kicks. He's a real person that does some amazingly terrible things.
That's what I loved about the book, that's what I most missed in Mann's film. That was the one thing that Ratner could have said that got me fully behind him on the project. And he didn't lie.
The movie works and most definitely fits in the Hannibal Lecter universe. Hopkins returns to the role of Lecter with a certain glee. You can tell he loves playing this character. He's just as coy and menacing as he usually is, but he does kind of have a more cruel undertone than in the other films, which is reasonable because he's now working with someone he hates, not someone he has the hots for. Hopkins is always dependable especially when playing Hannibal Lecter. Love or hate HANNIBAL, you can't deny Hopkins was his usual awesome self in that film and played it with great relish.
Ed Norton climbs into William Petersen's shoes with great ease. I know a lot of people have been bitching about Norton in the film and I frankly just can't see why. I do admit that I'm not the biggest William Petersen fan in the world and felt he fumbled a bit in MANHUNTER, but I have nothing against the guy. I just felt he badly delivered the "micro-cassette" lines, where he's talking into his trusty tape recorder. I don't have a huge problem with him in the rest of the movie.
Ed Norton does a good job, playing the haunted ex-FBI agent. My only gripe with Norton's performance is it did feel a bit like he was playing Ed Norton playing Will Graham. I was never watching Will Graham talking to Hannibal Lecter, I was watching Ed Norton talking to Lecter. I don't mean to knock the guy... It's one little nitpick from me that doesn't at all hinder my enjoyment of the film. He did a great acting job, giving the character some pretty great, subtle moments.
Ralph Fiennes and Emily Watson damn near stole the movie. Their relationship was pulled off beautifully. Watson plays a blind girl that Fiennes' Dolarhyde starts to fall for. As much as I liked Joan Allen's portrayal of Reba McClane in MANHUNTER, Emily Watson owns that character now. She's sweet, strong though vulnerable, smart, sassy (as the late Phil Hartman would say) and cute as a button. She's the kind of Amelie-esque character... You know the kind you just want to hug and protect through life's difficulties. I wasn't expecting to, but I fell in love with Watson in this role. Her final scene in the film is especially endearing.
Fiennes' Dolarhyde is also exceptional and multi-layered. If Fiennes dropped the ball with his performance the whole movie would have crumbled around him, but thankfully he pulled it off effortlessly. You feel for Dolarhyde. You're also scared of him. You want him to beat the Dragon and settle down with Reba, even if you're still creeped out by those images of his somewhat mutilated victims. You're never really rooting for him, but we see glimpses of the kind of man he could have been if life had dealt him a better hand.
Now for the great supporting characters! First and foremost: Philip Seymour Hoffman as Freddie Lounds, tabloid sleaze reporter extraordinaire. Hoffman plays a great slime-ball and surprisingly is able to flex his acting muscles in this very small part. Harvey Keitel does a fine job as Crawford, but by playing things so close to the events in SILENCE OF THE LAMBS, I think I would have preferred Scott Glen in the role, but that could just be me. Anthony Heald returns as Dr. Chilton, the guy you love to hate. The man hasn't fucking aged. God bless him... he plays a slimy little weasel like none other. Also keep your eye out for Lalo Schifrin as the orchestra conductor at the beginning of the film.
Overall, RED DRAGON is not better than SILENCE OF THE LAMBS, but is a damn good movie that more than deserves a place in the Lecter universe. Ratner has proven without a doubt that he can switch gears when he wants to and make a really damn creepy and atmospheric film... Hell, he has one shot in RED DRAGON, during Graham's second visit with Lecter... In the workout room... It's just beautiful... Where was I? Oh, yeah... Ratner... He made a very restrained film. It's tight and full of great performances. I can't attest to his SUPERMAN yet, but he's at least proven he can tonally tackle any genre he wants to.
The score! Can't forget good ol' Danny Elfman! Props go to Danny Elfman for his great score! Very sweeping, very creepy. Good job!
Well, squirts. I'm tired. Gotta turn in, but I'll be back with some more coolness before I head out to the MILL VALLEY FILM FESTIVAL in San Rafael, CA on Thursday. 'Til that day, this is Quint bidding you all a fond farewell and adieu.
-Quint
email: If you want to see my Red Dragon, all you gots to do is click here and ask politely!
