Red Dragon (2 Discs) (UK)
Before the silence
Certificate: 15
Running Time: 118 mins
Retail Price: £22.99
Release Date:
Content Type: Movie
Synopsis:
In this prequel to `The Silence Of The Lambs`, Edward Norton stars as ex-FBI agent Will Graham, an expert investigator who quit the Bureau after almost losing his life in the process of capturing Dr. Hannibal Lecter (Anthony Hopkins).
Years later, after a series of particularly grisly murders, Graham reluctantly agrees to come out of retirement and assist in the case. But he soon realises that the best way to catch this killer, known as the Tooth Fairy, is to find a way to get inside the killer`s mind. And the closest thing to that would be to probe the mind of another killer who is equally brilliant and equally twisted. For Graham, that means confronting his past and facing his former nemesis, the now-incarcerated Lecter...
Special Features:
Audio commentary
Deleted scenes including alternative and extended scenes
Visual effects
Screen and film tests
`FBI Profile: Inside The Mind Of A Serial Killer` featurette
Director BGrett Ratner`s untitled student film
The Leeds house crime scene
`A Director`s Journey`: Brett Ratner`s video diary
Storyboard to final feature comparison
`The Burning Wheelchair` featurette
`Anthony Hopkins: Hannibal Lecter And Me`
Character make-up
DVD-Rom features
Video Tracks:
Widescreen Anamorphic 2.35:1
Audio Tracks:
Dolby Digital 5.1 English
Directed By:
Brett Ratner
Written By:
Ted Tally
Thomas Harris
Starring:
Philip Seymour Hoffman
Mary-Louise Parker
Emily Watson
Harvey Keitel
Ralph Fiennes
Edward Norton
Anthony Hopkins
Casting By:
Francine Maisler
Kathy Driscoll
Soundtrack By:
Danny Elfman
Music From:
Jack Newlon
Director of Photography:
Dante Spinotti
Editor:
Mark Helfrich
Production Designer:
Kristi Zea
Producer:
Martha Schumacher
Terry Needham
James M. Freitag
Dino De Laurentiis
Executive Producer:
Andrew Z. Davis
Distributor:
Universal Pictures
Your Opinions and Comments
Dante`s Photography is the best, there are absolutly great shots in this movie
The audio had to be good since there was alot of talking in this movie, so it was essential.
Red Dragon is unique in its catargory and we should all hail brett ratner for making it
Video- Presented in 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen. Being a modern film, colours are at it`s best and sharpest. I can`t fault the transfer at all.
Sound- DD 5.1 and DTS is on offer. I`ll focus on DD 5.1 and let someone else review DTS(my player doesn`t recognise DTS). The mix is very atmospheric and does the job. Because this is a modern film, speakers will be widely used.
Extras- There is an array of extras. The 1st disc has two commentaries, one from the director Ratner and the other from the composer Danny Elfman. The latter feature isolated music and Elfman focuses on the music of Red Dragon.
The 2nd disc has "A Director`s Journey: The Making Of Red Dragon", it is fairly straightfoward(sometimes funny especially when Ratner thinks he`s filming Rush Hour 2!).
There are 8 featurettes, they are all straightfoward but short.
There are storyboard to final scene comparisons, all worth looking at.
7 deleted scenes(w/commentary),4 alternate scenes(w/commentary) and 3 extended scenes(w/commentary). They add some values and I can understand why the deleted scenes are deleted scenes. They are all presented in 2.35:1 letterbox.
Brett Ratner`s short film finish the packaging. It is presented in fullscreen and silent.
Overall- Marginally better than Hannibal, Red Dragon still doesn`t live up to Silence of the Lambs. For me, the story ends at Silence and that`s that. As Empire once said:
Quote:
Forget the sub-standard spin offs, Silence of the Lambs is Hannibal Lecter`s best bite at the screen They are right.