The Silence of the Lambs - Full Reaction

"Well, Clarice - have the lambs stopped screaming?" Jodie Foster I recommend TAXI DRIVER (1976) which has a 12-year old Jodie Foster (as a prostitute) and a young Robert De Niro (as a taxi driver). --Nominated for Best Picture Oscar. --Foster and De Niro were each nominated for an Oscar. --Jodie Foster's older sister (age 19) was Jodie's body double for “more suggestive” scenes.

Clay F

prequel is Red Dragon, shows how lector was caught then the sequel is called Hannibal. the Clarice character is a different actress, but if you ever watch either dont forget Dr Lector is a cannibal. Ha

Jimmy Reyes

You need to watch "Red Dragon" after this one. It is the Prequel to Silence of the Lambs. It will give you more of an inside to Hannibal Lector's character and how Hannibal ended in locked up in the first place.

Joe M

Not sure what kind of music genres you're into it, but watching this made me think of a band named Spiritbox, and a song of theirs named "Belcarra". The band is really great. I just heard of them this year and it's one of those bands I wish I'd heard sooner. They are from Canada, and have a female lead singer who is really surprising in her vocal abilities. Anyways, their music is somewhat macabre - they do it intentionally. I think the motto on their facebook page is "A little scary, a little spooky, but mostly kitschy fun" - something like that. The music video for "Belcarra" is here - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_kA0gP0VlU and the lead singer portrays 3 female victims of Ted Bundy. Like I said, pretty macabre, but hey - they're Canucks I suppose.

ron young

Glad you made it through. May I recommend as a change of pace, The Mark of Zorro and/or The Mask of Zorro with Antonio Bandaras and Sir Anthony Hopkins.

Joseph Krider

So, chronologically speaking, the films would follow Hannibal Rising, Red Dragon, Silence of the Lambs, Hannibal. The books were written much the same, only with Hannibal Rising being released last as a prequel. The films were released Silence of the Lambs, Hannibal, Red Dragon, Hannibal Rising.

Charles

I actually prefer Red Dragon as a more faithful adaptation of Harris’ book. Manhunter was good, but made a lot of minor and unnecessary changes. While Red Dragon made some modifications to the source material, they felt more like changes of necessity.

Charles

https://buffalobillshouse.com/?fbclid=IwAR1l4Ls8efllAFKqqbGZi3ijnFQXCoJEKjDEo8uboAT2UgetzE5A5ATFx3o

William Bryan

Glad you made it through this reaction Cassie. This is such a fantastic movie!!! Jodie and Anthony killed it in every single scene in this movie. I think you should dive into both of their careers. You won’t be sorry. Such great films from 2 A list actors.

brooke atkins

Personal anecdote about Manhunter. This was in 1986, in New York. Through an odd set of coincidences, I found myself at a private screening of this new movie I'd never heard of, called "Manhunter". It was a celebratory evening and a lot of the cast and crew were there. I'd never seen any of them before though, so I didn't recognize anyone. Halfway through the film I'm sitting there in the theater, terrified. Something caused me to turn around. Sitting directly behind me was Tom Noonan.

Herman Orff

Extraordinary actor, with a huge range. He's also supposedly a really good guy -- a gentle man, and a gentleman.

Herman Orff

Also, if you didn't notice, the music was done by the same composer who did The Lord of the Rings, Howard Shore.

3dbadboy1

It was interesting when she was asking the W Va policemen to leave the examination room, being from W Va herself she really let her local accent cut loose, probably a way to appease them a bit.

3dbadboy1

Love all of the movies. Anthony Hopkins is in 3 of the 5. I’m Not a big fan of Manhunter. MOVIES Manhunter (1986) The Silence of the Lamb (1991) Hannibal (2001) Red Dragon (2002) Hannibal Rising (2007) TV Shows Hannibal (2013-15) Clarice (2021)

HorrorFan87

That’s because you’re sweet and respectable Catherine!! Me..? Not so much!😀😉

Krusty “Topher”

Lol, Krusty, I wouldn’t have known that!

Catherine LW

William Bryan, you might be onto something there. I don’t know of any men who react to romcoms regularly. It could be a good niche for you!

Catherine LW

Coincidentally also the camera technique of Porn! Who’d a thunk it?!

Krusty “Topher”

Brave woman for watching this movie by yourself, great reactions too.

FranciscoGios

Okay cool, thanks. Just joined so I wasn’t sure but that makes sense.

Caelin Beaty

She had to blur the movie because of copyright issues. Before, she played the viewable movie or show but was warned about it. So now we have to get our own copy to watch along. The first minute or so is clear so we can sync with hers.

Catherine LW

Does she normally go back and edit the full reactions later? It looks like some of the older ones have her in the bottom left corner in a circle with the movie playing the same as on the YouTube versions, but these past few are a blurred out movie with no sound and her taking up the screen. I know I could put the movie on a different screen and all but I just want to have one screen up while I’m working. Does she go back later and update them?

Caelin Beaty

The Oscar's are sadly all political now compared to 30 years ago. SILENCE OF THE LAMBS was actually a surprise winner at the Oscar's that year. Insiders assumed Oliver Stone's controversial "J.F.K." would take home the top honor.

Jack the Narrator

The direct camera shots of the actors was a trademark visual of the film's director: the late Johnathan Demme.

Jack the Narrator

You have to see the original '89 Batman then. Great film. Nicholson's top performance after The Shining. Batman Returns, good movie, Batman Forever, ok, Batman& Robin, trash lol.

William Bryan

I think you will like them, Hitchcock prefers mystery over horror, and he uses real good looking stars and famous landmarks, plus cute romance.

navghtivs

Agreed. I can tell you like/love Manhunter and that's great, a lot of people do. I just think in this specific instance, coming off of Silence of the Lambs, she would enjoy Red Dragon more. Like I said, I try not to hate on any movie or others' opinions on them. I mean, I love the Hobbit movies and I had to read pages and pages of hate when those came up.

Variable38

It's all good Kevin....Just a spirted debate....That what makes this channel unique. You can have a different view about any movie here and not worry about being destroyed in the comments section. This is a fun community.

Andy Hafler

Red Dragon is not a rip-off of Manhunter, they were both based on a book. That Miami Vice Appeal might have "appealed" in 1986 but in 2021, to someone how just watched Anthony Hopkins as Hannibal, Manhunter is going to seem cheesy. The first time I watched it, Manhunter felt like a parody of a Hannibal Lecter movie. I don't hate on anyone's opinions when it comes to movies but Red Dragon is way more in line with Silence of the Lambs.

Variable38

I disagree. Red Dragon is a total rip-off of Manhunter. Manhunter has that 1985 Miami Vice appeal that makes it stand out from the hollywood sequel money grabbing movies.

Andy Hafler

Oh good! Cassie, you will enjoy Hitchcock because he’s not in your face scary - he uses suspense in subtle, more classy ways that respects the intelligence of the viewer. Plus his cast were fabulous, old Hollywood stars: Jimmy Stewart, Cary Grant, Grace Kelly, Eva Marie Saint, Lawrence Olivier, Joan Fontaine, Ingrid Bergman, Ray Milland, etc. He throws in some humor (sometimes macabre) for balance. He was a master filmmaker.

Catherine LW

Watch Red Dragon. It's the better of the two and features Anthony Hopkins

Variable38

Yes, I didn't realize at first all the close up shots but I guess that was done on purpose, to make us feel more involved, which it did without being annoying. You are right, acting with a camera directly in your face would make things much more difficult!

Cassie

I actually have seen these ones!

Cassie

haha you are so right! Its hard for me to imagine, even just living without google maps, I really don't understand how people would find places in new cities. That is such a good point, technology has changed the world in so many ways-police and detective work being a big one

Cassie

I have never seen a Hitchcock, but really want to now! I think we will have a poll soon for one!

Cassie

Wow!! I did not realize that! He was so good

Cassie

I think out of all the other hannibal movies this is the one I want to see the most, to see how he was caught!

Cassie

Nothing like a midnight movie. Cheers ;)

Cassie

I wonder if Silence of the Lambs came out now it would win all those awards? Do you think its greatness was because it was the "first" of this kind or does it still hold up?

Cassie

The acting in this film is brilliant when you consider the actors frequently “act” with the camera instead of each other. So many scenes are simply direct camera shots where the actor is talking to someone but gazing right into the lens. I was thinking about how I could engage in conversation directly into the camera instead of a person. I don’t think it’s as easy as it might appear.

Catherine LW

As soon as my friends heard Cassie was reacting to Silence of the Lambs, "Oh bless her heart, why would y'all make her watch that?" Lol.

Serenity

Awesome reaction Cassie! Normally, I enjoy these reactions because it's like watching a movie with an old friend, but this is one of the few times I was interested in seeing you experience this specific movie with completely fresh eyes. This is such a brilliant film in so many ways. I understand that there are clearly plot holes, as you pointed out. I mean... why would they let a trainee track down a serial killer , unattended and by herself! But, the movie wasn't about that. It was a character piece between Hannibal and Clarice as well as a suspense thriller. The movie is a masterclass in film making and direction. When you edit the movie pay attention to the usage a framing, angles, and just the cinematography in its entirety. How the director uses closeup shots and lighting is absolutely brilliant. I could rewatch the first time Hannibal and Clarice meet over and over. And, as you pointed out, the acting was top notch. There's a reason the AFI ranks this one of the top 100 films of all time. Great reaction on an amazing movie!

MattN

Well.....that didn't disappoint. To many movies it seems can be picked apart, I'm glad you didn't spend to much time on that. Better to just let it flow over you. Sir Anthony did put in a marvelous performance, yes? A good Chianti anyone?

softshoes

And to think: Anthony Hopkins just won his second Oscar this year.

Alex Villarreal

Yeah no worries! Its what the people are voting for, all good!

Hannah Mather

And if he can fashion a weapon from a pen, what could he do with that cassette player they allowed in his cage?

Catherine LW

I always preferred Manhunter to Red Dragon just something about the style and feel of the movie that wins me over.

Patrick Toscano

Awesome reaction! Great movie.

Krusty “Topher”

You asked why the good doctor wasn’t well guarded with “cameras and lasers”. My first thought was that when they caged him up after meeting the senator he was in temporary accommodations before he could be returned to his usual psychiatric ward. Second, the technology at the time was nowhere near as ubiquitous as it is today. Also, it would have been expensive to set up, much less maintain 24/7 police monitoring. Just for some perspective, based on the movie being set in the early 1980s, it would have been only about ten years earlier when the first FBI Behavioral Science Unit was created to psychologically analyze criminals. That may have been the impetus for why they wanted to interview convicted killers like Hannibal. They needed data from known killers to inform future investigations. A couple years later the term “serial killer” was coined by one of those FBI profilers. Until then the term was “mass murderer” which didn’t truly encapsulate the idea of a killer’s patterns, premeditation, and seeming lack of empathy. Up until that time serial killers had always counted on the fact that police departments (even in neighboring jurisdictions) didn’t share information at all on a formal basis. It is only relatively recently that they have started breaking that habit; and some still haven’t. Jack Crawford (Jodie Foster's boss) is the same actor who played the Captain of the Dallas in Hunt for Red October, Scott Glenn.

Kevin

Nah I don't think so. She might watch a PG-13 suspense/horror but I don't see her going near the R rated horrors

William Bryan

wow. Impressed that PiB watched this one. Definitely one of the greats, but it shook me up first time watching it. Looks she's prepping for "The Exorcist" this Halloween.

ron young

The story of Ed Gein is actually very sad. Yeah he murdered two women but his upbringing and the way his mother was, gave Gein a sort of love/hate relationship with her. While most of the country was celebrating the defeat of the Axis powers in 1945, Gein's mother, Augusta, died and he reacted as if he had lost the most important person in the world to him, crying hysterically. His psychological problems then crossed the line into psychosis, and the infamous acts in which he is known for began.

William Bryan

I take that back I've seen two romantic comedies. I saw Friends with Benefits because I'm nuts about Mila and I also saw When Harry Met Sally for a college sociology class lol

William Bryan

"Please tell me this isn't a true story." Sorry. Alfredo Balli Trevino inspired the character of Hannibal Lector. Buffalo Bill's tactic of pretending to be injured to lure in his victims was used by real serial killer Ted Bundy. The "skin suit" was made by real serial killer Ed Gein. Albert Fish was a cannibal serial killer. Those are as close to a "real" Lector and Buffalo Bill as it gets.

Michael Hawk

Obligatory 5SF video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7V7zLrlX-T0

Uncle 'Traveling' Matt

I'm thinking I should start a Patreon for romantic comedies. I think I've seen one in my life. My entire life has been horror, sci fi, and action lol.

William Bryan

Anthony Hopkins (Hannibal) is one of the best actors of his generation and he went on to be in a bunch of movies after this one. For further viewing of his performances I'd recommend 'The Remains of the Day', 'Amistad', 'Shadowlands', and 'Instinct'.

JayF

"Red Dragon" focuses briefly on how Hannibal got caught and the relationship between him and the profiler that caught him (known at the time as the Chesapeake Ripper). Edward Norton and Ralph Finnes starred along side Anthony Hopkins... I recommend it as the "best of the rest" of the Hannibal Lecter saga.

Michael Labs

I am glad for the lambs pick. its a must see. I dont recommend the others unless you watch michael mann's manhunter. its a much better version of red dragon.

Nick Kessler

haha welll pretty in pink coming tomorrow ?

Cassie

Yeah I havent wanted to watch the last several movies at all lol

Hannah Mather

Rich Campbell

How about the entire series in order: Hannibal Rising, Red Dragon, Silence of the Lambs (Done), and finally Hannibal?

Shawn Anderson

They don’t frighten me as much as a more reality-based film like this one, but they disgust and repulse me more. I don’t enjoy slasher/hyper violent movies because they’re too visceral. I don’t need to see gore and blood - it’s just porn for violence which is disgusting.

Catherine LW

Ok I think we can all agree she has to see The Dark Knight trilogy.

William Bryan

I can appreciate a good horror-movie. But it has to be some artistic value to it. I have seen The Exorcist, Alien & The Shining but will not watch a movie like Saw.

Björn Von Knorring

Nothing but gore and gratuitous violence. Not worth the time.

Catherine LW

Some people gets creeped out by gore, which slashers essentially are. Just like some people get ill just seeing blood. The psychological thrillers and psychological horror messes with your mind, and that is always freaky.

Mikio

Saw is uhm, you don't ever unsee that. Don't think it will ever go well.

Mikio

Wow. It took me three attempts to finally get through Fury. That was so rough. At least this one has a happy ending, sort of.

Uncle Phoenix

I would prefer we don´t put Cassie in a position where she has to watch movies like Saw & Exorcist.

Björn Von Knorring

William Bryan

Another great reaction.

matthew

Cassie if you watch older movies, or movies that play way pre-2000, remember that noone has a mobile phone. You wanted Clarice to call for backup. She would have needed to leave the house, run to a neighbour, ask to use the phone, call the cops, have the cops do a radio call to an officer on patrol (likely not many in a small town), wait for that guy to get the call, drive to her. And only then they could go in. How long does it take? What about the hostage? Anyway, I'm glad the blanket was holding your hand at the scary part :)

Dioskur

This movie is more in genre of horror, while Fargo is more dark comedy. For straight suspense, you have to watch some Hitchcock movies, like Rear Window or Rebecca.

navghtivs

This is one of those rare movies that actually gave the book a run for its money, if not better due to the amazing casting an performances that were given.

Obsolyeet

I love that haunting, final shot of Hannibal walking and disappearing into the crowd. The perfect metaphor of evil walking among us. This movie is one of only three movies to win the five top Academy awards: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Actress and Best Screenplay. The sequel HANNIBAL continues the Clarice/Hannibal story, but is tonally very different (and weirder) from this movie. You now have to watch either RED DRAGON or MANHUNTER, which takes place before this story and deals a bit with how Hannibal was caught. A lot of the folks here will likely prefer MANHUNTER over RD.

Alex Villarreal

Cassie, the sequel to this is called Hannibal, and it is more of a horror movie than a suspense movie, at least in my opinion.

Shaun2342!

Anthony Hopkins was only in 16 minutes of the whole movie if you can believe that. And won a Best Actor Oscar for it.

Robert C

I recommend The Remains of the Day too! One of my favorite all time films - Hopkins and Thompson are brilliant. The book was a Booker prize winning novel written by a Japanese man: Kazuo Ishiguro. He really understood English society and the mindset of an English butler at that time.

Catherine LW

I’m always surprised people are more frightened by slasher films than these. Don’t get me wrong, I understand being frightened by those, but most of those killers are basically supernatural, where as Hanibal Lector is an actual human being. These people exist, around us, that is some scary shit. I’m always more freaked out by actual real life events, where it’s a possibility. Great movie, superb performances and all under 2 hours.

Andrew Hogan

Andy Hafler

the pen thing is the one aspect of this film that's a plothole. the only thing I can think of is he was let out of his chains and chilton just left it on his bed and he snagged it. but yea, that's the one part of the film I always question...which is a shame because his whole escape hinges on it

MetallicOpeth

I wasn't a fan of the movie Hannibal but I did enjoy the prequel Red Dragon. I actually watched the prequel called Manhunter, I think it was a tv movie or straight to video. I actually liked the new Hannibal tv series with Mads Mikkelsen as Dr. Lecter.

Mark M

Is Terminator 2 will be this month?

Arnold

the second one wasnt that good ,Jodie Foster isnt in the second part , plus you watch a guy eat his own brain ..yuck

Mike Lipke

Good reaction, I enjoyed it. And yes, we all want to know more about Dr. Lector. I say, watch the rest of the Hannibal movies. Why not? Watch Hannibal next, then Red Dragon, then finally, Hannibal Rising.

Mr. Killeverything

Cheers to that

Mr. Killeverything

Hannibal Lecter was played by Anthony Hopkins. He had had a quite distinguished career before this on stage and screen but this movie made him a superstar. A while ago the American Film Institute rated Hannibal Lecter as the greatest villain in film history. A lesser actor might have been typecast in bad guy roles like you said, but believe it or not after Hopkins won the Best Actor Oscar for this movie he has since been nominated another five times for Oscars, winning his second Oscar earlier this year for the film THE FATHER at the age of 83, the oldest Best Actor Oscar winner in history! You might enjoy his 2nd Oscar-nominated role in the romantic drama THE REMAINS OF THE DAY, co-starring Emma Thompson. It's about 180 degrees from Lecter and it's another incredible performance. Hopkins is also autistic. A few years ago he said in an interview he had been diagnosed very late in life as having Asperger's syndrome, which he said made a lot of his life make more sense to him looking back. Hannibal Lecter has been played by a number of different actors. THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS is actually the character's second film appearance; he first shows up in the 1986 film MANHUNTER, played by the actor Brian Cox. For the 10th anniversary of SILENCE, the sequel HANNIBAL came out in 2001, a direct sequel to SILENCE with Hopkins as Lecter but with Clarice Starling now played by Julianne Moore. A year later, MANHUNTER was remade as RED DRAGON, again with Hopkins as Lecter. A prequel film HANNIBAL RISING came out in 2006, showing Lecter's childhood and how he became what he is; Lecter was played by Gaspard Ulliel. All these sequels and prequels are pretty blah, in my opinion. BUT, in 2013 somebody reworked these characters into a TV series and managed the rather incredible task of recasting Lecter without it sucking. HANNIBAL ran for 3 seasons on NBC with critical praises and very low ratings, starring Mads Mikkelsen as Lecter, and it's pretty great stuff. Finally, earlier this year there was another TV series centered around Clarice, called CLARICE (clever title), but it was quickly cancelled and Lecter never appeared on the show. When we see Dr. Chilton at the end, he is talking about "security arrangements" with someone. Lecter's escape has obviously terrified Chilton and he has fled to what seems to be a Third World tropical country to try and hide from him. Lecter, of course, has found him almost immediately, and we can assume things will not end well for Chilton. How did Hannibal get the pen? After we see him eyeing the pen, which the gloating Chilton has apparently set down and forgotten about, we hear Chilton tell the orderlies to get Lecter cleaned up and ready for transport. Presumably they would need to undo his straps in order to wash him and change his clothes. We can assume that Lecter managed to palm the pen during this sequence, but the director doesn't want to give the game away to the audience completely just yet so we don't see him grab it. I suspect that police are not posted in the room with Lecter's cage in Memphis for the same reason he isn't guarded in person at the psychiatric institute in Baltimore - there's too much fear that he will talk to people and manipulate them somehow. And how does Lecter accomplish the physical feats he performs? Welllll...this might be a touch of movie magic. We're meant to believe that he's almost superhuman in terms of strength and intelligence, his psychopathy giving him the will to do almost anything. Glad this didn't scare you too badly. :)

Patrick Flanagan

This was my exact experience tonight. I went to bed, saw it was up, and said, “Well. Guess I’m watching Lecter with Cassie.”

Brian Harris

Hannibal (both the book and the movie), is kind of garbage, and the film adaptation is not helped by the fact that Jodie Foster is replaced by Julianne Moore as Clarice. I love Julianne Moore in general, she's brilliant, but there is no Clarice but Jodie in my mind. The much better Hannibal Lecter movie is Red Dragon, a prequel to Silence of the Lambs which is about Lecter's relationship with the man who caught him. That said, neither film holds a candle to the original. Silence of the Lambs is one of the greatest films ever made in any genre. It is extraordinary. Often imitated (looking at you, David Fincher), never improved upon, there will never be another like it.

Brian Harris

You always post these around midnight, rather than prime-time, and then that makes me want to stay up later, another scotch or three, and watch a movie with a friend who I will never meet.

Mr. Killeverything

While it isn't a horror film per se. It's the closest thing to a horror film that has ever won Best Picture at the Academy Awards. This film swept up all Top 5 categories at the Oscars 30 years ago: Best Picture, Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Director, and Best Adapted Screenplay. In the mid 90's, the books' author Thomas Harris wrote a sequel called HANNIBAL which had Lector & Clarice reunite after he escaped. It was not received well. In 2001, Ridley Scott helmed its film adaptation and wisely altered the ending from the book that got so many ticked off. The movie, while a box office hit, was met with mixed reaction, but in my humble opinion, I quite enjoyed it. If you ever end up checking it out, just know that it's a LOT more bloody and gorier than it's predecessor.

Jack the Narrator

Oh boy, this should be good!

David RedEagle

Oh boy! There are only a very few reactions I have really been waiting for this and this is one of them. Can't wait to see it!

MattN