Last month, my brother felt as though he needed to teach me all about “the best decade ever”, the 90s. In doing so, he made me watch The Silence of the Lambs with him, and I can not thank him enough for introducing me to such a well produced movie. Within 138 minutes, Anthony Hopkin’s character, Dr. Hannibal Lecter, instilled a deep sense of fear into those around him and into the audience. His minimal facial expressions, extensive knowledge, and chilling words were powerful enough that he was able to help catch a killer, as well as add to his resume of being one. Lector’s seemingly small stature and spotless cell lead viewers to question why he is imprisoned, but it is not until he speaks that his true, sinister character is revealed. This sinister side of Dr. Lecter greatly affected young FBI agent, Clarice Starling. Clarice's character was both courageous and daring, which left her is high-intensity situations that were intensified by the dark, isolated setting, scary, ascending music, and lack of dialogue that the producers decided upon. The usually dark, eerie settings paired with the characters personalities leave the audience on edge throughout the entire film and, although almost impossible to do so successfully, constantly guessing what is next to come.
Overall, the film was suspenseful, yet entertaining. Clarice’s character reminded me of the quiet person in class that no one has particularly high expectations of, but who does something unexpected and somewhat extraordinary. She took the road less traveled upon and was in close contact with an intelligent serial killer, one who had a past career that allowed him to evaluate her and use it to his advantage. This disadvantage didn’t stop her; however, and she was able to find a missing girl and put a psychopathic killer to rest. Through building trust with Dr. Lecter in order to get information from him, I believe that Clarice also gained support from the audience, ultimately keeping people intrigued and on her side. One of the final scenes, and in my opinion the scariest, when Clarice in being followed in the dark, captures the overall essence of the film and displays some of the producers most brilliant choices when it came to the setting, tone, and dialogue. The lack of color, camera angles, and real-life perspective of the serial killer left me feeling like I was Clarice, which given her circumstances in the scene, left me utterly afraid for my own life.
Excellent evaluation of the film! Really clearly staying objective (especially as you describe his character). That can be very difficult when you're talking about fear/horror/suspense, but you did a nice job of shaping your discussion around the choices of the actors and director. Don't forget to give this film a "Be Reel" ranking -- sounds like this is Good Good? Put a note card up on the bulletin board!
ReplyDeleteAlso-- great scene selection!