The Silence of the Lambs (1991)

Plot Outline: A serial killer named Buffalo Bill has been skinning his female victims and making a suit out of their skins. It is up to a rookie FBI agent Clarice Starling to solve the case. And the only way to do it is by working with jailed psychopathic cannibalistic killer Dr Hannibal Lecter. He knows who Buffalo Bill is. But can Agent Starling win his trust and get him to help her with the case, where so many other FBI agents have failed?

The Review: 'Inspired' by the real life crimes of Ed Gein, this an extremely overrated film. Yes it won the big 5 Oscars - Best Film, Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Actor (Hopkins) and Best Actress (Foster). It also made the career of Anthony Hopkins, who despite being a great actor beforehand, was brought to the attention of the cinematic audience. It's been cloned and spoofed countless times and it's blueprint for the criminal genius behind bars has become almost commonplace for forensic thrillers. For all it's cracked up to be, the heart of the film is, of course, the character of Hannibal Lecter and the only real reason to watch. Hannibal Lecter is such a superbly realised character and one of the greatest in cinematic history. Anthony Hopkins is simply brilliant as the cannibal. He fills the screen with such an immense presence you are very hard-pressed to take your eyes off him for fear of what he may do. He manipulates Clarice with ease, tapping into her mind with his probing and personal questioning. He manages to inject some humour occasionally and because of his relationship with Clarice Starling, Lecter eventually becomes an anti-hero and a good guy, despite being a killer himself. Hopkins completely overshadows everyone else in the cast but Jodie Foster gives a career-best performance as Clarice Starling. The chemistry the two share is charged with tension and suspense and they have some great moments opposite each other. Arguably it is the acting and chemistry between the two that is the only really redeeming factor from this film. There's little tension or suspense in the film, save for the set piece moments which, due to the film's reputation, make the viewer come away thinking they've seen more when they haven't. Lecter's escape from prison is gruesomely shown but with less gore than people think and the finale inside the basement where Jodie Foster is being hunted down is little more than routine. The whole Buffalo Bill character was also revolting. Did we really have to keep watching him dress in women's clothes and prance about in front of the mirror? One brief scene would have done the job, not repeatedly showing him prancing about.

Final Verdict: Hopkins is good. The film unfortunately is not. It's reputation has turned it into a phenomenon greater than the sum of it's parts and undeservedly so. This genre is such a wide open field that you'll easily find plenty of alternatives which are just as good, if not better.

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