HALLOWEENTOWN, N.C. (828newsNOW) — Every day this month, resident horror movie enthusiast and 828newsNOW staff reporter Pruett Norris is recommending a Halloween film for your macabre amusement.
Whether they be monster movies or fearsome family films, demonic possessions or slasher sensations, this exercise hopes to encourage spooky seasonal “scream”ings at home or in cinemas.
As the old saying goes, “trick or treat, trick or treat, give me something good to…watch.”
Day 8: THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS (1991, 119 min., directed by Jonathan Demme)
Jonathan Demme’s Oscar-sweeping serial killer film “The Silence of the Lambs” is aptly autumnal for an October night in.
The movie opens with Jodie Foster running through a brown and crunchy forest as FBI agent-in-training Clarice Starling, and its chilly atmosphere persists to the very end; with the exception of the very last scene, but that would be a spoiler for anyone who hasn’t had the pleasure of seeing it.
In the film, Starling is tasked with tracking down the newly notorious serial killer Buffalo Bill, played with iconic voice work by Ted Levine, so called for skinning his victims. To find Bill, Starling is directed towards Dr. Hannibal Lecter, a seductive and sinister Anthony Hopkins, a brilliant psychiatrist imprisoned for eating his patients.
Lecter serves as a consult for Starling, providing her information and guidance in the hunt for Bill in exchange for a reduced sentence and the privilege of playing psychological mind games with his pupil.
It is rare to watch a movie and declare every single scene rewatchable, but “The Silence of the Lambs” makes it difficult to tear your eyes away, even when the film commits to tearing flesh. Hopkins and Starling give brilliant performances, and their sparring matches are potent bouts of cinematic magic. It is hard to believe Hopkins is only onscreen for 16 minutes.
Hopkins would go on to appear as Lecter in two more films, but his first turn as the villain remains the best.
For the horror-curious, “The Silence of the Lambs” is an excellent gateway drug. The movie follows the crime procedural format that powers TV shows like “Criminal Minds” and “NCIS” and largely plays as an extended, top-shelf variant of one of their episodes. The gore is lite but the tension is high, allowing the unconditioned to ease into the thrill without the gross-out factor.
Queue up “The Silence of the Lambs,” make yourself fava beans and a nice chianti, and bite down. You’ll eat it up.
“The Silence of the Lambs” is available to stream on Amazon Prime.
Looking for more October movie recommendations? Read the rest of the 828boosNOW archive:
DAY 1: BEETLEJUICE BEETLEJUICE
DAY 3: A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET 3: DREAM WARRIORS