Red Dragon - 8 stars out of 10

Red Dragon - 8 stars out of 10

Serving as retribution for the atrocious display of violence that was "Hannibal," this prequel puts the franchise back on track by using psychology to drive the plot instead of pointless gore. The all-star cast includes Edward Norton as the FBI agent who put Dr. Hannibal Lecter behind bars and must confront him again to solve a new case. Although this sounds very similar to the plot of "The Silence of the Lambs" (and it is very similar to the plot of "The Silence of the Lambs"), this is not necessarily a bad thing since the first film used such a successful equation. It also may sound the same as the movie "Manhunter", because it is... I typically prefer Norton as the villain but he was excellent as the protagonist in this film. In an attempt to mention all of the enjoyable acting performances in this review, I will state that Mary-Louise Parker and Harvey Keitel both have excellent chemistry with Norton. As was the case with the first film, there are two villains who are equally awful but serve completely different purposes. One of these days, Ralphe Fiennes will get to play a role in which his face is not disfigured... but for now, he was incredible as The Red Dragon (particularly as his two personalities conflict with each other). Even though you hate him for what he does, you'll also feel pity for him as the story progresses. Emily Watson was wonderful opposite of him, convincingly playing this blind character to the point that you will forget that she is an actress. The most painful part of this film is Philip Seymour Hoffman's plight, as the prospect of being glued to anything now freaks me out. A lot of things can be said for this film but in the end, what matters the most is that Anthony Hopkins is creepier than ever and continues to deliver chills over and over again.