Review of Red Dragon (2002) by Thorne W — 12 Sep 2011

While Anthony Hopkins as Hannibal certainly affords this film a certain level of authority and atmosphere hearkening back to Silence of the Lambs, the overall direction of the film overlooks what made Silence such a great motion picture: subtlety. Each performance, every element of the production design, everything in Silence was extremely subtle, rarely calling attention to the fact that it was a movie that you were watching and not just a vivisection of human life.

Red Dragon, however, plays very much like your standard Hollywood movie. The pacing never slows enough to allow for real character development or tension (which is weird because the movie is actually longer than Silence of the Lambs, but nowhere near as gripping) and the writing just about blatantly explains the plot to the audience in every single scene without letting it unfold properly.

There is no real defined tone to the film. Silence of the Lambs was gritty and ominous with soft lighting, honest characterizations, and a soundtrack that never usurped the onscreen action. Red Dragon has harsh lighting that produces a distinctly "shiny" look that detracts from any sort of horror atmosphere that might have otherwise have been created, (remember how creepy Lecter's cell block was in Silence of the Lambs? Now it's apparently doubling as a tanning spa what with all of those ultra-violet lights shining down) characterizations that come across as forced or overlooked at times, and a soundtrack that seems to serve the purpose of startling the audience instead of drawing them into the action.

Standard Hollywood cash-in sequel with very little consideration to aesthetic details that made its predecessor a multiple Academy Award winner.