The Silence of the Lambs (1991)

A young FBI cadet must receive the help of an incarcerated and manipulative cannibal killer to help catch another serial killer, a madman who skins his victims.

Director:

Jonathan Demme

Writers:

Thomas Harris (novel), Ted Tally (screenplay)

Stars:

Jodie Foster, Anthony Hopkins, Lawrence A. Bonney

Top Rated Movies #23 | Won 5 Oscars. Another 63 wins & 50 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jodie Foster	...	Clarice Starling
Lawrence A. Bonney	...	FBI Instructor
Kasi Lemmons	...	Ardelia Mapp
Lawrence T. Wrentz	...	Agent Burroughs
Scott Glenn	...	Jack Crawford
Anthony Heald	...	Dr. Frederick Chilton
Frankie Faison	...	Barney
Don Brockett	...	Friendly Psychopath
Frank Seals Jr.	...	Brooding Psychopath
Stuart Rudin	...	Miggs
Anthony Hopkins	...	Dr. Hannibal Lecter
Maria Skorobogatov	...	Young Clarice (as Masha Skorobogatov)
Jeffrie Lane	...	Clarice's Father
Leib Lensky	...	Mr. Lang
George 'Red' Schwartz	...	Mr. Lang's Driver (as Red Schwartz)

Storyline

FBI trainee Clarice Starling works hard to advance her career, while trying to hide/put behind her West Virginia roots, of which if some knew, would automatically classify her as being backward or white trash. After graduation, she aspires to work in the agency's Behavioral Science Unit under the leadership of Jack Crawford. While she is still a trainee, Crawford asks her to question Dr. Hannibal Lecter, a psychiatrist imprisoned, thus far, for eight years in maximum security isolation for being a serial killer who cannibalized his victims. Clarice is able to figure out the assignment is to pick Lecter's brains to help them solve another serial murder case, that of someone coined by the media as Buffalo Bill, who has so far killed five victims, all located in the eastern US, all young women who are slightly overweight (especially around the hips), all who were drowned in natural bodies of water, and all who were stripped of large swaths of skin. She also figures that Crawford chose ...

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Plot Keywords:

serial killer | bad guy wins | stuck in a well | psycho thriller | psychopath | 

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Taglines:

May The Silence Be Broken!!

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Thriller

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Certificate:

R

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

14 February 1991 (USA)

Also Known As:

Silence of the Lambs

Filming Locations:

Clay County, West Virginia, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$19,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$13,766,814, 15 February 1991, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$130,742,922

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$272,742,922

Company Credits

Production Co:

Strong Heart/Demme Production, Orion Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

118 min 138 min (original cut)

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

A "Bon Appetit" magazine can be seen in Hannibal's temporary cell.

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Goofs

The ring of sweat on Clarice's sweatshirt as she is running on the Quantico course in the beginning of the movie covers her body almost from shoulder to shoulder. When she gets called into Crawford's office, it is significantly smaller.

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Quotes

[first lines]
FBI instructor: Starling! Starling! Crawford wants to see you in his office.
Clarice Starling: Thank you, sir.

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Crazy Credits

The ending scene continues throughout the entire credits

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Alternate Versions

Criterion's Special Edition on DVD features outtake footage not included in the theatrical version, including:

• a longer version of the scene where Clarice discovers Raspail's head inside Your-Self Storage;
• a longer version of the scene where Lector explains to Clarice how to identify Buffalo Bill from his rejected applications for sex change surgery. The dialogue is longer and is taken almost verbatim from Thomas Harris' novel, and plays over a scene where the camera moves inside Buffalo Bill's cellar, stopping at the edge of the pit where Senator Martin's daughter is held. This is the same scene that appears in the theatrical version, right after Starling's visit to the enthomologists Roden and Pilcher, with no voiceover but with music and sound effects and Katherine Martin's screams coming from the pit;
• a brief new scene where Starling is given a gun from instructor Brigham right before her departure for West Virginia;
• an alternate version of the car scene where Starling and Crawford are talking after the Elk River victim's autopsy. In the theatrical version, Crawford apologizes to Starling for humiliating her in front of the state troopers; the alternate take has Starling revealing that a bug cocoon was found in Benjamin Raspail's throat. In the theatrical version this information is not revealed until later, when Starling mentions it during one of her encounters with Lector;
• a longer version of the telephone conversation between FBI Director Burke, Paul Krendler and Crawford after the phony offer to Lekter has been discovered; Crawford tries to convince Krendler not to accept Lector's help;
• a new scene showing a meeting with Starling, Crawford, Paul Krendler and and FBI Director Burke; Krendler blames Starling and Crawford for Lector's escape and Burke suspends them both from the case;
• the DVD also features the complete video monologue from performance artist Jim Roche as the TV Evangelist; in the theatrical version Roche appears on a TV put in front of Lector's cell, as punishment for Miggs' death.

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Connections

Referenced in CollegeHumor Originals: Housemates of Horror (2012)

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Soundtracks

Lanmò Nan Zile A
Performed and Written by Les Freres Parent

User Reviews

"The Godfather" of all thrillers

I've seen way too many thrillers. You name it: "Identity", "Seven", "The Usual Suspects", etc., etc., etc. I remember my friend being so obsessed with "Silence of the Lambs", that it drove me crazy. And I hated the movie naturally and refused to see it. But everyone told me that I have to see this, so I let my guard down. And had an open mind, and I'm glad I did. My friend was right, this is a great movie. It is so well acted, I couldn't even describe. I loved "Silence of the Lambs" and would recommend it to anyone. It's creepy and exciting. Trust me, you'll love it.

10/10