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Post by Erutaron on Apr 12, 2013 6:32:33 GMT -5
Has anybody watched this yet? I checked out the encore broadcast of the premiere ep on Wed night, and watched the second ep last night. Verdict? Pretty darn good, especially for network TV.
I had very low expectations going in, so perhaps that played in my favour, but this is MUCH better than it has any right to be. The look and feel of the show is very cinematic, and feels like it should be on HBO or AMC, not NBC.
Mikkelsen's take on Lecter is very different from the previous versions by Cox and Hopkins, but still good. For me though, the standout is Hugh Dancy as a very different Will Graham.
Lots of easter eggs...snatches of dialogue from Red Dragon peppered throughout.
Some addmitedly weak points...several canon characters were inexplicably recast as female (Dr Sydney Blum and Freddie Lounds?!) and of course not just female, but hot 20-something females. I can buy that - barely - for tabloid journalist Lounds, but it stretches believeability to the breaking point for FBI behavioural psychologist Blum to look and dress like she's on her way to a nightclub with her sorority sisters. Sigh...the pitfalls of network TV...Also, Lawrence Fishburne's Jack Crawford is also a bit generic.
Aside from these shortcomings, the show feels solid and I'll keep watching.
- Tim
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Post by delbertgrady on Apr 12, 2013 11:43:43 GMT -5
I've enjoyed it as well, I agree the show feels very cinematic and has excellent production design/values which gives it an edge over other broadcast shows. The acting has been solid and it's nice to see a little different take on the Lecter character instead of rehashing what's already been done by Hopins & Cox. Hopefully the quality of the show remains high and it finds enough viewers to stay on!
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Post by Erutaron on Apr 15, 2013 20:08:32 GMT -5
Gore is certaqinly top notch...especially for network tv (Walking Dead doesn't count...that's AMC!).
After episode 2, I will never look at mushrooms on my pizza the same way again!
- Tim
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Jazz
Cellar Dweller
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Post by Jazz on Apr 16, 2013 23:55:45 GMT -5
Didn't much care for the pilot, but I thought the second episode was an improvement. Definitely some good imagination for fungus! Been a while since I've seen Casino Royale, but was Mikkelsen's accent that heavy in the movie as it is here? Kind of hard to understand.
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bigmac
Revolting Revenant
You mean the movie lied!?!?!?
Posts: 1,508
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Post by bigmac on Apr 21, 2013 17:20:44 GMT -5
Caught the first three episodes and found it interesting, as long as you can get past the fact that three of the characters look too damn young to be in such high positions in the FBI. Guess that's network television for you.
I have to admit, I thought this might become a simple killer-of-the-week show, but doesn't look like that's the case. The case that opens the pilot follows through nicely, and Hannibal's motivation is pretty well hidden at this point. Still, not sure how long this show will work before the writers end up padding things to keep the series going.
But for now, it's a fun right. Surprisingly graphic for broadcast television (the mushroom farm was VERY creepy) and well written for now. I don't expect that to last long, though.
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ilnino
Disembodied Voice
Posts: 473
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Post by ilnino on Apr 22, 2013 1:34:37 GMT -5
A week or two ago Fuller was answering questions on Twitter and I think if the show gets renewed and keeps going his plan is quite interesting.
If I remember right the show is set 5 years before Red Dragon, around season 4 therell be a time jump thatll take the show to Red Dragon. Then the other seasons will fit in to take it to Silence of the Lambs and then Hannibal.. not sure about beyond that..
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Post by Erutaron on Apr 24, 2013 13:37:28 GMT -5
Still enjoying it, but the character of Lounds is REALLY starting to irritate me. Not the character as written...but as cast. Far too young and "glamourous" (sarcasto-quotes intended). Considering the character has previously been played by Stephen Lang and Philip Seymour Hoffman, I feel like Lara Jean Chorostecki is completely out of her depth.
I suspect that casting "young, cute, and female" was a requirement foisted on Fuller by NBC as a condition to green-light the series. It's also a bit off-putting to watch her knowing what's in store for the character of Lounds in Red Dragon.
ilnino, if Fuller is able to realize his plan to incorporate Red Dragon, Silence, and Hannibal plots into his show, it could be very interesting indeed. Sadly, my gut tells me it won't be on long enough for that to happen. If it is though, I don't see any legal problems, seeing as all rights to these characters are owned by Di Laurentis (who also produces the series too).
- Tim
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bigmac
Revolting Revenant
You mean the movie lied!?!?!?
Posts: 1,508
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Post by bigmac on Apr 24, 2013 19:58:22 GMT -5
I thought she was about to be given that wild ride early on in the series.
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Post by jmodlinc on Apr 24, 2013 22:08:17 GMT -5
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Post by hammerhead on Apr 26, 2013 0:18:35 GMT -5
I'm still not sold on Mikkelsen's Lecter; he's not charming at all. He's too buttoned down. He's too cold. He acts like a machine, not like a predator.
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Post by Erutaron on Apr 29, 2013 7:05:41 GMT -5
He's got a different style than Hopkins to be certain, but Hopkins also had a different style than Brian Cox, something I personally struggled with when I first saw Silence when it was first released.
Personally, I think he's made a wise choice to eschew the Hopkins-style scenery chewing, especially since we're supposed to view Lectre as one of the "good guys" at this point in the story. The creep factor is there...but very subtle in a blink-and-you'll-miss-it way.
However, I do agree that it's strange seeing Mikklesen's take on the character when Hopkins' portrayal is so iconic.
- Tim
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Post by craftfear on Jul 24, 2013 21:56:46 GMT -5
This is actually the first show that I've followed week-to-week, not having cable. I made sure I watched it whenever it was posted on Hulu. I have a few plot-based complaints, but I've really been enjoying the performances, the hallucinatory sequences, and the fairly decent gore. Did anyone else watch to the end of the season?
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Post by Stuart on Jul 25, 2013 5:29:08 GMT -5
I watched it all. It’s a good looking, well acted show and I appreciated the gore. But I have to say I found it a bit sluggish and it was more of a time-passer than compulsive viewing. The final episode sets up a potentially more interesting second season if they can iron out some of the tedium.
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Post by Erutaron on Aug 21, 2013 9:04:31 GMT -5
Personally, I don't mind the slow pace...it's a welcome change of pace from the usual flash edit shaky cam style that dominates productions now. The deliberate "slow burn" lends itself to the material and the storytelling, and really helps to set up the atmosphere.
- Tim
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bigmac
Revolting Revenant
You mean the movie lied!?!?!?
Posts: 1,508
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Post by bigmac on Aug 25, 2013 3:05:57 GMT -5
I don't mind a slow burn either, but the series did seem to drag at times to me as well. And, for all their skills, that FBI team can be fooled rather easily. I mean, they really bought Hannibal's story about the Cello String Killer? I guess their investigation wasn't very thorough.
But it's an okay show, certainly one of the more interesting ones on network television. And I agree with you, Stuart. I think the second season looks much more interesting.
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