Hannibal Rising

Reviewed by:
Pete Hammond

Taking beloved horror icons back to their roots to show how they became the way they are is a new trend taking hold in Hollywood; and now it's Hannibal Lecter's turn. If you count yourself a fan of the Oscar-winning The Silence of the Lambs and Red Dragon you ought to be lining up for this one. An absolute shocker in every way imaginable, Hannibal Rising is a fascinating and electrifying journey into the making of a monster. Lecter's creator, writer Thomas Harris, explores the origins of one of the screen's most iconic and memorable characters and cooks up a hell of a beginning! Starting in World War II, Harris' story details the atrocities witnessed by young Hannibal, including the violent death of his parents and a tragic fate for his sister. Then it jumps forward several years to postwar France, where he is welcomed by his late uncle's Japanese widow (Gong Li), and finds he has a knack for science and is accepted into medical school. What he learns there will serve him well as he confronts the war criminals that have plagued his memories since childhood. Letting Harris create the script for the first time clearly pays off, as his exploration into the dehumanization of this man is not only gripping to watch, but also completely logical. As the title character, Gaspard Ulliel will chill you to the bones, while also managing to let us try and empathize with this coldhearted cannibal. His approach is totally in concert with the older Lecter, so brilliantly played by Anthony Hopkins in the earlier films, and so seamless you could watch them all in order and not miss a beat. It's probably not an understatement to say that Hannibal Rising is the most terrifying movie of the new year.

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