Critic Reviews
Red Dragon (2002) Rank 2 Reviews
Expert Review Summary
based on (381) reviews
Click on the numbers to the right of the graph to see reviews of that rating
Reviews by Score:
Chicago Tribune (Michael Wilmington)
Some movie characters burn themselves into your mind by inspiring love, some by awakening fear. High on the short list of the latter category is Hannibal Lecter, the suave and brilliant serial killer portrayed by Anthony Hopkins in "The Silence of the ...read the complete Red Dragon movie review at Chicago Tribune (Michael Wilmington)
BluntReview.com (Emily Blunt)
FilmFour.com (Matthew De Abaitua)
For all the director's shortcomings, the material survives. ...read the complete Red Dragon movie review at FilmFour.com (Matthew De Abaitua)
The New York Times (Elvis Mitchell)
The entire picture is a third-generation Xerox copy, in part because adapting Mr. Harris's books for the screen seems to turn directors into rigid formalists. ...read the complete Red Dragon movie review at The New York Times (Elvis Mitchell)
TV Guide (Maitland McDonagh)
Without the top-notch cast it would be indistinguishable from hundreds of pedestrian serial-killer pictures that clog video store shelves. ...read the complete Red Dragon movie review at TV Guide (Maitland McDonagh)
Los Angeles Times (Kenneth Turan)
There's no freshness here, no sense of newness or discovery. In its place, there's an earnest desire not to drop the ball, a determination to risk as little as possible in keeping this golden egg from cracking wide open. ...read the complete Red Dragon movie review at Los Angeles Times (Kenneth Turan)
Washington Post (Staff (Not credited))
Red Dragon is merely the distant echoes of what we liked about ...read the complete Red Dragon movie review at Washington Post (Staff (Not credited))
Empire Magazine (Ian Freer)
A thoroughly entertaining, efficiently mounted thriller. ...read the complete Red Dragon movie review at Empire Magazine (Ian Freer)
RTE Interactive (Dublin, Ireland) (Harry Guerin)
If you've seen the original it's like watching a well-rehearsed covers band. ...read the complete Red Dragon movie review at RTE Interactive (Dublin, Ireland) (Harry Guerin)
Los Angeles Times (Kenneth Turan)
This rush to profits has created a predictably efficient piece of business notable largely for its overwhelming creepiness, for an eagerness to create images you wish you hadn't seen, which, in this day and age, is of course the point. ...read the complete Red Dragon movie review at Los Angeles Times (Kenneth Turan)
Boxoffice Magazine (Michael Tunison)
Measured against practically any like-themed film other than its Oscar-sweeping franchise predecessor The Silence of the Lambs , Red Dragon rates as an exceptional thriller. ...read the complete Red Dragon movie review at Boxoffice Magazine (Michael Tunison)
Feo Amante (Kelly Parks)
This version of RED DRAGON is closer to the novel in many ways but one: lots of extra Hannibal. ...read the complete Red Dragon movie review at Feo Amante (Kelly Parks)
filmcritic.com (Christopher Null)
I can say categorically that it has successfully made me paranoid about the quality of the doors and locks in my house. ...read the complete Red Dragon movie review at filmcritic.com (Christopher Null)
ShowBIZ Data (--)
TV Guide's Movie Guide (Maitland McDonagh)
Offers fans extra helpings of Anthony Hopkins's popular serial-killer schtick. ...read the complete Red Dragon movie review at TV Guide's Movie Guide (Maitland McDonagh)
Moose Hole (Joseph Kastner)
This is a good film to see opposed to trash like Knockaround Guys and The Tuxedo which may or may not be getting more attention then films like this. ...read the complete Red Dragon movie review at Moose Hole (Joseph Kastner)
Toronto Star (Peter Howell)
It's highly entertaining, fast-paced and ultimately without deeper meaning, just like most other Hollywood blockbusters these days. ...read the complete Red Dragon movie review at Toronto Star (Peter Howell)
DVDTalk.com (D.K. Holm)
Red Dragon is top-notch American movie entertainment. ...read the complete Red Dragon movie review at DVDTalk.com (D.K. Holm)
Dark Horizons (Garth Franklin)
A solidly made and engaging thriller -- even if Brett Ratner's directing and style tends more to formula than it should. ...read the complete Red Dragon movie review at Dark Horizons (Garth Franklin)
CineFile : il Cinema in Rete (Luciana Morelli)
DVD Times Review (Tiffany Bradford)
Xi-online (Anouk Bachman)
MovieEye.com (Frank Ochieng)
cinEncanto (José Martín Sulaimán)
Mutant Reviewers From Hell
Xi-online (Gerthein Boersma)
Moviola (Jorge G. Avila Andrade)
TheWorldJournal.com (Frank Ochieng)
Xi-online (Bregtje Schudel)
cinEncanto (Pablo del Moral)
Boxoffice Magazine
San Jose Mercury News (Glenn Lovell)
Predictable and inert. ...read the complete Red Dragon movie review at San Jose Mercury News (Glenn Lovell)
Rolling Stone (Peter Travers)
TheWorldJournal.com (Frank Ochieng)
An overly stimulating but pedestrian frightfest effort that leaves one wanting more out of this rudimentary and clueless serial killer drama. ...read the complete Red Dragon movie review at TheWorldJournal.com (Frank Ochieng)
ToxicUniverse.com (Rachel Gordon)
Fantastica Daily (Mervius)
Red Dragon is worth seeing, particularly for fans of the series. The casting and climax are an improvement over 1986's Manhunter . ...read the complete Red Dragon movie review at Fantastica Daily (Mervius)
Salt Lake Tribune (Sean Means)
A maddening tug-of-war between opposing forces: devotion to its cinematic mother figure, the Oscar-winning 'The Silence of the Lambs,' and a desire to break free and live its own life. ...read the complete Red Dragon movie review at Salt Lake Tribune (Sean Means)
Sun Publications (Chicago, IL) (Josh Larsen)
Hannibal Lecter has long been a hot marketing product, but `Red Dragon' turns him into a veritable tchotchke. ...read the complete Red Dragon movie review at Sun Publications (Chicago, IL) (Josh Larsen)
Tyler Morning Telegraph (Texas) (Jonathan R. Perry)
Every time Hopkins spills out a lofty intellectual portent or serves up a defiant sneer, we can hear the faint ‘ka-ching!’ in his agent’s office. ...read the complete Red Dragon movie review at Tyler Morning Telegraph (Texas) (Jonathan R. Perry)
Contra Costa Times (Mary F. Pols)
How far we've come since 1986. Our minds were unsettled after Manhunter . Our stomachs are unsettled after Red Dragon . ...read the complete Red Dragon movie review at Contra Costa Times (Mary F. Pols)
Jerry at the Movies (Jerry Saravia)
Northwest Herald (Crystal Lake, IL) (Jeffrey Westhoff)
This hastily mounted production exists only to capitalize on Hopkins’ inclination to play Hannibal Lecter again, even though Harris has no immediate inclination to provide a fourth book. ...read the complete Red Dragon movie review at Northwest Herald (Crystal Lake, IL) (Jeffrey Westhoff)
Xiibaro Productions (David Perry)
Rolling Stone (Peter Travers)
Brett Ratner's Red Dragon delivers the goods in scary fun. ...read the complete Red Dragon movie review at Rolling Stone (Peter Travers)
Greater Milwaukee Today (Steven Snyder)
"Red Dragon" is entertaining. An obvious copy of one of the best films ever made, how could it not be? But it is entertaining on an inferior level. It is a popcorn film, not a must-own, or even a must-see. ...read the complete Red Dragon movie review at Greater Milwaukee Today (Steven Snyder)
Matinee Magazine (Nick Schager)
A tepid mishmash of directorial blandness, bad casting, and hoary serial killer clichés that exudes neither the clinical creepiness of Jonathan Demme’s original Lecter masterpiece nor the lurid camp of Ridley Scott’s disastrous sequel. ...read the complete Red Dragon movie review at Matinee Magazine (Nick Schager)
State Journal-Register (Springfield, IL) (Nick Rogers)
Because this is the second time he’s pimped out this Oscar-winning meal ticket for a hefty paycheck, maybe Anthony Hopkins should be forced to give his statuette back. ...read the complete Red Dragon movie review at State Journal-Register (Springfield, IL) (Nick Rogers)
Philadelphia Inquirer (Carrie Rickey)
For all its brilliant touches, Dragon loses its fire midway, nearly flickering out by its perfunctory conclusion. ...read the complete Red Dragon movie review at Philadelphia Inquirer (Carrie Rickey)
Internet Reviews (Steve Rhodes)
flat and plodding ... film that covers all of the bases, albeit none exceptionally or memorably. ...read the complete Red Dragon movie review at Internet Reviews (Steve Rhodes)
MovieCrypt.com (Kevin A. Ranson)
Here's the good news: it isn't as pathetic as "Hannibal." The bad news is that it IS a rehash of the same plot that made "Silence of the Lambs" such a success. ...read the complete Red Dragon movie review at MovieCrypt.com (Kevin A. Ranson)
Toronto Life (--)
DigitalVD.de (Nils Laschet)
MovieWeb (B. Alan Orange)
Movie Martyr (Jeremy Heilman)
Charlotte Observer (Lawrence Toppman)
I can't tell you if Red Dragon is more faithful to Harris' book than "Manhunter," which I haven't seen in 16 years. I can tell you it's less artful and atmospheric, a straight-ahead thriller that never rises above superficiality. ...read the complete Red Dragon movie review at Charlotte Observer (Lawrence Toppman)
Salon.com (Stephanie Zacharek)
If you buy the overprocessed headcheese of the serial killer as refined genius, you'll love Red Dragon. Or maybe not. Even Hannibal Lecter devotees may lose patience with this picture's grandiose, self-serious ponderousness -- that's Lecterese for, "It's ...read the complete Red Dragon movie review at Salon.com (Stephanie Zacharek)
ReelViews (James Berardinelli)
Red Dragon is done in a painfully mechanical, by-the-book manner. Scenes are assembled to move the plot from point A to point B. There's no atmosphere. No tension. Flat performances. All of these problems are rightfully laid at the feet of the man in ...read the complete Red Dragon movie review at ReelViews (James Berardinelli)
Rolling Stone (Peter Travers)
Suffers from franchise fatigue. Its rote suspense is strictly a business proposition. ...read the complete Red Dragon movie review at Rolling Stone (Peter Travers)
ReelViews (James Berardinelli)
Why? On a certain level, I can understand coming out with a new version of some crusty old Hollywood classic that (gasp!) might be in the archaic format of black-and-white. Or a recent foreign film, so that subtitle-phobic viewers would no longer have to ...read the complete Red Dragon movie review at ReelViews (James Berardinelli)
d+kaz. Intelligent Movie Reviews (Daniel Kasman)
Guardian/Observer
An FBI agent is assigned the job of solving a series of grisly murders. But to do so, he needs the help of another serial killer - Dr Hannibal ...read the complete Red Dragon movie review at Guardian/Observer
CinemaZone.dk
Da det store publikum i 1991 for første gang stiftede bekendtskab med seriemorderen Hannibal Lecter i Jonathan Demmes Ondskabens øjne, en filmatisering af forfatteren Thomas Harris’ roman af samme navn, vidste de sikkert ikke, at de havde haft ...read the complete Red Dragon movie review at CinemaZone.dk
Arrow in the Head ("The Arrow")
Slate (David Edelstein)
It more or less works. ...read the complete Red Dragon movie review at Slate (David Edelstein)
San Francisco Chronicle (Edward Guthmann)
In Hollywood, where integrity is rapidly consumed and careers defined by market value, there's trash and there's trash with a pedigree. ...read the complete Red Dragon movie review at San Francisco Chronicle (Edward Guthmann)
The UK Critic (Ian Waldron-Mantgani)
Seattle Post-Intelligencer
Basically lives up to the old adage that the final work in a trilogy is invariably the weakest. ...read the complete Red Dragon movie review at Seattle Post-Intelligencer
SPLICEDwire (Rob Blackwelder)
Filmtracks (Christian Clemmensen)
Globe and Mail (Rick Groen)
With one exception, the performances are certainly accomplished, yet no one truly shines, not even Fiennes. ...read the complete Red Dragon movie review at Globe and Mail (Rick Groen)
Detroit News (Susan Stark)
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (Duane Dudek)
The perverse allure and straitjacket structure of Red Dragon resists any efforts to make it more than what it is and exactly what you expect. That it succeeds on this level is a triumph of limited expectations. ...read the complete Red Dragon movie review at Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (Duane Dudek)
Palo Alto Weekly (Jeanne Aufmuth)
I can think of no earthly reason to remake an excellent example of film noir other than the calculating ka-ching of box office dollars. ...read the complete Red Dragon movie review at Palo Alto Weekly (Jeanne Aufmuth)
The Onion (A.V. Club) (Nathan Rabin)
Norton is a strong lead in an overwrought, mediocre film that trumps even Hannibal in its mercenary shamelessness. ...read the complete Red Dragon movie review at The Onion (A.V. Club) (Nathan Rabin)
Guardian [UK] (Peter Bradshaw)
Did we really need a new version of this prequel Lecter episode, after Michael Mann's Manhunter , which had Brian Cox in the chomping role? ...read the complete Red Dragon movie review at Guardian [UK] (Peter Bradshaw)
New York Times (Elvis Mitchell)
Just when you think the picture can't go any farther over the top, it finds a whole new peak to tumble over. ...read the complete Red Dragon movie review at New York Times (Elvis Mitchell)
Netflix (James Rocchi)
Revamped remake of the prelude to The Silence of the Lambs is a demonstration of why bigger isn't necessarily better. ...read the complete Red Dragon movie review at Netflix (James Rocchi)
Chicago Reader (J.R. Jones)
Frank Whaley and Philip Seymour Hoffman play minor characters so annoying they might as well wear T-shirts reading "Eat My ...read the complete Red Dragon movie review at Chicago Reader (J.R. Jones)
ToxicUniverse.com (John Beachem)
Eclipse Magazine (Sean O'Connell)
The once menacing Lecter has become a punchline, a familiar figure carrying the menacing weight of a Jason Voorhees or a Freddy Krueger. ...read the complete Red Dragon movie review at Eclipse Magazine (Sean O'Connell)
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