Rating: 
Summary: One of the best Best Pictures ever!
Review: After sucking up all of the main oscars ten years ago, this movie is still superb, even by 21st century standards. After finally renting it a few days after "Hannibal" opened, I was a little nervous to watch it, because I had heard that it was extremely gory, but it's not. It's very disturbing, but not very gory. This movie features superb acting by everyone, great directing and acting. One thing that bothers me though, is that Anthony Hopkins didn't win a Golden Globe for his role as Dr. Hannibal Lecter. Anyway, in summary, this movie is excellent. It follows the book almost exactly, and has not one dull moment. Maybe you should watch it with fava beans in your right hand and a nice chianti in your left
Rating:
Summary: Dining with Hannibal Lector, M.D.
Review: The film starts off with a jog through the woods with about to be made Special Agent for the FBI, Clarice Starling, played by Jodie Foster in what is undeniably her best performance ever. Then we go into the office of her superior and we see newspaper clippings about a serial killer named Buffalo Bill, a man who not only kills his victims, but picks them big, starves them, and skins specific parts of their bodies for reasons that still make me squirm in my seat. Clarice stands before her boss as he gives her her first real assignment: To obtain the help of a psychological genius (who happens to be a federal criminal) who would be able understand the case for the FBI - Doctor Hannibal "The Cannibal" Lector. Then the movie really begins...It all starts with a descent down into what looks like a dark cellar. There are security doors and guards and cameras everywhere, watching every move of anyone who goes in or out. Nothing happens without the say-so of the gatekeepers in this place. Then Clarice is instructed that Dr. Lector's cell is the last one down and to "keep to the right." She follows instructions, and we see things from her point of view as this man comes into view, standing perfectly still, not really at attention, not really waiting, but more like... resting... resting like a lion after a hard-earned kill, recharging so he can kill again. Clarice begins her conversation with Dr. Lector, who is so obviously the smartest person not just in the prison but possibly the smartest person she's ever met, and we see it sometimes from a distance and sometimes through her eyes, which is the mastery of the cinematography by Tak Fujimoto (who photographed "The Sixth Sense"). Hannibal Lector's eyes are so dead and yet so piercing, full of calculating energy, that he immediately lends tension to a film that mostly doesn't even involve him. Anthony Hopkins' performance is so precisely delivered (modeled after Hal 9000, the computer in "2001: A Space Odyssey") during his mere fifteen minutes of screen time that no matter what happens during the rest of this film, which would've been a great movie all by itself in the hands of Jonathan Demme, we will remember Hannibal Lector and that great Anthony Hopkins performance forever. This is why "The Silence of the Lambs" is one of the greatest thrillers ever made, because it not only works on the levels of its main plot, which is the capturing of Buffalo Bill, but it works on a completely different level which involves the riveting relationship between Clarice and Hannibal. When they are together, it's like watching two genius chess players squaring off, but we as the audience know that Hannibal could checkmate Clarice at any time if he wanted to, but that's not his game. His game is getting inside her head. After all, he was a psychologist before he was a cannibal: It's what he does. The dialogue between Lector and Clarice could've been a movie all on its own, kind of a sadistic "My Dinner with Andre." Their conversations, especially when the tension builds and Clarice finally spills about her past, are the true heart of the movie, and for a movie that contains not one but two psychopaths like Buffalo Bill and Hannibal Lector, to find a heart amongst it all is an achievement all on its own.
Rating:
Summary: Silence of the Lambs
Review: Psychological crime drama about FBI trainee Clarice Starling, played by Jodi Foster, pulled from training to help investigators apprehend a serial killer nicknamed "Buffalo Bill" who skins his victims. The movie is dominated by Clarice's special task in obtaining a psychological profile from another notorious serial killer confined in a maximum-security asylum, Dr. Hannibal "The Cannibal" Lector, portrayed by Anthony Hopkins. Clarice's visits with Dr. Lector are dicey, as the doctor can't resist exercising his mental skills on Clarice by probing her own painful past. Dr. Lector takes a liking to Clarice and offers to profile Buffalo Bill if she opens her thoughts to him. Clarice cooperates with the doctor, but soon finds this a frightening experience. In the meantime, the investigation heats up when investigators believe that Buffalo Bill, played by Ted Levine, has kidnapped the daughter of a state senator, and Clarice's work with Dr. Lector is in danger of compromise by the asylum's ambitious and jealous psychiatrist. Overall this is a riveting feature, mostly by Hopkins's portrayal of Dr. Lector as an insane and dangerous serial killer with a chilling talent for penetrating people's guarded thoughts. Jodie Foster is convincing as the FBI trainee who is out to prove herself. The close-ups of Hopkins and Foster during key scenes have the effect of placing viewers next to Agent Starling, giving them a taste of the cold atmosphere and hypnotic effect of Lector. The story keeps you glued to the screen as the investigation unfolds and provides startling developments. It's a very good movie that ranks with other features such as "Seven," "The Onion Field" and "In Cold Blood." The Criterion Collection edition is good; imagery is high quality and provides some deleted scenes. Extra features include interesting information on the FBI's work in tracking down serial killers through psychological profiling, and text extracts of interviews from actual serial killers.
Rating:
Summary: An elegant and horrifying piece of cinematic history
Review: THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS is a film that haunts it's captor for a long time after seeing it. The film is terrifying. However, the terror it invokes is not of gore, but terror of the mind. It will scare you silent for a while to come. Buy this chiller today. Clarice Starling is an FBI trainee who is deeply troubled. She has wounds that seem as though they will never heal. These wounds are not physical, but mental. Just when she thinks these wounds may heal, her first assignment comes. She is to interview Dr. Hannibal Lecter. With him, her wounds can never heal. Jodie Foster is excellent in the part. Dr. Hannibal Lecter, briliant, cunning, ruthless, and extremely dangerous. As a cannibal and murderer of nine, Dr. Lecter is a very scary monster. Anthony Hopkins is superb in the role. He brings to the screen everything evil, and uses his words and looks to scare all those caught in his gaze silent. Each time I see this film, I'm spellbound. It's excellence is amazing. With great performances from Anthony Hopkins, Jodie Foster, Ted Levine, and Diane Baker this film is sure to be hailed for many years to come. Are you ready to be scared silent? If so, buy THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS today!
Rating:
Summary: "a monster...so rare to capture one alive"
Review: So said Dr Chilton when briefing FBI Agent Clarice Starling(Jodie Foster) before she went down into the maximum security holdingcell where the 'monster' was being held. The monster we all know, isDr Hannibal Lechter (Anthony Hopkins) the seriously deranged,cannibalistic, insane, former psychiatrist. There are many chillingscenes in this movie but the ones that remained with me are the oneswhere Starling and Lechter were doing battle. Battling not physicallybut emotionally and psychologically. We see small, fragile,little-girl-lost agent Starling, slowly, bravely, cautiously walkingup to the glass enclosure where the formidable Dr Lechter isensconed. His evil persona literally seeps through the glass. Thebattle of wits commences and although warned not to, Starling findsherself revealing her secret fears to this man. The central plotcenters on Starling needing and eventually getting Lechter's help inunderstanding the psyche of the serial killer Buffalo Bill in order totrack him down. This is the only significance of the Starling andLechter relationship and they are only onscreen together for a littleover 30 minutes. So masterful and convincing is the acting though, andso strong is the psychological appeal of their relationship - we findourselves focusing on them, and Buffalo Bill's crimes become ofsecondary interest to us. It's a cerebral performance by a thinkingperson's cop in tandem with the inner workings of a brilliant yetterribly sick mind. ...there is not a lot of gore. The fear is of ourown doing, a creation of our imagination, our own minds working onus. This leads me to one comparison with the sequel -'Hannibal'. The only cerebral thing in that movie is ...the closingscene and it makes 'Hannibal' simply gross parody rather thanpsychological thriller. The only reaction to it being retching ratherthan thinking.
Rating:
Summary: Spine-tingling!!!!
Review: Oh, this is cool. "Silence of the Lambs" is a very good movie. Jodie Foster and Anthony Hopkins are great as Clarice Starling and Hannibal Lector. The suspense is really the "edge-of-you seat" type. Acting? You bet-awesome. I really think Jodie Foster looks beautiful in this movie. Everything about this movie is great, screenplay, directing, everything. Though the killer is a really werid character, it really did diserve the Best Picture (And Actor/Actress) award at the Oscars. So if you're in the mood for a really suspenseful film-do yourself a favor and rent "Silence of the Lambs", ne?
Rating:
Summary: Fantastic! One of my favs
Review: Hopkins and Foster are my favorite pair..and this is one of my favorite movies--Too bad this is no longer available and leaving people scrambling to auction sites, paying upwards of... for this great package..I certainly hope that the trilogy are released in a nice gift pack (i.e. MANHUNTER, The Silence of The Lambs & Hannibal) just in time for Christmas..Here's to hoping ;) P.S. Bring Jodi back for another sequel!
Rating: 
Summary: Marvellous Film, but not so marvellous Picture quality
Review: All seems to be said about the Quality of the Film itself. It is absolutely one of the best Movies of all times! Just for the fine acting of the whole cast. Anthony Hopkins..äähh sorry, Sir Anthony Hopkins...;-)) is a superstar ever since...but there is a letdown to this DVD edition: Sorry to say, the Picturequality is somewhat of a mixed bag. All scenes with a hazier atmosphere, fog etc. show heavy artifacts, motionblurs and worse. Maybe this is due to the problems of the dvd-format itself, or else my dvd-player has problems of it's own, but the impact of the film is seriously diminished by these things. And this from a genuine Fan of Criterion and its gorgeous supplemental materials which are good on this dvd - but not outstanding! Sorry Criterion, but keep on the good work!
Rating:
Summary: An Exceptional Psychological Thriller!
Review: After recently seeing "Hannibal" in the movie theater I was drawn to the original movie and storyline staring Jodie Foster as Clarice Starling a rookie FBI agent, along with Anthony Hopkins as the master of etiquette and grace that we have come to know as "Hannibal the Cannibal". The movie opens with agent Starling running alone through the woods, the music is suspenseful and she keeps looking off through the trees and over her shoulder. This sets the precedent for a movie that is more of a psychological roller coaster ride than a gore flick. Starling is assigned to meet with the serial killer Hannibal Lector who has a tendency to eat his victims. Our first shot of him is another masterful stroke of cinematography. He stands demurely in the center of his cell, his arms by his sides, a small figure of a man, not quite the animal he has been built up to be. What follows is an intricate dance of verbiage between Clarice and Lector that lasts till the surprise ending. At one point Clarice tells a co-worker that she has no fear of Lector killing her that she is confident that he would find that unacceptable and rude. The relationship is certainly an interesting one as he helps Starling capture a serial murderer that has plagued the area. Of course it is all a word game and she has to figure out his clues. This was a suspenseful and entertaining movie, not the type of movie I usually enjoy but it was so well done I have to give it 5 stars. 3/2/01
Rating:
Summary: Don't let him inside your head...
Review: I kept hearing noises in the night. Twice, I got out of bed and looked underneath it, shining a flashlight into the depths of my closet. Finally, I came to the realization that this night the lights must stay on. Few movies have the power to chill me that deeply, but something about that quiet voice, civilly intoning knowedge of the deepest selves of anyone who crosses his path, wouldn't get out of my head. I have always imagined the Devil to be something like that, weirdly fascinating and eminently civilised. He could not otherwise beguile our souls. Anthony Hopkins is so dead-on in his portrayal of mannerly evil that it is difficult to imagine him as anthing else - and impossible to get his insidious wispers out of your head. Jodie Foster is brittle but tough as nails, exposing her own fragility as she plays a high-stakes headgame few could endure. You can't help thinking this poor little screwed-up girl will never recover from the trauma of her experiences. But her matter-of-fact confrontations with evil in its various forms made me wonder if it was she who has inflicted the damage. Well written, unbelievably acted, intense and suspenseful as few movies can be, THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS avoids the fate of a slasher flick and becoms instead a journey through the depest fears in all of us. Somewhere there is a being who knows everything about us by our good bag and our cheap shoes. Perhaps there is a little bit of him in us all.
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