Monday Movie Moments: The Silence of the Lambs

Welcome to a new weekly feature here at Movies With Abe. There are great movies, and then there are great scenes. Ideally, the two come as a package deal, but sometimes there’s just a scene that’s memorable all by itself. Each week, I’ll be taking a look at a formative movie moment that may be notable for its style, content, technique, or something else altogether. Minor spoilers will be alluded to in each edition of the series, so please stop reading if you’ve somehow avoided seeing the movie in question.

Warning: this is not for the faint of heart. This violent 1991 thriller took home the top five Oscars, for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Screenplay, Best Actor, and Best Actress. Jodie Foster, who turned in an incredible performance, doesn’t appear in this scene, but Anthony Hopkins does, and he’s magnificent. Though Hannibal Lecter isn’t technically the villain in this film, this scene sure indicates otherwise, as he makes a terrifying, meticulously-planned escape from his cage. His love for classical music is deeply disturbing, as he sits and enjoys it after he has brutally attacked his captors. Seeing him grab a cop’s face and just start eating it is frightening, but this scene makes excellent use of the unseen to an equally effective degree. The elevator moving on its own is one example, and all of the cops charging in to find one of their own crucified on the cage is another. There’s no comparison, however, to the final reveal that comes at the very end of the third clip. This is brilliant and horrifying stuff.