The Silence of the Lambs
3.5/4
Starring: Jodie Foster, Anthony Hopkins, Scott Glenn, Anthony Heald, Ted Levine, Brooke Smith, Kasi Lemmons
Rated R for Strong Grisly Violent Content including Disturbing Images and Torture, Some Strong Violence, Sexual Content and Language including Sexual References
The term "psychological thriller" is used to describe films that rely on plot and character rather than explosions and gunfights to get the adrenaline up. This was Hitchcock's playground, and other entries include "Match Point," "The Net," and "The Ninth Gate." But that's really a catch-all term for cerebral thrillers. "The Silence of the Lambs" is a true psychological thriller; the suspense comes not from the plot, but from the mind games that the two lead characters play.
FBI trainee Clarice Starling (Foster) is sent on a fairly routine mission. She must get a brilliant psychopath, Dr. Hannibal "The Cannibal" Lector (Hopkins) to undergo a psychological profile. Everyone else has failed to get him to cooperate, so this is a last ditch effort. Surprisingly, Lector agrees. But Starling's boss, Jack Crawford (Glenn), has ulterior motives. He intends to use Starling to get Lector, who is a former psychiatrist, to help them track down a serial killer nicknamed Buffalo Bill, who skins his victims. In order for that to happen, Starling has to allow Lector to examine her.
Without a doubt, the most famous (or is that infamous?) element of the film is Hannibal himself. Everyone knows his name, and there's not a single doubt why. Hopkins is positively terrifying in the role. With his smooth voice and careful facial acting (he never blinks), the classical British actor gives the performance of a lifetime. Never has there been a villain this complex or frightening. Lector is not a one-dimensional psycho. Far from it in fact. He is a cultured and sophisticated killer who enjoys toying with his victims, especially the hospital's psychiatrist, Dr. Frederick Chilton (Heald), whom he despises to no end.
His co-star, Jodie Foster, has a less flashy role, but is just as well-developed and acted. Starling is spunky and tough, and although Lector frightens her, he fascinates her as well. Lector realizes this and finds this amusing. They only share a few scenes together, but they are unquestionably the best in the film. A twisted teacher-student relationship forms between them, one of intelligence and respect. They grow to understand each other. Lecter is all too willing to give her the information that she needs, but he makes her work for it and do something for him in return. It's "quid pro quo," as he calls it.
Sadly, the scenes with Buffalo Bill are just not as compelling. It's really unfair to compare them to the Lecter/Starling scenes, but it's inevitable since they occur in the same movie. Director Jonathan Demme tries ot liven them up by not shielding how demented they truly are, but the screenplay by Ted Tally just doesn't give the character enough depth.
Speaking of Jonathan Demme, the director's work is superb. Known primarily as a documentary filmmaker, Demme gets us into the minds of his characters in a way that I haven't seen before. He often has his actors look into the camera in close-ups so we can see their facial features. While certain characters appeal to certain people, recognizing and interpreting body language is instinctive and universal. It adds a whole new dimension of fear to an already chilling story. Demme also has the camera look around a room as a character (usually Starling) enters it. We become inextricably bonded to the character and see how she sees the world. Starling is a petite woman (Foster is 5'3" in real life) in a male-dominated profession, which Demme takes care to convey.
"The Silence of the Lambs" took the world by storm. Despite being released in February, a studio's dumping month and well-before the typical window of Oscar-bait releases, it was one of three films in Hollywood history to win the so-called "Oscar Grand Slam:" Best Picture, Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay (for the record, the other two were "It Happened One Night" and "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest"). I'm not particularly surprised. Flawed as it may be, it's a movie the one doesn't forget.
Starring: Jodie Foster, Anthony Hopkins, Scott Glenn, Anthony Heald, Ted Levine, Brooke Smith, Kasi Lemmons
Rated R for Strong Grisly Violent Content including Disturbing Images and Torture, Some Strong Violence, Sexual Content and Language including Sexual References
The term "psychological thriller" is used to describe films that rely on plot and character rather than explosions and gunfights to get the adrenaline up. This was Hitchcock's playground, and other entries include "Match Point," "The Net," and "The Ninth Gate." But that's really a catch-all term for cerebral thrillers. "The Silence of the Lambs" is a true psychological thriller; the suspense comes not from the plot, but from the mind games that the two lead characters play.
FBI trainee Clarice Starling (Foster) is sent on a fairly routine mission. She must get a brilliant psychopath, Dr. Hannibal "The Cannibal" Lector (Hopkins) to undergo a psychological profile. Everyone else has failed to get him to cooperate, so this is a last ditch effort. Surprisingly, Lector agrees. But Starling's boss, Jack Crawford (Glenn), has ulterior motives. He intends to use Starling to get Lector, who is a former psychiatrist, to help them track down a serial killer nicknamed Buffalo Bill, who skins his victims. In order for that to happen, Starling has to allow Lector to examine her.
Without a doubt, the most famous (or is that infamous?) element of the film is Hannibal himself. Everyone knows his name, and there's not a single doubt why. Hopkins is positively terrifying in the role. With his smooth voice and careful facial acting (he never blinks), the classical British actor gives the performance of a lifetime. Never has there been a villain this complex or frightening. Lector is not a one-dimensional psycho. Far from it in fact. He is a cultured and sophisticated killer who enjoys toying with his victims, especially the hospital's psychiatrist, Dr. Frederick Chilton (Heald), whom he despises to no end.
His co-star, Jodie Foster, has a less flashy role, but is just as well-developed and acted. Starling is spunky and tough, and although Lector frightens her, he fascinates her as well. Lector realizes this and finds this amusing. They only share a few scenes together, but they are unquestionably the best in the film. A twisted teacher-student relationship forms between them, one of intelligence and respect. They grow to understand each other. Lecter is all too willing to give her the information that she needs, but he makes her work for it and do something for him in return. It's "quid pro quo," as he calls it.
Sadly, the scenes with Buffalo Bill are just not as compelling. It's really unfair to compare them to the Lecter/Starling scenes, but it's inevitable since they occur in the same movie. Director Jonathan Demme tries ot liven them up by not shielding how demented they truly are, but the screenplay by Ted Tally just doesn't give the character enough depth.
Speaking of Jonathan Demme, the director's work is superb. Known primarily as a documentary filmmaker, Demme gets us into the minds of his characters in a way that I haven't seen before. He often has his actors look into the camera in close-ups so we can see their facial features. While certain characters appeal to certain people, recognizing and interpreting body language is instinctive and universal. It adds a whole new dimension of fear to an already chilling story. Demme also has the camera look around a room as a character (usually Starling) enters it. We become inextricably bonded to the character and see how she sees the world. Starling is a petite woman (Foster is 5'3" in real life) in a male-dominated profession, which Demme takes care to convey.
"The Silence of the Lambs" took the world by storm. Despite being released in February, a studio's dumping month and well-before the typical window of Oscar-bait releases, it was one of three films in Hollywood history to win the so-called "Oscar Grand Slam:" Best Picture, Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay (for the record, the other two were "It Happened One Night" and "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest"). I'm not particularly surprised. Flawed as it may be, it's a movie the one doesn't forget.
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