Red Dragon (2002), directed by Brett Ratner, stars Edward Norton, Anthony Hopkins, Ralph Fiennes, Emily Watson, Harvey Keitel, Phillip Seymour Hoffman, Mary-Louise Parker, Anthony Heald, Ken Leung, Frankie Faison, and Tyler Patrick Jones. The film is a prequel to The Silence of the Lambs (1991) and follows FBI agent Will Graham (Norton), who after capturing the infamous Hannibal Lecter (Hopkins) by the skin of teeth, retires to pursue a quiet family life. Years later, Will is approached by FBI director Jack Crawford (Keitel) to help track down a brutal serial killer known as “The Tooth Fairy.” With few answers, Will turns to the now-incarcerated Hannibal for insight into the killer’s psyche/motivations.

After not seeing the film for many years, I was pleasantly surprised by the strength of the performances. Norton is a bit vanilla in his portrayal of Will Grahm, but he remains likable and seems to understand his role in the story. With multiple unhinged serial killer characters, it feels entirely necessary for our protagonist to be a source of psychological stability. Hopkins once again steals the show as Hannibal Lecter even if he doesn’t do anything particularly new with the role. With a character this irresistible, I’ll take anything I can get. Ralph Fiennes is fantastic as The Tooth Fairy/Francis Dolarhyde. He succeeds in being unhinged and intimidating but also breeds strong feelings of sympathy in the viewer. This is due to the character’s budding relationship with Emily Watson’s character, Reba Mclane. Although Francis is a killer, it’s made clear that he is a product of years and years of emotional and physical abuse. When he meets Reba (who is blind), it’s seemingly exactly the kind of love that would have prevented his murderous path. It’s tragic in the sense that it’s just a tad late and therefore effectively palpable. Francis’ characterization is also smart in the sense that he’s yet another foil to the character of Hannibal (but a unique one). Although they’re both killers, Francis is externally erratic yet internally regretful while Hannibal is externally controlled yet experiences zero internal remorse (in fact, he relishes in it). My last comment on the cast is that it’s always great to Phillip Seymour Hoffman. The guy never disappoints even in small roles like the one he has here.  

The movie’s most glaring flaw is that its story is far too similar to The Silence of the Lambs. I can’t say this feels lazy considering it simply tries to follow Thomas Harris’ book, but it’s also not something that can be ignored considering how prevalent it is. Although I consider The Silence of the Lambs to be one of the best thrillers ever made, it seems like an odd choice in hindsight to begin with adapting the second book. If this was made first and directed by Jonathan Demme, I feel as if it would have been just as good considering the material is equally strong material on paper. 

SPOILER ALERT. Although I think the final act is exciting and pulls off a pretty strong twist, the idea of having Francis’ suicide be a hoax slightly sacrifices the complicated sympathy we feel for the character. Even though he kills, there’s a palpable want for Francis to repent, and ending his life feels appropriate. When we find out he faked it, it just results in another typical serial killer character who desires to kill until his last breath. Yes, it’s exciting in terms of plot, but not character. 

Overall, although it’s a heavily derivative experience, there’s enough new in terms of the supporting characters for this to feel like a satisfying prequel effort. Yes, it still suffers from the typical symptoms of “prequelitis,” but it’s the type of meal that one doesn’t mind eating a second time, especially if Hannibal the Cannibal is involved. Honestly, it’s better than I remembered, and I would recommend it to anyone who enjoyed the first two films. If you’re looking for a tight serial killer thriller, I don’t think you can go wrong here. B