Similar Products - Silence of the lambs analysis

Silence of the lambs follows the story of a young female detective, Clarice, who is trying to work on solving a case of kidnappings. To do so, she tries to enlist the help of Hannibal, a man imprisoned for cannibalism. There are multiple ways this film fits the thriller genre, including characters, themes aspects of the plot.

Typical thriller characters include; innocent victims, psychotic individuals, policemen/women, private investigators, criminals etc. Silence of the lambs fits many of these typical character types. Throughout the film we are shows clips of plenty of innocent female victims, who are unbeknown to the slightly psychotic kidnapper approaching them. One female is even tricked by having her kindness to help a man lift a sofa onto a truck exploited, and is taken and trapped in a pit at the basement of his house, ready for her flesh to be peeled form her body.

The two main characters, Clarice and Hannibal, also fall into these stereotypical character profiles. Clarice shows the air of a strong willed, independent woman working to become an FBI agent. This instantly involves the entire law enforcing force into the films themes, suggesting a lot of the darker side of life is going to be seen in this perspective. Hannibal, a clear psychotic, has a creepily bemusing sense to him. He remains completely calm all film, and has a very sharp mind, being thoroughly trained in psychology – to which he uses against people to get inside their head instead of them getting into his. A lot of his past and details remain a mystery by the end of the film, and you never learn anything about him other than his obvious traits. That air of calmness dissaparates as he is given the chance to get hold of a victim. We see him go berserk and attack one of the guards near the end of the movie, after he gives Clarice back some of her investigation notes.

I'd say the majority of the thriller sense comes from how well his character was portrayed, the feel of the whole film would fall apart if it wasn't for such an intriguingly deceptive character like Hannibal.

The theme of silence of the lambs fits the theme of pursuit of thrillers. Clarice is constantly in pursuit of Buffalo Bill, and seems to be in pursuit of any information she can get about Hannibal. Hannibal on the other hand, is in pursuit of an optimal time. He waits patiently, leading Clarice on, and in some way gaining her trust. Then when she's occupied with the murderer, he breaks out and ensures his freedom in a very clever way.