Silence of the Lambs ,directed by Johnathan Demme, revolves around a F.B.I trainee named Clarice Starling (Jodie Foster) willing to talk and get help from imprisoned serial killer Hannibal Lector (Anthony Hopkins) in order to catch another serial killer, Jame Gumb, otherwise known as "Buffalo Bill" (Ted Levine). Just like Manhunter, this film is based off a novel as well ("The Silence of the Lambs" by Thomas Harris). In these cases, it's important to realize that an author has their own way of expressing their piece of art (novel), just as it is important for a director do the book justice, while showcasing their own creativity and creating cues to be known for. With that said, it is fitting to include Truffaut's thoughts that a "filmmakers’ reliance on literary adaptation for their cinematic narrative would destroy the audience’s ability to comprehend a cinema of difference because to rely on literary form lacked the essence of cinema". A change made from book to film was the way Lector was portrayed, and opted not to have Lector having red eyes and six fingers in one hand. Another thing Talley decided to change was having the movie focus majorly on Clarice and her backstory. In the book, there is a subplot about Crawford and his dying wife, but that was scrapped in the final draft for the film. In simple terms, a novel has capabilities/doing certain things that film simply can't do, just as a film has its own capabilities that a novel won't be able to provide, and that is something important to recognize. As for Starling, it was pretty evident to see how others treated her for simply being a woman, which is shown quite a few times and elaborates the stigmas that women face, especially in a male-dominated workforce at that time period. Talley even acknowledges this in his interview that this film broke the rules of a traditional thriller film with a male main character and states that having a strong-female lead was unusual back then. Also, Demme liked the fact the fact that this movie would have a female protagonist and that "It's more interesting with a woman, because that's a point against her from the start." When Starling first encounters Dr. Chilton, he quickly tries to flirt with her saying "You know, we get a lot of detectives here, but I must say, I can't ever remember one as attractive" and even offering to be a personal guide to sight see Baltimore. Another instance is when they go to a funeral home in West Virginia, and when they meet up with Sheriff Perkins and his male-only officers, she is left alone and stared at weirdly from all the officers, as if they are questioning why she is even there. They do this once again when she asks them to leave, so that they can examine the corpse of another victim from Buffalo Bill. She is even hit on once again by Dr. Pilcher when she takes the insect found in the women's throat to be examined by that man as well as Roden and he even admits it. In all these instances, she is first seen only as a fragile, attractive woman, and not an authoritative figure on the clock willing to use whatever tricks up her sleeve to solve who Buffalo Bill is. Foster shows admiration and love for the role she plays as Starling because "Clarice is very competent and she is very human. She combats the villain with her emotionality, intuition, her frailty and vulnerability. I don't think there has ever been a female hero like that" while also being thankful that Starling was not simply some women in her underwear shooting a machine-gun.
This film is definitely one that I would recommend to anybody. While I have watched this movie before, it has been a long time, so it was nice to be immersed in a thriller chase to find a killer before he strikes again. Also, I found myself getting shocked all over again to the two twists near the end of the film, despite already knowing I've watched it before. This movie is praised as one of the greats-seeing that it won 5 awards in five major categories at the Oscars- and it rightfully is. Thanks for coming by and reading another one of my FILM talks!
Where I gathered my information: ‘Silence of the Lambs’ at 25: ‘It Broke All the Rules’ Making of Silence of the Lambs The Practices of Authorship- David A. Gerstner - Adaptations Now
2 Comments
Chris Toth
3/23/2019 06:33:54 pm
Victoria, your blog on this film was fantastic. I loved that you included details on the book this film was based off of, and that the movie had many similarities but also several differences in details and scenes not included in the film that were in the novel. I thought including detail about Clarice is treated throughout the movie being an FBI trainee as a woman was very important and I thought it was very insightful of you for catching that. They do show her vulnerability more and how she can sometimes feel more nervous or uneasy than the men FBI agents. The youtube videos you chose were great and they both are great examples of Clarice being treated differently and having to do deal with men hitting on her frequently while working. I loved your blog and I thought you did a great job capturing the film in just one blog.
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Brian
4/1/2019 08:49:25 am
Good work on the feminist perspective of the film, Victoria. You provided strong evidence from both the sources and the film itself to illustrate how the movie engages with Starling's difficulty in navigating this male-dominated field. I think I would like to have seen you discuss how Demme's camera reinforces those ideas. For instance, you've included a perfect visual example of all the male cops looking at her, but you haven't discussed it from that perspective.
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