The Silence of the Lambs - 1991

Orion Pictures Corporation, Strong Heart/Demme Production

Directed by Jonathan Demme

Cast:

• Agent Clarice Starling – Jodie Foster
• Hannibal Lecter – Anthony Hopkins
• Jack Crawford – Scott Glenn
• Dr. Frederick Chilton – Anthony Heald
• Barney Matthews – Frankie Faison
• Jame “Buffalo Bill” Gumb – Ted Levine
• Senator Ruth Martin – Diane Baker
• Catherine Martin – Brooke Smith
• Lt. Bill Boyle – Charles Napier
• SWAT Commander – Chris Issak

Story: A young FBI trainee with degrees in the law and psychoanalysis is sent on a mission by the head of the Behavioral Analysis Unit. She is to interview the notorious serial killer, Dr. Hannibal Lector, nicknamed Hannibal the Cannibal. It begins as a routine visit, she is polite and courteous, but when the inmate in the next cell assaults her, Lector offers her a clue to some of his past records and perhaps even a clue to the identity of a serial killer they are looking for, a man called Buffalo Bill. Clarice follows his clue to a long term storage facility where she uncovers the disembodied head of a former patient of Lector's. Lector offers to help Clarice solve the crime and catch Buffalo Bill for a price, an exchange of information and insight into Clarice. Unbeknownst to all, Dr. Lector is using all of the people involved as pawns in an intricate game.

Review: There is something about this film that will continue to haunt me forever. Perhaps it is the idea that someone like Lector could actually exist. That thought exists due to the phenomenal acting of Anthony Hopkins. While there are many actors whom I would enjoy the privilege of sharing time with, I think to this day if I were to meet Anthony Hopkins, I would like it to be in an open room with plenty of people. That is how convincing his portrayal of Lector strikes me, and I know many people who feel the same way. Scott Glenn's portrayal of Jack Crawford is cool and calm, exactly what you might expect of a senior agent and department head in the FBI. Jodie Foster's portrayal of the ambitious Clarice Starling is as compelling and haunting as Hopkins', which would account for both of them winning their respective Academy Awards. Demme and the film itself also received Oscars, as did the screenwriters of this exceptional film. The film itself is superbly written, perfectly cast, and splendidly presented in every aspect. Details are important to Demme, obviously, so important that filming was done at Quantico for the academy shots, using actual FBI personnel in the training sequences. Perhaps the most riveting quality of the film is the portrayal of Buffalo Bill, and the ability of Ted Levine to carry off that twisted and complex role. Ted shows us how innocuous evil can be, and presents it with such flair and elegance we can imagine such a man being in a rural town like that, hiding his crimes beneath a veil of anonymity and isolation. Rated R for violence, language, gore, and some partial nudity, this is definitely not a film for the kids or even the young teens, if you ever want them to trust your neighbors and you live in a small town. Collectible? Without a doubt, one of the finest dramas ever brought to the screen.