Unlike the MPAA we do not assign
one
inscrutable rating based on age, but 3 objective ratings for SEX/NUDITY, VIOLENCE/GORE
and PROFANITY on a scale of 0 to 10, from lowest to highest,
depending on quantity and context.
In this sequel to 1991's "The Silence of the
Lambs," the cerebral cannibal Dr. Hannibal Lecter (Anthony Hopkins), now living under
an alias in Florence, returns to the U.S. to stop FBI agent Clarice Starling (Julianne
Moore) from reinvestigating his case. Also with Giancarlo Giannini, Ray Liotta, Alex
Corrado, Gary Oldman and Zeljko Ivanek. [2:11]
SEX/NUDITY 4 - References to male and female genitalia, pedophilia and
homosexuality. A man briefly kisses a woman. Two men flirt and dance together. We see
several sketches of a naked woman, some photos of corpses that might be naked, the
backside of a man in his underwear, a woman in her bra and underwear, and a woman wearing
a cleavage-revealing top in one extended scene (her very low-cut dress shows parts of her
bare breasts between her two nipples, but no nipples are visible).
VIOLENCE/GORE 10 - A person cuts off the top of another's skull (we see
several shots of the bloody brain), cuts a piece of the brain out and fries it, then makes
the person eat the piece of brain. A person rips out what seems to be the liver or stomach
of another; we see blood coming out of the person's gut and then watch the person die in
pain. A person grabs another by the head and begins eating the person's face; we see blood
dripping out of the cannibal's mouth. A person rips apart another and eats some of the
body; we hear the victim's pained cries and the perpetrator's chewing and slurping noises.
A person slices another's throat; we see blood gush out, and then the person dies in a
pool of blood. Screaming and wailing sounds prompt trained-to-kill boars to attack a human
dummy; later they attack and eat a person (we see lots of blood while they're eating and
pulling skin off the person's face). In another scene, a person is tossed off a loft,
falls hard on the ground, and is then eaten to death by the boars. Someone's guts are
chopped out; we see the guts hanging from the body and then falling to the ground (they
are very bloody). A person is hanged (the body dangles from a balcony); a person is
crushed between two cars and then shot to death (blood gushes out of the person's mouth);
a person is shot in the chest several times; a person holding a baby is shot in the chest
and killed, resulting in spurting blood (the baby is unharmed); and a person is shot in
the back with a tranquilizer and punched in the face a few times. Someone is run over by a
car (blood splatters on the windshield), and another person is nearly run over.
A person slams a cleaver down and appears to chop off another's hand (we see the person's pained expression); we soon realize, however, that the person's hand hasn't been
cut. A person
grabs another, briefly smothers him, tapes his mouth shut and then ties him up. A person's
hair is pinned in a refrigerator door, and then the person is threatened. Some threatening
with guns; several shots are fired. We see blood dripping down someone's face; also, a
person cuts open his face with a piece of glass (blood drips down his face). We see relief
carvings of a man being hanged (we see his cut-open stomach with the bowels hanging out).
Several times we see a person with a scarred, disfigured face. We see several photos of
bloody body parts and bloody corpses (which have been physically marred, bruised, beaten,
eaten, etc.). We see a close-up of a needle piercing a person's skin. A man feeds fried
brains (presumably human brains) to a young boy. A man picks up a dead pigeon.
the review continues below...
PROFANITY 5 - Two F-words, several anatomical references, a few mild
obscenities and religious profanities, and a few insults. [profanity glossary]
DISCUSSION TOPICS - Cannibalism, FBI investigations, serial killing,
justice, manipulation, mind games, courage, art history, right vs. wrong, personal vs.
professional ethics.
MESSAGE - A good brain is a terrible thing to waste. Cannibals are people
too.
A CAVEAT: We've gone through several editorial changes since we
started covering films in 1992 and some of our early standards were
not as stringent as they are now. We therefore need to revisit many
older reviews, especially those written prior to 1998 or so; please
keep this in mind if you're consulting a review from that period.
While we plan to revisit and correct older reviews our resources are
limited and it is a slow, time-consuming process.
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