If you missed my first post where I explain what this is and how I’m scoring things, here you go, and if you missed where I talked about my Monday posts, click here.
If you have never actually looked at the 100 Years…100 Movies list that I am working through, or you are new to reading my stuff, one thing you may not be aware of is just how old the films on the list actually are. Let’s put it into perspective for a second. I, at the time I am writing this, am 34 years old. Overall, the AFI’s list contains seven movies that had a theatrical release in my lifetime. This may not seem all that crazy, until you realize that six of those films are ranked 65-100, and there is only one movie released after 1990 to be in the top 64. To put it another way, according to this list, only one of the top 64 movies released between 1898 and 1998 came after the year 1990.
So, after I am done writing about this next movie, The Silence of the Lambs, it will be months before I write about a movie that is younger than I am. Just another way for me to hang on to my rapidly closing youth, I guess.
Even though The Silence of the Lambs technically was released in my lifetime, I had never watched it until I sat down to watch it for this project. I sure am glad I did, this movie, in my opinion, deserves every bit of recognition it received at the time, and it deserves all of the praise I am going to give it now as I write this up. Usually, I manage to wait until the categories to talk about the Academy Awards, but I have to talk about it right away with this one, because something happened during the 1992 Oscars that has only happened three times, and something that has not happened since. During those Oscars, The Silence of the Lambs swept the “Big Five” Awards, which were Best Picture, Best Screenplay, Best Director (Jonathon Demme), Best Actor (Anthony Hopkins), and Best Actress (Jodie Foster). I understand that relying on the Academy Awards to determine whether a movie is good or not is lazy analysis, and that’s not what I’m trying to do here at all. Plenty of films that have won Best Picture were undeserving, or look strange as we look back in history, but it’s a truly special achievement to have one film win the five most prestigious awards given during the ceremony.
So what do I think makes this movie so special?
Let’s go to the categories and I’ll tell you:
Entertainment Value- 2/2
I know horror/thriller films are not everyone’s cup of tea, but I think a well executed film in this genre can hold up with just about any kind of movie, and that is exactly what is going on here. If you are unfamiliar with the premise, Jodie Foster plays Clarice Starling, an FBI trainee, who is assigned to interview the serial killer Hannibal Lecter, played by Anthony Hopkins. The FBI hopes to gather intel on their current big case, the serial killer known as Buffalo Bill, who remains at large.
The thing about this movie that we don’t see very often anymore is that there is not a lot of time wasted on exposition at the beginning. We see Clarice running, she gets called into someone’s office, she gets told her assignment, and boom, we meet Hannibal. Obviously Hopkins made Hannibal Lecter an iconic character, but Jodie Foster is absolutely magnetic as well, and I truly believe in the weird level of trust that the two of them build through their conversations.
Correctness- 1/2
Just a standard one point deduction for this movie being very white. There is some diversity, but I’d like to see a little more.
Influence- 2/2
Not only have there been a number of spinoffs and sequels/prequels, this movie is just one that people have seen and is still relevant in culture today. Just the other day at lunch I made a reference to this movie and it led to a pretty substantial conversation about all the things people liked about this movie, which is my totally scientific evidence for supporting what I said previously.
“Rewatchability”- 2/2
I’m not going to lie, this movie is for sure going into my October rotation to watch around Halloween every year.
Technical Score- 2/2
I mentioned the Oscars and the acting, so that’s out of the way. This movie looks amazing, and it is cut perfectly. It moves at such a good pace and builds suspense when it needs to with quiet moments. I just really appreciate the craft that went into making this across the board.
Overall- 9/10
Again, this movie is not going to be in everyone’s wheelhouse, but I sure am glad I checked it out. It joins the elite list of 9/10 movies that I’ve rated so far.
You can watch The Silence of the Lambs on Max.
Hasta luego,
Josh
Up Next: #64 Close Encounters of the Third Kind (Available on Hulu)