A Masterpiece of a Psychological Thriller

Rating: 10/10 (21 September 2008)

Jonathan Demme's 1991 film is one of my all-time favorite movies, and it's one of the reasons that drove me to study film-making. It's an intense psychological thriller with a phenomenal cast and some of the most memorable characters/scenes in cinema. Based on the novel by Thomas Harris, the film follows Clarice Starling, an FBI trainee who has been pulled on to assist in a case by the head of the FBI Behavioral Sciences division. Starling must interview incarcerated serial killer Hannibal Lecter in an attempt to help capture a new killer who has risen up and killed three women for their skin. Of course, this movie is legendary, so I'm sure everyone knows this much already...
Demme's film, while not the first to feature the character of Hannibal Lecter, is what turned the psychopath into one of the greatest movie villains ever created. Most of the credit for this can be attributed to Anthony Hopkins portrayal of the evil genius. The character is charismatic and frightening, all at the same time, so you can't help but like him despite the terrible things he's done. Lecter is a film icon due to Hopkins' performance. The best scenes in the film are any that include conversations between Lecter and Starling (Jodie Foster). They make every other scene in the movie (including the primary plot) seem insignificant and I found myself waiting for the next interview scene. Foster was great as the naive FBI agent-in-training who is thrown into the fire for her first real assignment and Scott Glenn gave a strong performance Jack Crawford, head of Behavioral Sciences. Aside from Hopkins, I'd have to say the best performance came from Ted Levine as Jame "Buffalo Bill" Gumb. Perhaps I am just easily entertained by sociopaths but watching him as the severely disturbed Gumb still gives me the creeps.
I wouldn't say I was ever really scared by this movie, so I wouldn't classify it as horror. It was more a sense of uneasiness from the film's two resident psychos: Hopkins and Levine. It gives you a minor glimpse of the mind of a serial killer and it does it effectively, thanks to the writings of Thomas Harris and Ted Tally. Despite having been released in 1991, the film is timeless and continues to stand today as one of the best movies I've ever seen. Honestly, if you're reading this and haven't seen this film, do yourself a favor and watch it. You won't regret it.