Red Dragon (2002)

Director: Brett Ratner

Cast: Anthony Hopkins as Dr. Hannibal Lecter, Edward Norton as Will Graham, Ralph Fiennes as Francis Dolarhyde, Harvey Keitel as Jack Crawford, Emily Watson as Reba McClane, Mary-Louise Parker as Molly Graham, Philip Seymour Hoffman as Freddy Lounds, Anthony Heald as Dr. Frederick Chilton, Ken Leung as Lloyd Bowman, Frankie Faison as Barney Matthews, Tyler Patrick Jones as Josh Graham, Lalo Schifrin as Conductor, Tim Wheater as Flautist, John Rubinstein as Dinner Guest, David Doty as Dinner Guest

On paper, it looked a bit uncertain. The long-awaited prequel to 'The
Silence of the Lambs' and 'Hannibal' was to be directed by Brett
Ratner, most famous for the two 'Rush Hour' movies (1998, 2001).

However, the final result is pleasantly surprising. 'Red Dragon' opens
with a wonderfully suspenseful prologue detailing the infamous Dr.
Hannibal Lecter's (Anthony Hopkins) capture, and the unbearable tension
rarely lets up for the remainder of the film.

Lecter's capturer, Will Graham (Edward Norton), is coaxed out of
retirement by Jack Crawford (Harvey Keitel) to help track down a
ruthless serial killer nicknamed the Tooth Fairy (Ralph Fiennes), who
is murdering seemingly-random families in their sleep. Graham believes
that Lecter may hold the key to capturing this killer, and, in order to
prevent any further murders, he must revisit his old demons.

The acting performances are first-rate. Hopkins is good (as always) as
the cold, calculating serial killer Lecter. Norton handles a demanding
role exceedingly well. Throughout his career, Fiennes has excelled at
portraying loathsome villains (i.e. Amon Goeth in 'Schindler's List,'
1993), and here he turns in perhaps his greatest performance. The
facially-disfigured, mentally-unstable Francis Dolarhyde is shown not
to be an inherently evil killing machine, but an emotionally-troubled
young man who is still battling the overwhelming demons of an abusive
childhood.

Strong supporting performances from Emily Watson ('The Proposition,'
2005), Harvey Keitel ('Pulp Fiction,' 1994) and Philip Seymour Hoffman
('Capote,' 2005) round off a terrific thriller, and one for which
widespread recognition is long overdue.