Hannibal (TV series)

So Bryan Fuller's TV adaptation of a franchise focusing on one of the most famous non-supernatural serial killers in fiction immediately grabbed my attention for several reasons.

NBC's Hannibal introduces Hannibal Lecter, a brilliant psychiatrist, a masterful chef, a sharp mind...and a cunning cannibal.

A warning before you proceed: this review will have some "mature" images from the show. But hey, it's a show about Hannibal "Fava Beans" Lecter, so you probably expected that.

In recent years, I've been drawn to the "crime drama" genre, which seems to be gaining traction on TV recently - I'm not talking about CSI or Criminal Minds, mind you. The shows that interest me are things like The Mentalist, Fringe, and Sherlock. 

I also chose Thomas Harris' Red Dragon, the novel that introduced Lecter, as one of my major assessment pieces for Year 12 English Studies. That means I had to write a 5000 word essay on the book, so I already have some history with the piece.

So when I saw a TV show claiming to reveal the back story of Hannibal (and others), I was immediately skeptical. "Oh Christ," I thought, thinking it would be something along the likes of the abysmal Hannibal Rising.

Coincidentally, I made the same expression when I saw Hannibal Rising.

But I took the plunge and decided to watch the first episode. And you know what? I was pleasantly surprised. And then I was interested. Before I knew it, I was hooked like a delicious, delicious fish.

Most people know Hannibal through the 1991 film The Silence of the Lambs, where he helps rookie FBI agent Clarice Starling catch a serial killer called Buffalo Bill. About three-quarters through the film/book he escapes and goes on to have horrible adventures where he feeds people to pigs and feeds human brains to children. It's not so good.

Blood would be a bitch to clean off your glasses.

However, before all that happened, that he helped another FBI agent called Will Graham. Graham, it turns out, had a professional and familial relationship with Lecter before he arrests the serial killer...for being a serial killer.

The Hannibal TV series takes place prior to all this and details the introduction of these two characters and the development of the relationship.

Will Graham (Hugh Dancy) is a lecturer, teaching young FBI cadets to think like serial killers. He seems to have a special gift, reconstructing crimes by getting inside the heads of the guilty party. He's a very disturbed and reclusive individual and has trouble relating to others. This might make it seem like his choice of career a strange one, but Graham is shown to sense of duty - to want to use his "gift" to help people.

His gift is not his dreamy eyes, just to be clear. Not that I'm thinking about his dreamy eyes...

He's pulled back into the field by the FBI head of Behavioral Science Unit, Jack Crawford (Lawrence Fishburne) to help them find a killer called the Minnesota Shrike. To make sure Graham stays "stable,"  Crawford enlists the help of one Dr Hannibal Lecter (Mads Mikkelsen).

This works out about as well as you'd expect, although it's not so much a matter of "if" Graham and the FBI will find out about Lecter's unscrupulous eating habits, it's "when" and "how." 

Hannibal (the series, not the character) is great (although the character is great). It's chilling and gruesome, and that's before the audience is introduced to the ancillary murders the FBI is called to investigate. Each character, even some of the minor ones, go on a journey and change over the course of the first season.

For example, this guy goes on a journey from being alive to being not alive.

Hugh Dancy does an admirable job portraying somebody neither comfortable in his own skin, or in the company of others. He brings that air of wanting to do well, to save people, without actually enjoying the methods he takes to achieve his ends.  It's the little things that make the character believable - the way he adjusts his glasses, his constant avoidance of eye contact, and his tendency to laugh whenever people want to "talk" about him.

Hannibal (the character, not the series) casts a stark contrast to Will Graham. He's confident, unwavering, polite, and sociable. Mikkelsen's portrayal differs from Anthony Hopkins, it's more subtle where Hopkins was intense. Both carry an undercurrent of foreboding - the character knows he's the smartest person in the room, with everybody else being so much meat. Mikkelsen's performance also lies in the little details - with a number of small idiosyncrasies, he manages to make Lecter a memorable character without making the audience shout "why are you trusting this man, you idiot?!"

"Fuck this book, man. I don't need to read it. I'm awesome."

What I'm trying to say is, the show makes good use of "dramatic irony." The audience knows something the characters don't, which creates the tension.

The supporting cast has varying degrees of characterisation, but what is characterised tends to be done well. There are some roles from the novels that have been gender-swapped and significantly expanded. Alan Bloom has become Alana Bloom, a peer to both Lecter and Graham, and Freddy Lounds  has become Freddie Lounds, a tabloid reporter with a morbid fascination for the...morbid.

Am I saying Lara Jean Chorostecki is better than Philip Seymour Hoffman?
No, I just think she looks better in a towel. 

Some of the episodes do feel like they focus a little too much on the "crime of the week" and not on the development of the characters and relationships, especially when the season is only 13 episodes long. But I suppose too much of a good thing can ruin a show *cough I'm looking at you, Supernatural, cough*. There's enough continuity within the season to feel like actions have weight and meaning, but they're self-contained enough to be approachable to outsiders.

The gimmick of Graham using his "gift" to discover crime scenes is used less and less as the season progresses, but still remains and important and interestingly-utilised technique.

Get away from that people, bird.
That is a people, not a tree.

Hannibal's (the series, not the character. I'm going to stop with this tortured attempt at a joke now.) cinematography is beautiful. There are lingering shots of haunting forests, houses both flashy and rustic, and even the crime scenes look amazing in a "AUGH WHAT DID I JUST SEE?" kind of way. Which brings me to the food.

"I love having friends for dinner. CANNIBAL PUNZ LOL"

Oh dear lord, the food in this show confuses my heartbrain...and my heartstomach... I don't know, I get all these different body parts confused. I digress. To be clear, most of the food is prepared by Dr Lecter, which should give you some idea of the key ingredients.

Let's eat grandma!

Hannibal  was definitely above-average and had me coming back for more. The entire first season is available on iTunes (and other places, probably), with the second season due out some time next year.

Four stars.

Plus there's this birdstag thing. A must watch.