Its the rare movie adaptation thats actually better than the book… and the books great.
But long before that,Red Dragonwas adapted into Michael Manns moody 1986 neon-noir,Manhunter.
Now, if you havent seenManhunter, you’re gonna wanna correct that.
Its the movie equivalent of Eli and Peyton Mannings big brother, Cooper.But were here to talk aboutSilence.
In fact, he upstages everything in the book.
He probably upstages everything else in the bookstore that sells it.
The book is memorable; the movie is indelible.
The next time I watched it was… well, this week.
But for some reason, I just never got around to seeing it again.
I never really needed to because it was so branded into my memory banks.
As an example, look at the first three main sequences in the film.
Right away, we understand who she is.
Shes a woman in a mans world.
Shes small, but determined to overcome anything thrown in her way.
And shes tenacious and gritty as hell.
The next sequence puts Starling in Crawfords office.
Were piecing together her assignment right along with her before its even given to her.
We not only know the villain, but also his tabloid notoriety and his sick M.O.
Youre to tell him nothing personal, Starling, he says.
Believe me, you dont want Hannibal Lecter inside your head.
The filmmakers are making us put the pieces together.
What kind of monster is this Lecter?
And what does he have to do with the Buffalo Bill case?
Starling doesnt know it yet, but shes the worm Crawfords putting on the end of a hook.
Oh, so thats why shes gotten this assignment!
She now realizes shes bait.
His mouthpiece and restraints were removed for an EKG.
Just like that, before weve even laid eyes on Lecter, the tables been set.
We in the audience are the worms on the hook now, not Starling.
And the pulse-racing pace doesnt flag until the end credits.
Its cast perfectly, right down to the tiniest roles.
But Demme knew better.
Demme co-wrote and produced the film and it gave Glenn one of his first big big-screen parts.
Its arguably the best performance of his career.
You could say that about a lot of the folks inLambs.
Anthony Heald as Dr. Chilton oozes pride, ambition, and desperation.
As Jame Gumb, a.k.a.
Buffalo Bill, Ted Levine is utterly terrifying.
But I digress.)
Its perfectly constructed from the ground up.
Sigourney Weavers Ripley was and shall always be the alpha and omega of female action heroes.
The fact that I can even throw in etc.
puts us in a better place than we were when Foster played Starling.
Shes not a superhero.
And even though the scene is a brief one, it stings.
Shes warning Crawford and us not to patronize her or take her lightly.
Clarice Starling doesnt need his or anyones protection or patronizing.
How can there be any question?
Of course, its a horror movie (and, for the record, so isJaws).
Even without the hardware, Lecter is a classic horror movie staple, the baddie we love to hate.
Whats interesting is that Hopkins only appears in the film for 16 minutes.
Its the shortest amount of screen time to ever earn anOscar for Best Actor.
He hardly seems like the monster weve been led to expect.
His horror is interior, swirling around in head like a haunted closet full of unspeakable contents.
He sniffs at the air holes in his cell and tells her, You use Evian skin cream.
And sometimes you wear LAir du Temps… but not today.
Hes not the kind of monster to sayBoo!His is a quiet kind of menace.
He pegs her as a rube whos one generation from poor white trash.
I ate his liver with some fava< beans and a nice chianti…flp, flp, flp.
But hes not the villain; Buffalo Bill is.
Since then, these cultured traits have become hackneyed serial killer stereotypes.
Starling has caught and killed Buffalo Bill.
Shes graduated from the FBI Academy.
Crawford has told her that her late father would have been proud.
Then she gets a phone call.
Its Lecter on the lam.
Well, Clarice… have the lambs stopped screaming?
Shell never outrun the bogeyman.
We see him on the other end of the line in sunglasses, a linen suit, a hat.
Hes in the tropics.
I do wish we could chat longer, he tells her, but Im having an old friendfor dinner.
If theres one thing that horror movies are famous for, its their sting-in-the-tail endings.
And the sting inSilences tail is as sharp today as it was 25 years ago.
