Hannibal Rising: Movie: D Extras: B-

After "Silence of the Lambs" was released, moviegoers came to a general consensus that each of the following Hannibal Lecter sequels would be OK -- not incredibly awful, but less original and with less shock value (and less Jodie Foster) than the original. And even though it's technically a prequel, "Hannibal Rising" feels as though it fits with its other post-1991 predecessors. \nThe movie begins with 8-year-old Hannibal Lecter and the rest of his family leaving their home in Lithuania during World War II to escape German bombs. German planes suddenly fly overhead and begin shooting, killing everyone on the ground and leaving Hannibal to care for his little sister Mischa.\nBut not long after Hannibal watches his parents die, a group of looting German soldiers storm the cabin they are staying in. Starving and unable to find food, they force Hannibal and Mischa to provied them with sustenance. \nThe plot then fast-forwards eight years to Hannibal living in an orphanage. He never speaks; he only screams during his nightmares. Disturbed and troubled, he is determined to get revenge for what has been done to him and is intent on finding the German men who tore his life to pieces years ago.\nAlthough this film falls in line with the other mediocre Hannibal Lecter sequels, it makes for an interesting viewing because of its sympathy-for-the-devil angle. The movie sheds light on what brought out the monster in Hannibal, and viewers may sympathize with him. Ulliel does a good job of mirroring Anthony Hopkins' Hannibal in a younger form, even if he is never quite as scary. \nThe DVD extras offer commentary from director Peter Webber and producer Martha de Laurentiis, who offer insight into the film and point out little details from each scene. There is also a behind-the-scenes featurette, "Hannibal Rising," trailers and teasers, deleted scenes and a look at how production designer Allan Starski created the sets. The deleted scenes are mainly extensions of other scenes kept in the unrated version of the movie, so there is nothing too extreme like alternate endings here. It would've been interesting to hear from Lecter mastermind Thomas Harris, who wrote the Hannibal novels and the screenplay for this film, in the audio commentary, but like the film itself, the extras fail to rise past mediocrity.