Silence of the Lambs: Just watch it
Before I begin my review of “Silence of the Lambs”, I feel I must address a mistake I had made in last week’s column. In my “One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest” review I had talked at length about Jack Nicholson’s retirement. Literally the day after the article was released, good old Jack made a press statement just in time to make me look like an uninformed hack saying that the news that he was retiring was false, and that in fact he is in perfect health to continue being in movies once the quality of movies become good again. While I agree with his statement that the quality of movies has been slipping lately, he couldn’t have picked a worse time to say it. I deeply apologize for this mistake I had made, please believe me when I say that I pride myself on the accuracy of my articles, and try my best to get every aspect of them correct.
With that being said, let’s jump into this week’s review, another Oscar best picture winner, “The Silence of the Lambs.”
Released in 1991 and starring Jodie Foster as Clarice Starling, Anthony Hopkins as Dr. Hannibal the cannibal Lecter, and Ted Levine as Buffalo Bill, this movie is about a young F.B.I agent (Foster) who enlists the help of the incarcerated Dr. Hannibal Lecter (Hopkins) to help solve the disappearance of multiple young women at the hands of the mysterious serial killer Buffalo Bill (Levine).
That’s where I’m going to stop. Yep. That’s literally where I’m going to stop.
Now, before everyone losses their minds, I realize that’s not a lot to go off of. Trust me when I say, although,that that’s by design. This movie after all, is a crime thriller. In my mind, the whole point of a crime thriller is to experience it yourself, and to be surprised by all the twists and turns the case makes before coming to a fantastical conclusion.
I would be practicing bad movie ethics if I told you much more than that, let alone ruin the movie. And that quite frankly, is something I would never forgive myself for. (I, unlike Lecter, am capable of feeling overwhelming remorse for the injustice I would have committed. Ha ha.)
What I can do for you, however, is give you some fun and interesting facts about “Silence of the Lambs” that should make you want to watch this movie immediately.
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Throughout the entire movie, Dr. Hannibal Lecter doesn’t blink once. He also repeatedly looks into the camera. This technique in film making is used to make the viewer feel like the character knows they are there. It also helps create a very unsettling mood for the viewer, and a darker tone for the movie.
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Martha Stewart broke up with Anthony Hopkins after seeing the movie. She claimed that she could never see him as anything other then Hannibal Lecter after it, and couldn’t stand being around him.
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Most of this movie was filmed here in Pittsburgh- chosen for it’s variety of landscapes and scenery. (For some of you, that may be a great reason to watch. If you’re very familiar with the Pittsburgh area, you might recognize a few filming locations.)
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The character of serial killer Buffalo Bill is based off of three real life murderers. Ted Bundy, Ed Gein, and Gary Heidnick. (If you’re in the mood to really be freaked out, you may want to check out what those guys did after the movie.)
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It won five Oscars (While I agree that the academy isn’t always right with their decisions, I think they where spot on with giving this movie so many awards. Plus, even if you don’t agree with the academy, you have to give some credit to a movie that won so many of its categories.)
Again, I reiterate, I’m incredibly sorry I can’t give you more to go off then this. I’d say: watch the trailer, take my advice, and give it a shot. Heck, with Halloween coming up, watch it with some friends when you’re in the mood for a good, creepy movie. While everyone else is watching one of the many overdone “Paranormal Activity” movies, you will be watching a classic.
If you’re still not convinced, I’ll leave you with this: the final scene with Buffalo Bill still haunts me to this day.
Have you seen The Silence of the Lambs? If so, leave a comment and vouch for me! Are there any other reasons to see the movie that I left out? Just don’t leave any spoilers! They will not be tolerated!
Paul • Jan 8, 2015 at 3:42 am
He does blink. Please don’t help propagate this myth.
Anonymous • Feb 15, 2015 at 7:59 pm
He blinks often.
Cindy Googe • Oct 30, 2014 at 11:20 am
That was cathartic…
Cindy Googe • Oct 29, 2014 at 7:42 pm
Silence of the Lambs…… I will never recover. I had some additional circumstances
My husband took me for a movie and ice cream went my first child was 6 weeks old. I looked through the paper
” Oh here’s Jody Foster… it ‘s something about lambs. like Jody Foster and lambs are Ok.” My Mother- in-Law
was thrilled to have some one one time with her latest grandchild and off we go. I can’t describe the point in the
movie ….but I ran into the lobby sobbing. The kid making the popcorn didn’t look surprised SOTL had been out
for awhile….. My husband didn’t come out till the movie was over. What a cruel man…he said he thought I had gone to the bathroom. We have been married for 30 years and he still contends,” I thought you went to the bathroom. ( for 45mins ) If there was a “Do Over” I was profoundly disturbed and it hasn’t improved with time.
When I click through channels if SOTL shows up. I can’t click away fast enough !! Before I had children …..I’ve
read all the Serial murder books ( that were published before 1 / 19 /91. I was fascinated with the pathology &
situations. I asked my husband all sorts of ” technical ” questions ( he is a physician. ) At first, he would explain things and then he began to refuse on the grounds that ghastly horrors should not be dealt upon. I point out that he had enough interest in ghastly horror that he left his fragile postpartum wife alone in the lobby! If there was ever a ” Do Over ” this was it!