Masterfully disturbing

Rating: 9/10 (9 July 2011)

I'm not sure how anyone could disagree that The Silence of the Lambs is the greatest Hannibal Lecter film ever made. This is one of the highest quality horror films you will ever see. It's got an intense story, riveting characters, and incredible actors. The film takes place years after Manhunter. Lecter is still behind bars and he is once again called upon to assist in tracking down a disturbed serial killer. This time it is young FBI agent Clarice Starling who is assigned to talk to Lecter and with his information track down Buffalo Bill, a serial killer who kills young women and then skins them. But once again there is only so much trust you can put into a cannibal, and Lecter complicates things while at the same time giving subtle and vague clues to Clarice that might help track down Buffalo Bill. This is one of the most disturbing and psychologically grotesque films ever to grace the world of cinema, but it is made so well and with such expertise that it becomes a work of art rather than exploitation.
This is one of those films where every aspect falls into place so perfectly it is as if you are experiencing everything the characters are as it happens, rather than just watching this film unfold. Right off the bat the movie grabs you with its stern sincerity and you can immediately feel the tension that rises throughout the film. Through the beginning of the film we develop a perfect sense of the tension within the film and the dread within the characters. Then we reach Clarice's first meeting with Hannibal Lecter and the films true haunting intensity comes out. At that moment the film becomes a nightmare that grows darker and darker with each clue that leads Clarice closer to what she sees as the ultimate evil that she is going to face, Buffalo Bill. She doesn't even know that the true evil is Lecter himself, but he is behind bars misleads Clarice to think he isn't as threatening. We the audience of course know that he is a bigger threat than any Buffalo Bill, but somehow we forget this because we are so compelled to feel as Clarice, our innocent and tormented protagonist, feels. It is a sinister trick the film pulls on us because it works all too well.
This film relies a lot on shock value, making us remember every last disturbing image we are forced to witness during it. This film engraves itself into your mind and there is no way to escape the horror elicited by it. This is a movie that tortures you and makes you feel more than you've probably ever felt during a horror film. And yet it isn't a movie that draws out fear through cheap thrills. Every horrifying image you witness is meaningful and furthers the plot, driving us through the terror straight ahead to the film's explosive conclusion. This movie is what I consider to be truly scary. It instills true fear rather than just frightened amusement. It is masterful in its suspense building and ingenious in the placement and moderation of its thrills. We see a lot of grotesque things in The Silence of the Lambs but there are still things we don't see that make it even scarier.
Through its incredible script, excellent direction, and superb acting this film establishes itself as a masterpiece. What really makes this film is definitely Anthony Hopkins portrayal of Hannibal Lecter. It is so perfectly haunting in a calm and sedated kind of way. There is nothing over the top or ridiculous about his character or Hopkins performance. It is totally believable which makes it that much more disturbing. It is easily one of the best film performances ever and a huge part of what makes this film incredibly terrifying.
I don't hesitate to call The Silence of the Lambs one of the scariest films ever made. Its tension and its suspense make it so terrifyingly gripping that once the film has a hold of you it doesn't let go. Few films can instill fear the way this film does. I have to commend it for actually scaring me while refraining from being an over the top film full of cheap thrills and easy scares. This film is a horror masterpiece.