Hannibal Lecter is one of the most fascinating characters in the history of fiction. Intelligent, brilliant, elegant, and with a particular temperament, he is the kind of person that many people would like to be. Except for the fact that he is a cannibalistic serial killer. The fascination he has inspired since the publication of the first book in which he appears, Red Dragon by Thomas Harris, in 1981, has only grown. Because few characters have been able to capture the public’s imagination over the years.
That’s why it shouldn’t surprise us that he has appeared in a whole series of novels where he was either a protagonist or an antagonist. That he has had adaptations to film of all kinds. Nor should it be surprising that a particular series has managed to capture the essence of his character like no other to the point that the fact it is being released again on streaming becomes a reason for celebration. Because Hannibal is one of the best series of the 2010s. Or one of the best series, period.
An actor worthy of the legend
Hannibal, created by Bryan Fuller, known for being the author of series like Dead Like Me, Pushing Daisies, or American Gods, is based on the books by Thomas Harris, particularly on Red Dragon, Hannibal, and Hannibal: The Origin of Evil to create its own version of the character. Not exactly the same Hannibal as the characters nor the same story, although it adapts some of the things that happen in the books, but its own version. One where the protagonist, Will Graham, an FBI psychologist specialized in getting into the minds of criminals to create psychological profiles of them, teams up with the psychiatrist and genius FBI consultant, Hannibal Lecter, to capture what is essentially a weekly serial killer. All of this without anyone knowing that Lecter himself is a killer. At least during the first season.
Hannibal is elegant, intelligent, wise, and seems like a figure beyond human, in every possible sense, and part of that is thanks to the incredible acting work of Mads Mikkelsen. Although he was already a very famous and beloved actor in Denmark, especially for his work with directors like Nicolas Winding Refn, Peter Lindmark, and Thomas Vinterberg, it was his mesmerizing presence as Lecter in Hannibal that made him the Hollywood star he is today.
Something that the romantic and sexual tension with Will Graham, played by the absolutely incredible Hugh Dancy. An actor capable of demonstrating a vulnerability and fragility so real that it seems he is on the verge of breaking down every time he enters the scene, and almost every time in a different way. Only seeming capable of holding himself together in the presence of his dogs, the love of his life, and Hannibal.
This has led to the series generating a lot of fanfiction about Hannibal and Hugh as a couple. Somewhat problematic, yet interesting, given the relationship they develop throughout the seasons.
Impeccable Art
Another reason why the series had unprecedented success is that there is not a single artistic aspect where it is not absolutely superb. The food presented looks tremendously elaborate and exquisite, no matter that it is made with human beings. The deaths and violence are brutal and have a ritualistic component, but it is always aestheticized to have an artistic component in itself. The music is strange, gloomy, but has an incomprehensible beauty due to how its composer, Brian Reitzell, uses all kinds of instruments to compose it. The artistic design makes it feel like we are seeing the world through Hannibal’s eyes. Violent, ritualistic, and exquisite.
It also helps that the direction is fantastic with some top-level directors known for their extraordinary obsession with composition and imagery, such as David Slade, Vincenzo Natali, or Neil Marshall. Or that the scripts combine a subtlety in the progression of the relationship between the characters, an addictive writing in the weekly case’s progress, and witty and tremendously intelligent dialogues.
Hence, there is a genuine celebration that the three seasons of Hannibal are arriving on Filmin starting today. In addition to the not-so-secret desire that one day they let Bryan Fuller make a fourth season to create his own version of the most well-known story of Hannibal Lecter: The Silence of the Lambs. Because if anyone has proven they can create something incredible, fascinating, disturbing, and impossible to look away from the screen with The Silence of the Lambs, other than the original movie, it is the creator of Hannibal.
