Review by Dorrito79

I saw this movie a few years ago and revisited it last week. The one thing I remembered about it was Ralph Fiennes and after watching it again, it is still only Ralph Fiennes standing out about it. First of all, the choice of Edward Norton as the empathyically supercharged cop was a complete nonsense. As much as I love Ed Norton, it was like using a Ferrari to nip out for a pint of milk to the corner shop. He is way too good for a minor role like this. The story revolved around him, but the script was just too strict for him to build any kind of connection with the viewers; we never get to care about him too much, neutral is the most I feel about his character. Except for the scene where he finally meets his arch enemy, he had no opportunity to expand his role and show off his considerable acting skills. What a waste of talent... Fiennes, on the other hand, shines as the unsociable, delusional serial killer. He steals every frame, and oozes masculinity and craziness. We get to know him so deeply that we even root for him to have a little romance with Emily Watson. Anthony Hopkins as Hannibal is fab as always. I love the fact that this is the second movie that Ed Norton and Philip Seymour Hoffman do together; it made me smile. Hoffman made even a small role like his so clear-cut and individual that looking it, no one could have made such a good job with it. The cinematography is really spot on, dark, recognisable and memorable. The story, along with the director's work, is very good, although I would not put this on my all time favourite's list.