10 Best Acting Performances In The Hannibal Lecter Trilogy
2. Ralph Fiennes As Francis Dolarhyde/"The Tooth Fairy"
Ralph Fiennes appears in 2002’s Red Dragon as serial killer Francis Dolarhyde. He works as the production manager for a VHS Home Video Production Company and uses these tapes to case the houses of his victims.
He earned the
nickname ‘The Tooth Fairy’ from the press due to his tendency to bit his
victims. Fiennes essentially portrays two characters through the film, as Dolarhyde
has two distinct personalities: one quiet, timid and traumatised as a result
his abusive grandmother and the one of ‘The Great Red Dragon’ - his “reborn”
form which he believes the killings help him embody.
Dolarhyde has a variety of complex emotions which Fiennes is able to perfectly display. This ranges from the sick sense of pride he feels when showing images of his victims to Lounds, to the fear and pain he feels as he begs the Red Dragon painting to spare McClane, to the anger he feels towards Graham at the films climax as he is reminded of his painful childhood.
In all these situations, Fiennes makes the emotions believable to the audience, something which is especially notable in the scenes with the Red Dragon painting. Here, Fiennes is essentially carrying a conversation with nothingness in a way that accurately portrays to the audience the loss of reality in Dolarhyde’s mind.