The Grand Guignol meets the Keystone Kops.

Rating: 8/10 (3 January 2005)

(EDIT: I don't know what I was thinking when I wrote this review. Just ignore it. I'll update it someday. This is a fantastic movie. My comments about the police force still stand, though.)
I think I will cover the things I liked about this film first, since it is a very short list:
--Jodie Foster's performance. She is very believable and deserved her Oscar.
--Ted Levine's performance. He is undoubtedly one of the sickest, most twisted villains to ever appear on screen, and, in my opinion, a lot more scary than Hannibal.
--The scene where Foster is being stalked by Buffalo Bill in his house. Now THAT was scary. It is a classic suspense scene.
Now, the things I did NOT like:
--Anthony Hopkins' performance. Too grandiose and over-the-top; not anywhere near realistic. Everyone talks about what a fantastic performance he gives, but I think if you NOTICE what great acting someone is doing, then they're probably overacting. Plus, his character comes across as being actually likable... a guy you'd like to sit and chat with. He is not scary, just mildly interesting. He apparently has superpowers, too, since he manages to pull off the most unrealistic jailbreak of all time. I don't know how he found the time to even THINK of a scheme like that, much less actually do it. He outwits the entire police force, which brings me to my next point...
--The total incompetence of the FBI. I'm not sure whether this was intentional or not, but it was ridiculous and borders on parody. The fact that a rookie like Foster is assigned to the case is unrealistic enough, but then she manages to crack the case All By Herself when she discovers a key piece of information: Buffalo Bill knew his victims. NO WAY!! My God, the girl is a genius! No other investigator with years of experience under their belt could figure this out, but Foster the rookie had a brainstorm and outdid them all. The local police are even worse. They are shown as a bunch of inept morons. During the jailbreak sequence, if it wasn't for all the human mutilation and whatnot, you'd think you were watching an episode of "Reno 911."
And finally...
--The movie is sick. Sick, sick, sick. Little sympathy is shown for the victims, and it feels like the movie is not showing these bizarre killings as a portrait of serial killers (otherwise they might have included actual motivations for Bill and Hannibal), but just for the sake of being disgusting. It's shock theater, plain and simple. I said I liked Ted Levine's performance, but his scenes were still unpleasant to watch. I doubt most people exited the theater thinking, "Well, that was a fascinating glimpse into the mind of a psychopath," but more likely, "WOW! Hannibal chewed a guy's face off! COOL!" Really, what's the point? All the scenes with Hannibal feel more like a movie script than anything that could happen in real life. A realistic portrayal of a cannibalistic psycho would have been scary, but the majority of this movie, save for a few great scenes, is just corny and gross.