ITALY: Anthony Hopkins and Julianne Moore promote the latest Hannibal Lector horror movie

Record ID: 706498

  • Title: ITALY: Anthony Hopkins and Julianne Moore promote the latest Hannibal Lector horror movie
  • Date: 4th May 2000
  • Summary: FLORENCE, ITALY (MAY4, 2000) (REUTERS) WIDE OF FLORENCE (2 SHOTS) CLOSE UP OF 'PONTE VECCHIO' (FAMOUS BRIDGE) CLOSE UP OF BRIDGE ARCHWAY CLOSE UP OF BALCONY AND STATUE WIDE OF RIVER AND BRIDGE L/S PALAZZO DELLA SIGNORIA CLOSE UP OF STATUE OF NEPTUNE WIDE PIAZZA DELLA SIGNORIA/ PAN UP TO CLOCK TOWER (2 SHOTS) SMV SIR ANTHONY HOPKINS ARRIVING AT PRESS CONFERENCE INSIDE PALAZZO VECCHIO IN PIAZZA DELLA SIGNORIA SV FILM DIRECTOR RIDLEY SCOTT ARRIVING AT PRESS CONFERENCE SCU HOPKINS TAKING OFF HIS HAT AND SMOOTHING DOWN HAIR SMV ACTRESS JULIANNE MOORE SITTING DOWN SMV ACTRESS FRANCESCA NERI AND ACTOR IVANO MARESCOTTI SMV/PAN HOPKINS KISSING MOORE (2 SHOTS) SCU (SOUNDBITE) (English) SCOTT SAYING: "It's a bizarre idea of having a cannibal, it's so out of place in Florence with all this great food around, that human beings are redundant." CUTAWAY STATUE/ PAN DOWN TO HOPKINS AND MOORE SCU (SOUNDBITE) (English) SCOTT EXPLAINING WHY ACTRESS JODIE FOSTER DECIDED NOT TO RETURN TO HER ROLE AS CLARICE STARLING FOR THE SEQUEL TO FILM 'SILENCE OF THE LAMBS' SAYING: "Two things happened. First of all, it's ten years and God knows Anthony knows Jodie better than I do and Jodie's an interesting woman and has now got a career as a director and a film that she'd been trying to get going for a long time suddenly came up. She got the finances and she got the character she wanted oddly enough - Russell Crowe - who's going to play in the movie and so she had to go this mid-year, that's one thing. I think the thing is it's an intuitive decision whether you go or you don't go with a particular thing once again and I think she decided not. She'd been there before, she didn't want to go back again. It's as simple as that, there's no subtext, it's quite simple." WIDE OF PRESS CONFERENCE SCU (SOUNDBITE) (English) HOPKINS SAYING "I'm an actor and I just feel like Hannibal sitting here - we're all having lunch later." (IN HANNIBAL VOICE) SV HOPKINS EATING LUNCH WIDE OF HOPKINS SMV RIDLEY SCOTT ENTERS ROOM SCU (SOUNDBITE) (English) SCOTT SAYING: "You know it took me 3 sittings to read it even though I was finishing a very big film and once I picked it up, it was one of those books that you must read. Once you started it you must complete it and I think that's what we've done or Steve Zaillian (screenwriter) has done with the screenplay. He made a brilliant adaptation of a 600-page novel which he's got down to 120 pages. On that basis it's all about scripts, on that basis, the film should be wonderful." SMV JULIANNE MOORE ENTERS ROOM SCU (SOUNDBITE)(English) MOORE SAYING: "That's nice, he's great, he's a great actor and nothing helps an actor more than being with an actor of Tony's (Hopkins) character. Honestly, he makes everything so easy because he's so present ad available and always interesting and exciting and that's the best thing that can happen to you to work with someone like him." SCU (SOUNDBITE) (English) HOPKINS SAYING: "She's a very powerful great actress, we get on well together, very happy together. She's very friendly, no movie star nonsense, very nice, very professional and that's all it takes that's as good as it gets." SMV SCOTT TALKING TO JOURNALIST SCU (SOUNDBITE) (English) SCOTT SAYING: "The great ones, do I call 'The Exorcist' a horror movie? Not really, it's beyond that. Do I call 'Silence of the Lambs' a horror movie? No it's beyond that, so I don't call this a horror movie it's really a character study and a love affair." WIDE OF HOPKINS TALKING TO PRESS SCU (SOUNDBITE) (English) HOPKINS SAYING: "You know you ask me questions, I don't know anything about acting, very little. I know how to do certain things, I know how to play certain roles. I see Lecter very clearly because that's the way I'm built I suppose, that's the way I perceive things, the dark side of life. It's not just the dark side of our lives,we all have, it's the most creative side of our lives, so in this case, Hannibal Lecter is a very creative genius." SCU (SOUNDBITE) (English) MOORE SAYING: "He's a human, I think what we're used to in films is monsters portrayed as inhuman and I think that's what makes him so exciting and so interesting to people is that he's so human and very very civilized. However, he's a sociopath if you know what I mean but there's always rational for everything he does and so the fact that he's someone understandable makes him that more interesting." WIDE OF ROOM
  • Embargoed: 19th May 2000 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: FLORENCE, ITALY
  • Country: Italy
  • Reuters ID: LVAAJFYEMFKNLN7TX0WKT2L4K2OS
  • Story Text: Almost a decade after millions witnessed the on-screen escape from custody of Doctor Hannibal "The Cannibal' Lecter, the flesh-eating monster has reappeared in the Tuscan city of Florence.
    Sir Anthony Hopkins has reprised his role of Lecter from the multi award-winning film "Silence of the Lambs" to star in a sequel entitled, "Hannibal", based on the best-selling novel by Thomas Harris.
    In 1991, Sir Anthony Hopkins scooped an Academy Award for Best Actor when he brought terror to the cinema with his portrayal of Dr Hannibal Lecter, the man with a penchant for slices of human liver accompanied by a glass of fine Chianti.Starring opposite American actress Jodie Foster, who played FBI agent Clarice Starling in the film, Hopkins stunned audiences with his performance and established himself as a Hollywood favourite.
    Despite the success of the film, however, it has taken movie moguls nearly ten years to squeeze a sequel to the "Silence of the Lambs" from novelist Thomas Harris.
    "Hannibal", another bestseller, was the result and thanks to the skill of screenwriter Steve Zaillian, the book is to be brought to cinema screens.
    The man charged with the ominous task is British director Ridley Scott, whose recent credits include the epic movie, "Gladiator", "Thelma & Louise" and "Alien" to name a few.
    In "Hannibal", seven years have passed since Dr Lecter escaped from custody and he is now at large in Europe, pursuing interests of his own.Clarice Starling hasn't forgotten Lecter and his voice still haunts her but there's a third character, a victim of Lecter who goes in search of revenge and uses Starling as bait.
    Although "Hannibal" marks the return of Hopkins in the role of Lecter, Foster has decided not to take up the role of Agent Starling again and American actress Julianne Moore has stepped into her shoes, without reservation she says.
    The main cast of "Hannibal" have arrived in the Italian city of Florence for the beginning of production (May 5, 2000) and appeared at the Palazzo Vecchio to discuss the eagerly awaited film.
    Asked why Foster chose not to play Agent Starling again, Scott had a straight answer: "First of all, it's ten years and God knows Anthony knows Jodie better than I do and Jodie's an interesting woman and has now got a career as a director and a film that she'd been trying to get going for a long time suddenly came up.She got the finances and she got the character she wanted oddly enough - Russell Crowe - who's going to play in the movie and so she had to go this mid-year, that's one thing.I think the thing is it's an intuitive decision whether you go or you don't go with a particular thing once again and I think she decided not.She'd been there before, she didn't want to go back again.It's as simple as that, there's no subtext, it's quite simple," he said.
    Hopkins arrived at the conference almost in character, sporting a similar Panama hat and suit to the one he wore in the closing scenes of "Silence of the Lambs" and he admitted that he'd never had any reservations about taking on the role again.When questioned about how he manages to get into the role, he was more modest: "I don't know anything about acting, very little.I know how to do certain things, I know how to play certain roles.I see Lecter very clearly because that's the way I'm built I suppose, that's the way I perceive things, the dark side of life.It's not just the dark side of our lives,we all have, it's the most creative side of our lives, so in this case, Hannibal Lecter is a very creative genius," Hopkins said.
    Academy-Award nominee, Moore is to undergo training with a genuine FBI agent in the United States before starting filming in Richmond, Virginia and North Carolina while the rest of the cast film in Florence for the next five weeks.
    Other actors set to star in the film include Ray LiOtto and Gary Oldman as well as Italian actress Francesca Neri (Live Flesh) and Ivano Marescotti.
    "Hannibal's" budget has been estimated at $80 million, approximately $10 million of it going directly to the author of the book.The film is expected to premiere in the United States in February 2001.
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