Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		5.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		4.5
Overall		4.0

Red Dragon 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov October 28, 2023

Brett Ratner's "Red Dragon" (2002) arrives on 4K Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber. The supplemental features on the release include archival audio commentaries; multiple deleted, alternate, and extended scenes; multiple featurettes with cast and crew interviews; promotional materials; and more. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

If the main goal of Brett Ratner’s Red Dragon was simply to offer a contemporary retelling of the story that is told in Michael Mann’s Manhunter, then it is very easy to declare that the goal was met. Red Dragon does offer an unmistakable contemporary retelling of this famous story. In fact, absolutely everything about Red Dragon feels unmistakably contemporary, from its characters and their behavior to its tone and personality.

But is the story flexible enough to be told this way without hurting its integrity? And is it fair to declare that Mann offers a proper retelling of it in Manhunter? Answering the second question first makes it easier to provide a crystal-clear answer to the first question later.

While very effective, Mann’s cinematic adaptation of the original material from Thomas Harris’ best-selling novel is, to put it mildly, strikingly creative. Indeed, in Manhunter the special ambience that materializes while William Petersen tracks down the maniac is one half of the story, and this ambience cannot be traced back to Harris’ novel. Carefully controlled by Mann, the ambience has a distinct ‘80s quality that is supported by unique characterizations, numerous original lensing choices, and perhaps most importantly a very special soundtrack. In other words, Manhunter offers a highly stylized, unique interpretation of the original material from Harris’ novel, which is undoubtedly the main reason it became a cult film. Red Dragon does the same but with one very notable adjustment. As Edward Norton begins interacting with Anthony Hopkins, Red Dragon creates a memorable ambience too, but this ambience never becomes one half of its story. It simply adds character to it.

So, the answer to the first question is, yes, the story is flexible enough to be told in different ways that do not hurt its integrity. However, both films are also quite flexible in their management of Harris’ original characters.

In Manhunter, the brilliant but evil Dr. Lecktor does not have the gravitational pull of his famous relative Dr. Lecter. Of course, there is a good reason for this, but there is another factor that makes this a moot point. In Red Dragon -- as well as in The Silence of the Lambs and Hannibal -- Dr. Lecter is a completely different character defined entirely by Hopkins’ performance, which is so overpowering that it just about succeeds in erasing the thread that links Dr. Lecter and Dr. Lecktor to Harris. In fact, this is the very reason Red Dragon seeks a closer relationship with The Silence of the Lambs and Hannibal, rather than with Manhunter. After The Silence of the Lambs and Hannibal, Hopkins effectively replaced the character Harris created and the public embraced the change, so it was all but guaranteed that despite utilizing the same material Red Dragon would not be a remake of Manhunter.

Ratner gives Red Dragon a glossy, often very attractive contemporary appearance that is right for the new type of suspense that emerges from its story. However, in a few areas, it is also quite easy to tell that suspense is tweaked for maximum effect. This is not how the suspense is managed in Manhunter and especially The Silence of the Lambs.

The leads are likeable, but definitely not brilliant. Norton and Hopkins, for instance, have an odd chemistry. Norton tries too hard to legitimize a conflicted character that has very little in common with the one Petersen played. Hopkins goes overboard with the posturing and in the process seriously hurts the integrity of the intellectual game that is at the center of the film. Ralph Fiennes does look like a sociopath who spends his time in different realities, but ultimately lacks the paralyzing negative energy this character is supposed to exude. Emily Watson is, perhaps unsurprisingly, too melodramatic. Harvey Keitel is terrific and should have had a lot more time in front of the camera. The late Philip Seymour Hoffman is perfectly cast as the sleazy reporter as well.

Red Dragon 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Kino Lorber's release of Red Dragon is a 4K Blu-ray/Blu-ray combo pack. The 4K Blu-ray is Region-Free. However, the Blu-ray is Region-A "locked".

Please note that some of the screencaptures that appear with this article are taken from the 4K Blu-ray and downscaled to 1080p. Therefore, they do not accurately reflect the quality of the 4K content on the 4K Blu-ray disc, including the actual color values of this content.

Screencaptures #1-24 are from the Blu-ray.
Screencaptures #27-37 are from the 4K Blu-ray.

The native 4K presentation of Red Dragon can be viewed with HDR and Dolby Vision grades. I viewed it in its entirety with Dolby Vision and then did a few quick comparisons with the 1080p presentation of the film.

In native 4K, Red Dragon looks terrific. All visuals, regardless of whether they come from indoor or outdoor footage, boast outstanding delineation, clarity, and depth. Whenever light/lighting is in abundance, the visuals are especially impressive. Fluidity is great too, so on large screen the entire film has a very attractive, very stable appearance. Color balance is outstanding. Primaries are lush and nicely balanced with outstanding ranges of supporting nuances. Interestingly, I compared several areas from the 1080p presentation and must say that the overall color balance there is just as striking. How does the Dolby Vision grade impact color reproduction? To be honest, I did not see a big shift in quality. Darker areas look very, very good, but they look great in 1080p as well. Select ranges of nuances are expanded, but I was more impressed with the superior management of the shadowed spaces than color saturation. Image stability is excellent. The visuals are very healthy, too. All in all, I think that the native 4K and 1080p presentations are outstanding.

Red Dragon 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are two standard audio tracks on this release: English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature. When turned on, they appear inside the image frame.

I viewed the entire film with the DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track. I did not perform any comparisons with the DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 track. The DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track is very easy to like because it has a very impressive range of nuance dynamics. Obviously, this should not surprise because Red Dragon is a very recent film, but it is difficult not to be impressed as well. All exchanges are very clear, sharp, and stable. I did not encounter any encoding issues to report in our review.

Red Dragon 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

4K BLU-RAY DISC

• Commentary One - in this archival audio commentary, director Brett Ratner and screenwriter Ted Tally recall how top brass at Universal pitched Red Dragon' and discuss the film's production history; the ways in which they tried to make it similar to Manhunter, The Silence of the Lambs, and Hannibal yet give it a unique identity (one famous shot was borrowed from The Silence of the Lambs); the dynamic of the relationships between the main characters; how some key sequences were altered; the lighting and lensing of various sequences; etc. It is a very detailed and very interesting audio commentary.

• Commentary Two/Isolated Score - in this archival audio commentary, composer Danny Elfman explains how he scored Red Dragon and discusses some of the particular ways in which the music enhances the drama that unfolds in it.

BLU-RAY DISC

• Commentary One - in this archival audio commentary, director Brett Ratner and screenwriter Ted Tally recall how top brass at Universal pitched Red Dragon' and discuss the film's production history; the ways in which they tried to make it similar to Manhunter, The Silence of the Lambs, and Hannibal yet give it a unique identity (one famous shot was borrowed from The Silence of the Lambs); the dynamic of the relationships between the main characters; how some key sequences were altered; the lighting and lensing of various sequences; etc. It is a very detailed and very interesting audio commentary.

• Commentary Two/Isolated Score - in this archival audio commentary, composer Danny Elfman explains how he scored Red Dragon and discusses some of the particular ways in which the music enhances the drama that unfolds in it.

• Featurettes - the following archival featurettes focus on the production of Red Dragon, its characters, special effects, and visual appearance. Various cast and crew members are interviewed. In English, not subtitled.
  
  1. Anthony Hopkins - Lecter and Me: Featurette. (5 min).
  2. The Burning Wheelchair: Featurette. (4 min).
  3. The Leeds' House Crime Scene: Featurette. (4 min).
  4. Makeup Application: Fetaurette. (1 min).
  5. Inside the Mind of a Serial Killer - Hosted by John Douglas - Fetaurette. (9 min).

• Storyboard to Final Film Comparison - presented here are several storyboard-to-film direct comparisons. (9 min).

• Student Film - presented here is a short film Brett Ratner directed for New York University. Silent (4 min).

• Deleted Scenes - the following deleted scenes can be viewed with an optional audio commentary by Brett Ratner, Ted Tally, and editor Mark Helfirch. In English, not subtitled. (6 min).
  
  1. Will Looks at Sleeping Josh
  2. Chilton and Graham Walking Down Hall
  3. The Cat Grave
  4. Will Talk to Josh About Lecter
  5. Lecter Watches the Leeds' Video
  6. Josh Gets the S'mores Ingredients
  7. Lounds Reads Letter into Tape Recorder

• Alternate Scenes - the following alternate scenes can be viewed with an optional audio commentary by Brett Ratner, Ted Tally, and editor Mark Helfirch. In English, not subtitled. (5 min).
  
  1. Breaking the Code (Without Reading the Message Out Loud)
  2. FBI Listens to Tape (No Screaming)
  3. Flaming Wheelchair
  4. Attic Scene with Dragon Voice

• Extended Scenes - the following alternate scenes can be viewed with an optional audio commentary by Brett Ratner, Ted Tally, and editor Mark Helfirch. In English, not subtitled. (3 min).
  
  1. Graham Investigates the Leeds' Bedroom
  2. Graham Has a Vision in the Tree
  3. Janitor Finds Note in Lecter's Cell

• Trailer - presented here is an original U.S. trailer for Red Dragon. In English, not subtitled. (3 min).

Red Dragon 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

More than twenty years later, it is pointless to still ponder whether a contemporary remake of Manhunter was needed. However, it is impossible to evaluate Red Dragon without instantly linking it to Manhunter, and because of Anthony Hopkins' brilliant transformation into Dr. Lecter, then immediately to The Silence of the Lambs and Hannibal. So, Red Dragon is in the company of some very serious films, and the more you compare it to them, the less impressive it looks. It does some things quite well, but more often than not it struggles to produce genuinely dark and unsettling suspense of the kind that feels faithful to Thomas Harris' writings. Kino Lorber's 4K Blu-ray/Blu-ray combo pack offers outstanding technical presentations of Red Dragon in native 4K and 1080p with a great selection of bonus features. If you enjoy the film, be sure to pick up a copy for your collection. RECOMMENDED.