Hannibal Rising (2007) Review

Hannibal Rising was directed by Peter Webber and stars Dominic West (from The Awakening, The Forgotten), Richard Brake (from 3 From Hell, Mandy) and Kevin McKidd (from Dog Soldiers). It’s about a kid whose family is killed during WWII. A kid who watched his baby sister get killed and eaten by soldiers. A kid who kinda didn’t mean to eat some of her too, but kinda did anyway. A kid who grows up hell bent on revenge.

It started with revenge.

Hannibal Rising is the prequel to Manhunter aka Silence of the Lambs aka Red Dragon. It’s the backstory of what made Hannibal into a Cannibal. As you’d expect, he was traumatized beyond belief while young which turned him into a heartless sociopath later in life. The movie, unlike all others in the Hannibal Lecter series, isn’t about the FBI or serial killers or the cooking of human parts while listening to classical music. Hannibal Rising is ultimately a revenge movie.

I personally really liked Hannibal Rising. Most others apparently did not. The movie was a flop in the box office and has been a magnet for negative reviews for years. A common complaint is that it wasn’t scary, and I have to admit this is true. I was so into the backstory and era it was set in that I didn’t really think about the lack of suspense. But there was definitely a lack of it. The casting of young Hannibal was also weak, the guy looks nothing like Anthony Hopkins and came across as generally unlikable. An unlikable Hannibal? Unexpected to say the least. Hannibal, as we know him, is all charisma and wit. A socialite who could charm his way in and out of any situation. This guy had murderous psychopath written all over him.

But, again, overall I liked Hannibal Rising and thought it was a nice way to wrap up the story of the legendary Hannibal Lecter. I wouldn’t watch it twice, but I enjoyed it.