BB.5
(out of 5)
Gothic and beautiful but empty-headed follow-up to Jonathan Demme’s perfect Silence of the Lambs has Julianne Moore ably filling in for Jodie Foster’s role as Clarice Starling. The plot is basically finishing off loose ends that the characters didn’t wrap up last time, with Starling chasing Hannibal Lecter (the always impressive Anthony Hopkins) across two continents to save him from himself. There’s no one to save in the nick of time, there’s no driving momentum, nor are there any interesting characters (Giancarlo Giannini‘s turn as a cop who goes after Lecter in the most ham-fisted of ways is so predictable as to induce yawning when his outcome finally arrives), leaving you with a film that’s all dressed up with no where to go. That said, it also features some of the most disgusting and disturbing images I’ve ever seen in a major release, all the more annoying because there’s nothing of value to attach them to.
United Kingdom/USA, 2001
Directed by Ridley Scott
Screenplay by David Mamet, Steven Zaillian, based on the novel by Thomas Harris
Cinematography by John Mathieson
Produced by Dino De Laurentiis, Martha De Laurentiis, Ridley Scott
Music by Hans Zimmer
Production Design by Diego Loreggian, Norris Spencer
Costume Design by Janty Yates
Film Editing by Pietro Scalia
Cast Tags: Aaron Craig, Ajay Naidu, Alex Corrado, Andrea Piedimonte, Andrew C. Boothby, Anthony Hopkins, Boyd Kestner, Bruce MacVittie, Bruno Lazzaretti, Danielle de Niese, David Andrews, Don McManus, Ennio Coltorti, Enrico Lo Verso, Fabrizio Gifuni, Francesca Neri, Francis Guinan,Frankie Faison, Gary Oldman, Giancarlo Giannini, Giannina Facio, Harold Ginn, Hazelle Goodman,Ian Iwataki, Ivano Marescotti, James Opher, Johannes Kiebranz, Joseph M. West Jr.,Judie Aronson, Julianne Moore, Kelly Piper, Kenneth W. Smith, Kent Linville, Marco Greco, Mark Margolis, Peter Shaw, Ray Liotta, Ricardo Miguel Young, Robert Rietty, Roberta Armani, Sam Wells, Ted Koch, Terry Serpico, Tom Trigo, William Powell-Blair, Zeljko Ivanek
