The Silence of the Lambs Two Disc Collector s Edition

Product Description An FBI woman needs a killer called Hannibal the Cannibal to catch a killer called Buffalo Bill. Oscars for best picture, director Jonathan Demme, actor Hopkins, actress Foster. Amazon.com Based on Thomas Harris's novel, this terrifying film by Jonathan Demme really only contains a couple of genuinely shocking moments (one involving an autopsy, the other a prison break). The rest of the film is a splatter-free visual and psychological descent into the hell of madness, redeemed astonishingly by an unlikely connection between a monster and a haunted young woman. Anthony Hopkins is extraordinary as the cannibalistic psychiatrist Dr. Hannibal Lecter, virtually entombed in a subterranean prison for the criminally insane. At the behest of the FBI, agent-in-training Clarice Starling (Jodie Foster) approaches Lecter, requesting his insights into the identity and methods of a serial killer named Buffalo Bill (Ted Levine). In exchange, Lecter demands the right to penetrate Starling's most painful memories, creating a bizarre but palpable intimacy that liberates them both under separate but equally horrific circumstances. Demme, a filmmaker with a uniquely populist vision ( Melvin and Howard, Something Wild), also spent his early years making pulp for Roger Corman ( Caged Heat), and he hasn't forgotten the significance of tone, atmosphere, and the unsettling nature of a crudely effective close-up. Much of the film, in fact, consists of actors staring straight into the camera (usually from Clarice's point of view), making every bridge between one set of eyes to another seem terribly dangerous. -- Tom Keogh Additional Features A great movie deserves great special features, and MGM has done right by The Silence of the Lambs--for the most part. Although Criterion's commentary track and storyboards are missing, this collector's edition offers some first-rate extras. The bone-chilling thriller is on the first disc, while the second boasts a bevy of bonus material, including the original making-of featurette, deleted scenes, and outtakes. New documentaries consist of Inside the Labyrinth: Making of The Silence of the Lambs, which covers every aspect of the production; Jonathan Demme & Jodie Foster, a look at the film from the perspective of director and leading actress; and a two-part installment of Bravo's Page to Screen, which traces the transition from bestselling book to Oscar-winning film. As for the latter, the author's input is notable by its absence, but the program notes that Thomas Harris refuses all media requests. Instead, screenwriter Ted Tally and others speak about his work. Though repetition is inevitable, the combined features answer pretty much every question a viewer could have about The Silence of the Lambs, i.e. Yes, that is director George Romero in a cameo and yes, the head in the jar was modeled after producer Ed Saxon. There are even recipe cards for dishes like roast lamb and fava bean risotto. Interestingly however, there's no mention of the various sequels and prequels to Demme's film, like Michael Mann's Manhunter or Ridley Scott's Hannibal, but then again, they weren't produced by the same creative team. --Kathleen C. Fennessy