Much better made than Manhunter and the prelude with Agent Graham capturing Hannibal provides a nice lead-in. However the story is a bit uncredible and both Dolarhyde's disfiburment (a slight hare lip) and Graham's supposed psychological trauma causing him to be invalided out of the FBI to a comfortable retirement at a young age were unconvincing as hooks to hang the story on.

So as with Manhunter it comes down to a race-against-time chase - which is handled much better than Manhunter - but the film as a whole remains flawed and not fully engrossing.