|
 THE
SILENCE
OF
THE
LAMBS
With
Anthony
Hopkins,
Jodie
Foster,
Scott
Glenn
Directed
by
Jonathan
Demme
At
the
time
of
its
release,
this
second
film
based
on
a
Thomas
Harris
book
set
the
trend
for
countless
flawed
imitations
in
the
serial
killer
genre.
(The
first
film
having
been
Manhunter,
directed
by
Michael
Mann,
based
on
Harris's
Red
Dragon).
In
the
multi-Oscar
winning
Silence
Of
The
Lambs,
Jodie
Foster
portrays
Agent
Starling,
a
new
recruit
used
to
milk
info
from
a
convicted
psychiatrist
turned
cannibal
killer,
Dr
Hannibal
Lecter,
to
track
down
a
once
patient
of
his
turned
serial
killer.
What
ensues
is
an
intense
relationship,
bordering
on
a
dark
romance
(further
elaborated
in
the
follow-up,
Hannibal).
The
tense
scenes
of
the
two
conversing
are
altered
by
moments
of
graphic
realism
as
the
killer
drives
towards
his
objective,
slowly
moving
the
film
forward
to
a
double
climax
unravelled
by
Starling
and
brilliantly
constructed
by
the
crafty
Lecter.
The
film
also
displays
a
dark
sense
of
humour
while
the
easily
spooked
&
squeamish
won't
notice
that.
A
decade
later
the
film
still
has
great
impact,
Hopkins
still
marvelous
and
the
atmosphere
still
as
ominous.
While
Foster
is
a
fine
actress,
it
just
seems
that
the
Oscar
may
have
been
handed
over
a
little
too
hastily,
her
performance
sometimes
too
staged
(her
Taxi
Driver
role
for
one
outstripping
her
here).
The
ensemble
brilliance
of
the
writing,
direction
&
Hopkins'
performance,
as
well
as
the
new
introduction
of
a
brutal
yet
intelligent
villain
into
the
mainstream
world
of
likely
horror,
her
flaws
may
have
been
overlooked.
But,
regardless,
after
a
decade
passed,
the
film
is
still
chilling,
gruesome
and
wonderfully
entertaining.
This
special
10th
Anniversary
Edition
contains
a
number
of
fine
features
including
great
looking
animated
menus,
outtakes
and
documentaries.
A
commentary
track
by
the
elusive
Demme
would've
been
splendid,
though.
5
/
A
-
PB
1
2
3
4
5
6
A
-
B
-
C
Click
below
for
the
trilogy
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