HANNIBAL LECTER

''Hannibal Tetralogy'' character
Anthony Hopkins as Hannibal Lecter in The Silence of the Lambs
Hannibal Lecter
Birth name	Hannibal Lecter (VIII)
Titles	Count Hannibal Lecter VIII Hannibal Lecter M.D.
Aliases	Lloyd Wyman "Dr. Fell"
Nickname	"Hannibal the Cannibal"
Gender	Male
Race	Caucasian
Birth	1933
Ancestry	Lithuanian nobility (Paternal) Italian nobility (Maternal)
Relatives	Mischa Lecter (Sister) Count Robert Lecter (Uncle) Lady Murasaki Lecter (Aunt and guardian)
M.O.	Organized serial murder, Revenge Cannibalism, Torture
Occupation(s)	Surgeon, Psychiatrist, Culinary Artist, Artist, Library Curator
Current status:	At large
Portrayed by:	'Brian Cox' - Manhunter 'Anthony Hopkins' - The Silence of the Lambs, Hannibal, Red Dragon 'Gaspard Ulliel' - Hannibal Rising 'Aaron Thomas' - Hannibal Rising

'Hannibal Lecter' is a fictional character in a series of novels by author Thomas Harris. Lecter is introduced in the 1981 thriller novel ''Red Dragon'' as a brilliant psychiatrist and cannibalistic serial killer. Lecter's role in the novel is minor, but in the sequel, ''The Silence of the Lambs'', he becomes one of two primary antagonists. In the third novel, ''Hannibal'', Lecter becomes the main character. His role as protagonist continues into the fourth novel, ''Hannibal Rising'', which explores his childhood and development into a serial killer. Lecter's character also appears in all five film adaptations. The first film (''Manhunter'', (1986) was loosely based on ''Red Dragon'', and features Brian Cox as Lecter, inexplicably spelled as "Lecktor". In 2002, a second film adaptation of ''Red Dragon'' was made under the original title, featuring Anthony Hopkins, who had previously portrayed Lecter in ''The Silence of the Lambs'' and ''Hannibal''. Hopkins won an Academy Award for his portrayal of the character in ''The Silence of the Lambs'' in 1991.
Lecter (as portrayed by Hopkins) has been named by The American Film Institute to be the most memorable villain in film history.^[1]

Contents

Character origin and development

Appearance

Fictional character biography

Ancestry

The Making of the Monster

American Career

Incarceration

Winning Clarice

Film portrayal

Notes and references

External links

Character origin and development

Harris has never explained where he got inspiration for Hannibal Lecter, but in a documentary for ''Hannibal Rising'', Lecter's early murders were said by the filmmakers to be based on murders that Harris had covered when he was a crime scene reporter in the 1960s.^[2]
In 1992, Harris also paid a visit to the ongoing trials of Pietro Pacciani, who was suspected of being the serial killer nicknamed the "Monster of Florence". Parts of the killer's modus operandi were used as reference for the novel ''Hannibal''.

Appearance

Hannibal Lecter is described in the novels as being small and sleek, and with wiry strength in his arms.^[3] In ''Red Dragon'' and ''The Silence of the Lambs'', Lecter's left hand has the condition called mid ray duplication sexdactyly, or his left hand has an extra digit; a duplicated middle finger.^[4] In ''Hannibal'', he has since had his extra digit removed, while ''Hannibal Rising'' makes no mention of this physical abnormality.
Lecter's eyes are shade of maroon, and reflect the light in "pinpoints of red".^[5] He is also said to have small white teeth^[6] and dark hair.

Fictional character biography

::''The following account of the character's biography is based strictly on the novel series. All date contradictions are purported to be by Lecter himself, with the dates in 'Hannibal Rising' purporting to be the correct ones.''

Ancestry

''Hannibal Rising'' reveals that Hannibal Lecter is the eighth generation descendant of the warlord "Hannibal the Grim" who defeated the Teutonic Order at the Battle of Grunwald (1410). Lecter's mother, Madame Simonetta Sforza, is descended from both the Visconti and Sforza families who separately ruled Milan for a total of 250 years.

The Making of the Monster

Lecter's childhood is first detailed in ''Hannibal'', and is but fully detailed in ''Hannibal Rising''.
Hannibal Lecter was born on January 20, 1933 to a wealthy, aristocratic Lithuanian family. After the death of his parents in World War II, Lecter and his younger sister Mischa are held against their will by a group of looters during the severe winter of 1944. Unable to find food, the looters resort to cannibalism, and choose Mischa to be consumed. As with most real life serial killers, the experience of witnessing the murder of his sister leaves Lecter severely traumatized, and it is observed to haunt him even into his later years.
Orphaned, Lecter is retrieved from an orphanage a year later by his uncle Robert. He is brought to his uncle's home in France to live with him and his Japanese wife named Lady Murasaki. During this time, Lecter becomes immersed in both his uncle's artwork and his aunt's Japanese traditions. Several years later a butcher makes a profane comment to his aunt while she is shopping in the market. Enraged at the comment, Lecter later kills the butcher, which is the first murder in the series of many. His uncle dies of a heart attack soon after.
Lecter is accepted into medical school at the age of 16, however his memory of Mischa's murder becomes an obsession. Convinced that he must avenge Mischa, Lecter hunts relentlessly for the group who killed her. Upon finding them, he then systematically butchers them, cannibalizing several of them. Lady Murasaki disowns him after seeing what he had become. Lecter moves to the United States when he gets an internship at John's Hopkins University.

American Career

After graduating from Johns Hopkins University, Lecter establishes a psychiatric practice in Baltimore, Maryland, and becomes a celebrated figure in the city's most prominent social circles. Lecter had also worked as an emergency room physician in Baltimore.
Lecter's desire to kill did not stop when he had avenged Mischa, and continued even after he received his prestigious position in society. During this time, Lecter killed nine more people and wounded three others. Lecter is caught by the FBI when he is assisting them on his own case.
Lecter receives nine consecutive life terms in the Chesapeake State Hospital for the Criminally Insane, later the Baltimore State Hospital for the Criminally Insane. Being exposed for his crimes of murder and cannibalism, Lecter is nicknamed "Hannibal the Cannibal" during the media coverage of his trial.

Incarceration

Lecter is the subject of study for many institutions during his incarceration for the next eight years, including the FBI who seek his assistance on two serial killer cases. The official profile of Lecter labeled him with the condition of sociopathy; however, this is later stated to be inaccurate as an incident involving Lecter during his incarceration would make his true condition elude psychologists and profilers. In 1976, while imprisoned, Lecter savagely attacks a nurse, and his heart rate was noted to not accelerate above 85 BPM. This calm rate was incorporated into the story simply to convey Lecter's inability to exhibit an emotional consciousness, as opposed to an accelerated heart rate that would be exhibited by both sociopaths and healthy people.

During his incarceration, Lecter forms a respectful relationship with the head nurse of the violent ward, a man named Barney Matthews. This contrasts his relationship with the facility's chief of staff, Frederick Chilton, whom Lecter despises for his inflated ego and his mistreatment of him. The pair's mutual hatred of one another would result in Lecter not speaking to Chilton for many years. During this time, Lecter drives a patient, "Multiple" Miggs, in the adjacent cell to suicide when the patient throws semen at Clarice Starling, who is seeking Lecter's advice in capturing serial killer Jame Gumb, a.k.a. "Buffalo Bill". Soon after, Lecter escapes after being transferred temporarily to Memphis.

Winning Clarice

Lecter next appears seven years later during the events of ''Hannibal''. He is discovered to be residing in Florence, Italy, under the alias "Dr. Fell". There, he is the curator of the prestigious Capponi Library (having murdered the position's previous occupant). He reads in an American newspaper that Starling, now a full-fledged FBI agent, has been blamed for a botched drug raid and is in danger of losing her job. He sends her a hand-written note of encouragement, reigniting the manhunt. Wanting to draw Lecter from hiding, Starling's superior Paul Krendler joins forces with Mason Verger in an attempt to frame Starling. After Krendler convinces the FBI that Starling has an inappropriate relationship with Lecter, Starling is placed upon investigative leave.
In Florence, Lecter learns that a corrupt detective named Rinaldo Pazzi has discovered him and informed Verger of his location. He kills Pazzi and returns to the United States to stalk Starling. During this time, Lecter is captured by Verger. Knowing that Verger has Lecter, Starling attempts a rescue of him in order to turn him over to the FBI. She is wounded in the attempt and Lecter kidnaps her, after convincing Verger's sister, Margot, a former patient, to kill her brother.
Lecter holds Starling in captivity and uses a variety of mind-altering drugs and psychological conditioning techniques to sublimate her personality and transform her into a surrogate for his sister Mischa. Starling's personality remains intact, however, and she mocks his attempts to break her spirit. Lecter kidnaps and lobotomizes Krendler, and the two dine on his still-living brain. Then, in the novel's most controversial sequence, Clarice opens the front of her dress and offers her breast to Lecter. Lecter accepts Clarice's offer and the two become lovers. They disappear together, only to be sighted in Buenos Aires three years later by Lecter's former orderly, Barney.

Film portrayal

Brian Cox portrayed Hannibal "Lecktor" in the 1986 film ''Manhunter.'' Cox said his characterization was inspired by Scottish serial killer Peter Manuel.^[7] British actor Sir Anthony Hopkins, is the one who portrayed the character in three of the five films. Hopkins's portrayal of the character in the ''Silence of the Lambs'' won him an Academy Award in 1992, even though his screentime in the film as Lecter only spans just under seventeen minutes. It still stands as the shortest lead role to ever win an Academy Award. Hopkins claimed that he drew inspiration for his portrayal of Lecter from HAL-9000, the villainous computer from Stanley Kubrick's ''.^[8]
Gaspard Ulliel portrays Lecter as a young man in the 2007 film ''Hannibal Rising''. Ulliel stated that he based his portrayal on Hopkins' and mixed it with his own style.
Aaron Thomas portrays Lecter as a child in ''Hannibal Rising''.

Notes and references

1. AFI's 100 Heroes & Villains
2. Hannibal Rising Exclusive Sneak Peek at YouTube retrieved September 4 2007
3. ''The Silence of the Lambs'' p.16, para. 2: "She could see that he was small, sleek, and in his hands and arms she saw wiry strength like her own"
4. ''Silence of the Lambs'' p.15, para. 2: "Dr. Lecter has six fingers on his left hand".
5. ''Silence of the Lambs'' p.16, para 4: "Dr. Lecter's eyes are maroon, and they reflect the light in pinpoints of red"
6. ''The Silence of the Lambs'' p.17, para. 4: "He tapped his small white teeth against the card and breathed in it's smell".
7. http://www.imdb.com/nm0004051/bio
8. http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/silence_of_the_lambs/about

External links

★ Information about Hannibal Lecter, with a strong central focus on Manhunter (1986)

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★ Crime Library profile of Lecter

★ Hannotations

★ German fanpage with downloads

★ The Hannibal Lecter Studiolo

★ The Hannibal Lecter Studiolo Forum