Rating summary

Movie		2.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		3.5
Overall		3.0

Hannibal Rising Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman August 14, 2024

Lionsgate is once again partnering with Walmart to provide collectors with a set of SteelBook releases, this time with several linked "Bloody Disgusting" titles. All of the SteelBooks have similar designs that feature an emphasis on blacks, which may mean that white gloves may be in order for fingerprint and/or other smudge protection. In this particular instance, and rather interestingly given Lionsgate's penchant for re-releasing titles over and over again in different configurations and packaging options (as this very latest "series" attests), Hannibal Rising has evidently never had a previous release on Blu-ray in Region A.

Gee, Officer Krupke, we're very upset;
We never had the love that ev'ry child oughta get.
We ain't no delinquents,
We're misunderstood.
Deep down inside us there is good!

What, pray tell, is a lyric from West Side Story doing here, you may understandably ask? Well, Hannibal Rising purports to be an "origin story" for the frightening Dr. Lecter of Manhunter, The Silence of the Lambs, Hannibal and Red Dragon fame (infamy?), and to cut to the chase (no slicing and/or dicing pun intended), it turns out that Hannibal (played by Aaran Thomas and Gaspard Ulliel at different ages) is really (much like Tony's Jet cohort in the Bernstein-Sondheim musical) just a sweet, mixed up kid, albeit one in this case whose childhood and adolescent traumas were sparked at least in part by that nasty World War II.

Without getting into spoiler territory with regard to the ins and outs of that trauma, suffice it to say that little Hannibal has to deal with the deaths of his immediate family, including his little sister, which in turn years later sets him off on a "vengeance tour", which perhaps only tangentially involves consuming the occasional blood droplet or other human component. The psychobabble here may not be overtly expressed, but it's rife in the subtext of this kind of ridiculous enterprise, which admittedly does have some creepy "kills" and a rather moody style going for it.

Hannibal Rising Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Note: Since this is the rare Lionsgate SteelBook that is not a re-release, I've split the difference in screenshots/photos accompanying this review. Positions 1 through 8 offer screenshots from the disc, while positions 9 through 15 offer hi res photographs of the packaging, for those interested.

Hannibal Rising is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Lionsgate Films with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.35:1. Perhaps surprisingly, this was shot on film and in fact the closing credits offer both Kodak and Fujifilm logos, which may account for some distinct and distinctive differentiations in the appearance of various stocks throughout the presentation. Several flashbacks or at least quasi-flashbacks can offer an extremely grainy, somewhat distressed, look, that kind of unavoidably tends to mask fine detail levels at times. A much more tightly resolved grain field attends the "contemporary" sequences, at least for the most part. The palette is rather evocative and is arguably one of the film's strongest assets. The wartime material is frequently coolly graded toward grays and blues, with more of an emphasis on golds and browns as the story segues toward Hannibal's teens and twenties. Detail levels are generally commendable, but can be affected by the prevalence of very low light situations. Once again on a Lionsgate Blu-ray, some minor signs of banding can be spotted.

Hannibal Rising Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Hannibal Rising features Dolby TrueHD 5.1 audio, in a track that has some nicely immersive moments. The opening act takes place in war torn Lithuania (who knew that's where the Lecters hailed from, let alone had a castle?), and there is some really forceful LFE and good use of the side and rear channels as battles rage. Things arguably calm down a bit once the story shifts forward a few years, but even then there is good attention paid to ambient environmental effects which frequently inhabit the surround channels. A perhaps just slightly rote score by Ilan Eshkeri and Shigeru Umebayashi also is nicely splayed around the soundstage. Dialogue is presented cleanly and clearly throughout. Optional English and Spanish subtitles are available.

Hannibal Rising Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Audio Commentary by Director Peter Webber and Producer Martha De Laurentiis


• Deleted Scenes with Optional Commentary (HD; 10:55) are windowboxed with a timecode caption.


• Designing Horror and Elegance with Production Designer Allan Starski (HD; 7:30) offers some interesting background information. This is also windowboxed.


• Hannibal Lecter: Origin of Evil (HD; 16:09) offers various talking heads discussing the project. Again, this is windowboxed, indicating the supplements probably had SD masters.

The SteelBook follows the design aesthetic of all of the day and date Bloody Disgusting releases, with an emphasis on blacks. Red blood streaks augment the front panel, and the back panel matches the others in this collection by offering a quote. The interior panels feature a photograph. A digital copy is also included, and all of the Bloody Disgusting SteelBooks come with a J card.

Hannibal Rising Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

One of my all time favorite moments in my years of working here was when I interviewed Martha De Laurentiis when she was on a press junket promoting television's Hannibal: Season One, and I completely cracked her up when I suggested her famous chef step grandaughter Giada De Laurentiis would make a perfect guest star for that series. De Laurentiis is on hand in some of the supplements here, and it's obvious she wanted to continue to "curate" the character, but this origin story, while written by original series novelist Thomas Harris (adapting his own book), just never quite amounts to much, though there are some undeniably spooky moments along the way. Technical merits are generally solid, and the supplements appealing. The branded Bloody Disgusting SteelBook may offer additional allure for anyone who may be considering making a purchase.