Red Dragon is way better than Hannibal, but still comes up short next to The Silence of the Lambs. With Red Dragon, it's basically a return to the same format of Lambs, in which Agent Will Graham (Edward Norton) uses the expertise of Hannibal Lecter (Anthony Hopkins) in tracking down another serial killer; The Tooth Fairy (Ralph Fiennes) on the loose. This part obviously isn't original as it has the exact same beats from the first film. But what makes Dragon work is that you can watch this without being bombarded with comparing one actor to another. Well, kinda. Once again, the film series is saddled with having to replace another actor, but this time it's the role of Jack Crawford instead. In the original Lambs, it was portrayed by Scott Glenn, in Dragon its by Harvey Keitel.

At times while watching Dragon, I of course would put Glenn into the role whenever Keitel would appear on screen. But given that the role in Lambs was a minor character, it's not as glaring as replacing Jodie Foster. So, I could actually get into this movie far easier than that of Hannibal. Overall, I just think the pacing is very good with engaging characters by the likes of Edward Norton, Ralph Fiennes and Emily Watson. And it was especially cool to at least get the same cast returning where Lecter is serving out his life sentence with Dr. Chilton and Barney.

This is definitely worth a Rent for sure. If you Buy the DVD, you'll want to pick up the 2 Disc Director's Edition. More bang for your buck.