The second half of “Hannibal” season 3 focused on the Red Dragon storyline that was originally created by Thomas Harris in a book of the same name. In that novel, there’s a pivotal scene where Special Agent Will Graham reaches out to Dr. Hannibal Lecter, the man that he captured and imprisoned, for help with the case.
This scene has been committed to celluloid on three separate occasions. The first was in Michael Mann’s Manhunter, the second in Brett Ratner’s Red Dragon, and finally in Bryan Fuller’s “Hannibal”. Each of these scenes heavily utilized Harris’ lines, although each director gave the scene their own feel.
To show just how similar yet different these three representations are, video editor Matthew Morettini spliced them together in an uninterrupted sequence to show how seamlessly they could interact with one another. It’s fascinating to see the subtle differences that are present. The cells that hold Dr. Lecter each have their own ambience, the lighting used changes dramatically, and the cinematography tells different stories with each sequence.
Morettini explains:
I’ve focussed on the scene where FBI profiler Will Graham visits the cannibal psychiatrist Hannibal Lecter ostensibly to ask for advice on a serial murder case but really to “recover the mindset” of a killer so he can catch this new one.
Most of the dialogue from the three adaptations come directly from the source novel so it was possible to seamlessly recreate the scene using the three productions.
I think it is a very interesting way to compare and contrast the different methods used by the filmmakers. Also, other than filmed works of Shakespeare, I can’t think of another pop culture creation that has been interpreted so faithfully three separate times.
Check out the video below.
