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First look: NBC’s ‘Hannibal’ takes off his human suit for season three

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Hannibal and Will Graham

After last year’s insane season two finale nothing in “Hannibal” was certain. You really had no idea how things would progress into season three and who would survive to be part of it. Four of the show’s main characters were dead or bleeding out.

The beautifully made series has always been a bit of a rebel. In the first two seasons, it established a new world that took only pieces from the Thomas Harris books and inverted those ideas into something else to make for a more immersive and insane world. This is one of the very few cases where the villagers of the internet didn’t take to their social networks with torches and pitchforks angry about the series not sticking close to the source material. And it really is a large jump from that material but at the same time, it is the most well-written love letter ever given to horror literature.

The first few episodes of season three manage to free itself more from that source material and also goes out on a very ballsy limb and separates itself from the atmosphere and structure of the first two seasons.

This season finds Hannibal in Italy. He and Dr. Du Maurier (Gillian Anderson) have set themselves up with some new identities. We get a really good look at the ever-shifting dynamic between these two. Their retro verse “Bride of Frankenstein” relationship is brilliant. They quickly became my favorite couple from anything, ever.

Hannibal, of course, has not stopped eating people. He continues to consume people but as he does he brings Du Maurier a little closer to his world with every meal.

I never thought I would love Anderson coupled with someone more than I did her and Duchovny on “The X-Files” but this relationship proved me wrong. These two are amazing together.

Du Maurier constantly challenges Hannibal’s ways but does not run from them. The longer they are together the more truth she is able to give Hannibal. She even goes so far as to tell him that he will eventually be caught.

The betrayal and broken relationship between Hannibal and Will Graham that fueled the last few minutes of season two is the main focus of the season so far.

Graham is on the hunt for Hannibal. His reasons are not quite clear. A lot of apprehension lies in that very thing. What will he do when he gets to Hannibal? He approaches the chase with forgiveness, but that doesn’t mean that he wouldn’t kill Hannibal given the chance. Graham’s path is more times than not, a scarier one than Hannibal’s. We know what Hannibal is but Will Graham is still on the fence and is more of the wild card when it comes to what will happen.

In season three “Hannibal” manages to kill itself to save itself. The series is one of the most beautifully shot TV shows I have ever seen and the narrative approach is fascinating. But season one and two always suffered from being chained to a weekly crime procedural component. I always figured that was NBC injected the crime procedure aspect of it in order to play it safe with something that they are familiar with. However, “Hannibal” didn’t need to play safe. In fact, it needs to be unrestrained. In season three we get exactly that. You can almost feel Brian Fuller and team take complete control.

Instead of making the manhunt in Italy feel like a large blockbuster production, they go in the opposite direction. The first few episodes feel like an unbridled indie film. It jumps around chronologically, it doesn’t bother explaining itself and it turns the established aesthetic of the show and turns it up to 11.

Brian Reitzell’s score continues to be a character all on its own. His uses of sounds that verge on distorted melody are more haunting and erratic than ever. Keep an ear out for the reprisal of the drip sounds that Will Graham heard in his cell during season two. Reitzell is constantly telling a subliminal story that screams like a jazz band that was raised by brass percussion and horror. “Hannibal” would not be “Hannibal” without his sounds.

The first few episodes of “Hannibal” season three are a great and disorientating start. While it transformed itself from top to bottom it also becomes its own show. I can firmly say now that there is nothing else like this. It feels like being in lucid sleep after eating a rare stake and drinking caffeine while a nearby neighbor plays Italian opera music.

 

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Brad Dourif Says He’s Retiring Except For One Important Role

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Brad Dourif has been doing movies for nearly 50 years. Now it seems he is walking away from the industry at 74 to enjoy his golden years. Except, there is a caveat.

Recently, digital entertainment publication JoBlo’s Tyler Nichols talked to some of the Chucky television series cast members. During the interview, Dourif made an announcement.

“Dourif said that he’s retired from acting,” says Nichols. “The only reason he came back for the show was because of his daughter Fiona and he considers Chucky creator Don Mancini to be family. But for non-Chucky stuff, he considers himself retired.”

Dourif has voiced the possessed doll since 1988 (minus the 2019 reboot). The original movie “Child’s Play” has become such a cult classic it’s at the top of some people’s best chillers of all time. Chucky himself is ingrained in pop culture history much like Frankenstein or Jason Voorhees.

While Dourif may be known for his famous voiceover, he is also an Oscar-nominated actor for his part in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest. Another famous horror role is The Gemini Killer in William Peter Blatty’s Exorcist III. And who can forget Betazoid Lon Suder in Star Trek: Voyager?

The good news is that Don Mancini is already pitching a concept for season four of Chucky which might also include a feature-length movie with a series tie-in. So, Although Dourif says he is retiring from the industry, ironically he is Chucky’s friend till the end.

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Editorial

7 Great ‘Scream’ Fan Films & Shorts Worth a Watch

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The Scream franchise is such an iconic series, that many budding filmmakers take inspiration from it and make their own sequels or, at least, build upon the original universe created by screenwriter Kevin Williamson. YouTube is the perfect medium to showcase these talents (and budgets) with fan-made homages with their own personal twists.

The great thing about Ghostface is that he can appear anywhere, in any town, he just needs the signature mask, knife, and unhinged motive. Thanks to Fair Use laws it’s possible to expand upon Wes Craven’s creation by simply getting a group of young adults together and killing them off one by one. Oh, and don’t forget the twist. You’ll notice that Roger Jackson’s famous Ghostface voice is uncanny valley, but you get the gist.

We have gathered five fan films/shorts related to Scream that we thought were pretty good. Although they can’t possibly match the beats of a $33 million blockbuster, they get by on what they have. But who needs money? If you’re talented and motivated anything is possible as proven by these filmmakers who are well on their way to the big leagues.

Take a look at the below films and let us know what you think. And while you’re at it, leave these young filmmakers a thumbs up, or leave them a comment to encourage them to create more films. Besides, where else are you going to see Ghostface vs. a Katana all set to a hip-hop soundtrack?

Scream Live (2023)

Scream Live

Ghostface (2021)

Ghostface

Ghost Face (2023)

Ghost Face

Don’t Scream (2022)

Don’t Scream

Scream: A Fan Film (2023)

Scream: A Fan Film

The Scream (2023)

The Scream

A Scream Fan Film (2023)

A Scream Fan Film
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Another Creepy Spider Movie Hits Shudder This Month

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Good spider films are a theme this year. First, we had Sting and then there was Infested. The former is still in theaters and the latter is coming to Shudder starting April 26.

Infested has been getting some good reviews. People are saying that it’s not only a great creature feature but also a social commentary on racism in France.

According to IMDb: Writer/director Sébastien Vanicek was looking for ideas around the discrimination faced by black and Arab-looking people in France, and that led him to spiders, which are rarely welcome in homes; whenever they’re spotted, they’re swatted. As everyone in the story (people and spiders) is treated like vermin by society, the title came to him naturally.

Shudder has become the gold standard for streaming horror content. Since 2016, the service has been offering fans an expansive library of genre movies. in 2017, they began to stream exclusive content.

Since then Shudder has become a powerhouse in the film festival circuit, buying distribution rights to movies, or just producing some of their own. Just like Netflix, they give a film a short theatrical run before adding it to their library exclusively for subscribers.

Late Night With the Devil is a great example. It was released theatrically on March 22 and will begin streaming on the platform starting April 19.

While not getting the same buzz as Late Night, Infested is a festival favorite and many have said if you suffer from arachnophobia, you might want to take heed before watching it.

Infested

According to the synopsis, our main character, Kalib is turning 30 and dealing with some family issues. “He’s fighting with his sister over an inheritance and has cut ties with his best friend. Fascinated by exotic animals, he finds a venomous spider in a shop and brings it back to his apartment. It only takes a moment for the spider to escape and reproduce, turning the whole building into a dreadful web trap. The only option for Kaleb and his friends is to find a way out and survive.”

The film will be available to watch on Shudder starting April 26.

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