One of the few films that can make the viewer's fear almost as strong as the characters'.

Rating: Null/10 (17 February 2001)

Terror and curiosity, these are the feelings Anthony Hopkins draws out of the viewer in the role of Hannibal "the cannibal" Lecter. He is one of the few villains in cinematic history who can do these things and we are very thankful, as thankful as Clarice Starling, that he is behind the glass where he can't get to us. We have to get to know Hannibal because Clarice (Jodie Foster) has to do this. Clarice has to bargain with Hannibal using her own personal past in exchange for clues that will yield the identity of a serial killer. Buffalo Bill's his name and skinning plus-size women is his game. The next donor of material for his latest creation in fashion just happens to be a congress woman's daughter and that is why Hannibal is so important to us. He will provide the clues and just maybe they will be good enough before Bill can complete his sewing. Movie magic is what happens when the young, beautiful and wise beyond her years Clarice Starling interviews Dr. Lecter. We recognize how vulnerable she is in his midst, even when he is locked away behind the glass. We shudder at every word spoken between the two because we know they could go either way. Yes, perhaps they can help capture Bill, but they may also give Lecter too much. Too much knowledge about Clarice and a glass may not protect her at all from the likes of Hannibal. When Foster and Hopkins are conversing we hang on every word with dreaded anticipation of what will be spoken next. The film is directed brilliantly by Demme and the screenplay is wonderfully adapted by Thomas Harris. Foster and Hopkins deserve every accolade and award they received for their performance. The lighting was perfect as the movie was often shot with very dim lighting framing the evil that lurks within this film. Lambs takes us into a deep dark world of evil, but not in a campy way. We are not overly consumed with gore and with the exception of Hannibal's escape we are not shown one murder on film. The suggestion of evil is there and very powerful through out without over indulgence. We know all too well that this is real and there may be and probably are people like Hannibal and Bill out there (Dahmer, Berkowitz, Bundy, etc). We know that there are lambs screaming every day in our world, crying out on their way to the slaughter house. This film just makes us realize it all the more.