The Silence of the Lambs.doc

The Silence of the Lambsa film reflect the American society crimeThe Silence of the Lambs, based on the same name novel written by the famous novelist Thomas Harris, is deeply reflect the American society crime. The film inherited the tradition of the Hollywood horror film, but it has broken through the narrative mode of horror film, make an original way to detective thriller with artfully combined into a whole. This is a chilling psychological suspense film, the two leading role battle of wits, the former would like to use the latter escaped, the latter would like to use the formers psychological analysis to search for another killer. They had fantastic performances.Hannibal Lecter, a serial killer nicknamed Hannibal the Cannibal, once liked to feast on his victims, daintily, in a meal designed to complement the particular nature of the main dish. He would, for example, choose a nice Chianti to accompany a savory liver. A fine Bordeaux would compete. Hannibal Lecter is a brilliant if bent psychiatrist, now under lock and key in a maximum-security facility. Still at large, though, is a new serial killer, known as Buffalo Bill for reasons that cant be reported here. Bills habit is to skin his victims. At the beginning of The Silence of the Lambs, Jack Crawford (Scott Glenn), the F.B.I.s man in charge of Bills case, seeks the assistance of a bright young agent, Clarice Starling (Jodie Foster). Her assignment: to interview Hannibal (Anthony Hopkins), arouse his interest and secure his help in drawing a psychological profile of the new killer. The principal concern of The Silence of the Lambs is the entrapment of Buffalo Bill before he can kill again. Yet the heart of the movie is the eerie and complex relationship that develops between Clarice and Hannibal during a series of prison interviews, conducted through inch-thick bulletproof glass. Hannibal, as grandly played by Mr. Hopkins, is a most seductive psychopath, a fellow who listens to the Goldberg Variations and can sketch the Duomo from memory. Its not his elegant tastes that attract Clarice, and certainly not his arrogant manner or his deaths-head good looks. His smile is frosty, and his eyes never change expression. Its his mind that draws her to him. It pierces and surprises. Hannibal is one movie killer who is demonstrably as brilliant and wicked as he is reported to be. In their first interview, Hannibal sizes up Clarice from her expensive bag and cheap shoes, her West Virginia accent and her furrow-browed, youthful determination not to appear intimidated. Hannibal isnt unkind to her. He is at first skeptical and then amused. Finally he is seduced by her, at least to the extent that his egomania allows. She is flesh and blood and something more. As played by Miss Foster, Clarice is as special in her way as Hannibal is in his. She is exceptionally pretty, but her appeal has more to do with her character, which is still in the process of being formed. Shes unsure of herself, yet clear-headed enough to recognize her limitations. Clarice has the charm of absolute honesty, something not often seen in movies or, for that matter, in life. Shes direct, kind, always a bit on edge and eager to make her way. When Hannibal finally agrees to help Clarice, its with the understanding that for every bit of information he gives her, she will tell him something about herself. Because Hannibal, by nature and by profession, is an expert in prying, the questions he asks, and the answers he receives, both frighten and soothe the young woman. For Hannibal, they are a turn-on. Through the bulletproof glass, in dizzy succession, Hannibal and Clarice become analyst and analyzed, teacher and pupil, father and daughter, lover and beloved, while always remaining cat and mouse. Miss Foster, in her first role since winning an Oscar for The Accused, and Mr. Hopkins, an actor of cool and eloquent precision, give exciting substance to the roles written by Ted Tally, who adapted the screenplay from a novel by Thomas Harris. An earlier Thomas novel, Red Dragon, in which the homicidal doctor also appears, was the basis of the 1986 film Man hunter. Miss Foster and Mr. Hopkins are so good, in fact, that Clarice and Hannibal sometimes seem more important than the mechanics of The Silence of the Lambs, which is, otherwise, committed to meeting the obligations of a suspense melodrama. Mr. Demme meets most of these obligations with great style. The buildup to the dread Hannibals first scene is so effective that one almost flinches when he appears. Never after that, for good reason, does Hannibal become trusted, though he is always entertaining to have around. Eventually, though, the demands of the plot begin to take precedence over people and plausibility. Hannibal not only can help with the Buffalo Bill case, but he also knows who Buffalo Bill is. About halfway through, so does the audience, at which point the movie shifts to a lower, more functional gear even as the pace increases. The screenplay, which is very effective in detailing character, is occasionally hard pressed to feed the audience enough information so that it can follow the increasingly breathless manhunt without a roadmap. Im told it helps if one has read the book, but reading the book shouldnt be a requirement to enjoy the film. At a crucial point the audience must also accept, as perfectly reasonable and likely, some instant surgery that allows the story to continue moving forward. This may be hair-splitting. The Silence of the Lambs is not meant to be a handy home guide to do-it-yourself face liftings. Yet the movie is so persuasive most of the time that the wish is that it be perfect. Although the continuity is sometimes unclear, the movie is clearly the work of adults. The dialogue is tough and sharp, literate without being literary. Mr. Demme is a director of both humor and subtlety. The gruesome details are vivid without being exploited. He also handles the big set pieces with skill. The final confrontation between Clarice and the man she has been pursuing is a knockout - a scene set in pitch dark, with Clarice being stalked by a killer who wears night-vision glasses. Mr. Glenn is stalwart as Clarices F.B.I. mentor, but the role is no match for those of his two co-stars. The good supporting cast includes Anthony Heald, as another doctor who might be as nutty as Hannibal, and Ted Levine, as a fellow who spends more time making his own clothes than is entirely healthy. Roger Corman, the self-styled king of B-pictures, who gave Mr. Demme his start in film making, appears briefly as the director of the F.B.I. It is easy to explain why The Silence of the Lambs stands out among all the Academy Award winners in last twenty-five year or so. Few films in the history of Seventh Art provided such a powerful combination of thought-provoking content and artistic skill. The achievement seems even greater when we consider that the director Jonathan Demme had enjoyed reputation of B- director, specialized in cheap and often light-hearted films. But The Silence of the Lambs, probably the best film in his career, shows the trademarks of cinema genius and someone quite capable to deal with the darkest aspects of human life. Like few filmmakers before and after, Demme explores the darkest pits of human depravity, and, consequently, the atmosphere in the film, made by Tak Fujimotos photography and Howard Shores minimalist but effective musical score, is dark from the beginning to the end. The tone is also very serious - Demme is less interested in sensationalism; there are few shocking discoveries; various forms of pathological behavior are discussed with clinical distance; and the most gruesome violence is shown indirectly. But the best quality of this film is in its humanism - Demme wants the audience to know that, despite the horrors and despair, there is still place for decency, love and respect in this world. This is shown through the small, but precious moments when our protagonist sees compassion, either in the form of county official who is still disgusted with the sight of murder of hospital orderly who says few encouraging words to our heroine before her first meeting with ultimate evil.The Silence of the Lambs is definitely directors film, but in popular consciousness the names associated with it belong to actors. Among them the best known is Anthony Hopkins, whose Oscar-awarded performance is probably going to be viewed as the zenith of this actors career. Hopkins truly deserved his golden statue and his achievement is even greater when we consider that it was given for the portrayal of incredibly evil and abhorrent character - man who uses almost supernatural abilities of his superb intellect in order to harm other human beings in any form imaginable. Hopkins took great effort to make this character not only believable, but almost seductive in his evil, trying to convince us that his malice springs from higher intellectual plane that transcends traditional morality and that he is beyond the grasp of mere mortals. In order to do so, Hopkins also portrayed Lecter as well-educated and refined man whose good manners and artistic sensibilities not only stand out in contrast with his violent, evil nature, but also show inherent superiority over common people. This aristocratic serial killer was so fascinating that he became the best-known villain in cinema history, but also had misfortune of creating another Hollywood cliche recycled over and over again, until Hopkins himself didnt make caricature of it in dreadful Hannibal ten years later.Hopkins performance in The Silence of the Lambs overshadowed everyone elses, and that included even Jodie Foster, despite her earning another Oscar, and despite her character being potentially even more fascinating and complex than Lecter. Perhaps this is due to the mere fact of Clarice Starling being more down-to-earth and being some sort of moral anchor to the audience. Starlings professional aim - preventing another murder - corresponds with the cleansing of her own personal demons, while she must also fight to earn her rightful place in FBI as a petite and seemingly vulnerable woman among men who unconsciously treat her more like a sex object than as a colleague. This complex portrayal, which also added romantic dimension in almost perverse relation between Starling and Lecter, might not be Fosters best role, but it is definitely the best known. Together with Foster there were many great actors in memorable roles - Scott Glen as her mentor, Anthony Heald as machiavelistic head of asylum, Diane Baker as powerful politician and, finally, Brooke Smith who gained 25 pounds for the purpose of her role - achievement which is quite rare among todays weight-obsessed Hollywood actresses. Ted Levine as her demented tormentor was also very effective or even too effective for his career, since the actor had very limited choice of roles after this film, almost being condemned to play variation of same psychotic character all over again.Levines role also had important consequences beyond his career. His character just happened to have some issues with his gender/sexual orientation and that wasnt acceptable thing for Hollywood in early 1990s, during the zenith of Political Correctness. Pressured by gay activists that accused Hollywood filmmak