1991--The Silence of the Lambs, Jonathan Demme

 

1991--The Silence of the Lambs, Jonathan Demme

Nominated: Beauty and the Beast, Bugsy, JFK, Prince of Tides

Should have won: Boyz n the Hood

Be sure to see: Cape Fear, Chopper Chicks in Zombietown, City Slickers, My Girl, The People Under the Stairs,  Terminator 2

“Most serial killers keep some sort of trophies from their victims”--Clarice Starling

“I didn't”--Hannibal Lecter

“No. No, you ate yours”--Clarice Starling

     In the 87 years of the Academy Awards, Silence of the Lambs is the only horror movie to win best picture of the year, and it took until the 64^th year of the awards to get it. Of course there are 12 horror movies I think should have won, especially Rosemary's Baby and The Exorcist, and they are listed at the bottom of this piece. There are those who consider 1940's winner Rebecca to be horror but I don't. Heck, there are some that don't even consider this film to be horror despite the fact it deals with a cannibal and a man who wears YOU as clothing. Um, yeah, that's horror people.

     The FBI is tracking a serial killer who calls himself Buffalo Bill who has been starving, skinning, and wearing his victims. The character is modeled after Ed Gein, the Wisconsin weirdo who also inspired Norman Bates and Leatherface. FBI trainee Clarice Starling is put on the case and interviews Hannibal Lecter, a former psychiatrist and cannibalistic madman who is the hospital for the criminally insane, in hopes he might lead her to the killer. The clock is ticking as Bill's next victim will be a U.S. Senator's daughter who is kept in a hole, starving, until the right time to be skinned.

     This movie was pretty much a shoe-in for best picture. Of the other nominees, the most intriguing story is Beauty and the Beast becoming the first animated movie to be nominated for best picture. The only reason I put Boyz n the Hood as my should have won is because of what the directors had to deal with. Johnathan Demme had top notch actors, from top to bottom; John Singleton had mostly unseasoned actors with a few experienced ones here and there. Boyz n the Hood is a must see to anyone over the age of 13, regardless of race. It is well shot, directed, written, and acted but most importantly the message is a bull's eye. That being said, Silence of the Lambs is an achievement in its own right. It is a creepy, nail biting film with an unsettling ending. I don't blame the Academy for going this direction and, as a horror fan, am happy it was acknowledged. Yes, I put Boyz in the “should have won” line but perhaps as a wink and nudge. I can tell you I like watching it more than I do Silence of the Lambs, but the latter is the better all around film, so the Academy probably got it right.

     The film manages to capture fans of various genres. It can be gruesome in spots yet shies away from being overly gory, therefore not turning away potential audiences. Its grim, gray West Virginia overcasts offer a bleak mood and it is one of those rare films where we have a tendency to root for the bad guy...well one of them, anyway. The movie is filled with danger and having an inexperienced agent dealing with two deranged psychopaths heightens the danger even more. This movie comes recommended to most people, even the squeamish because even through some of the sick images a strong crime drama shines through.

     Two things to consider, one fact another opinion. Silence of the Lambs joins1934's It Happened One Night and 1975's One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest as the only three movies to ever win the five main categories at the Oscars: Best picture, director, actor, actress, and screenplay. 

  

     One other note I can't leave out: The American Film Institute made a list of the 50 greatest heroes and 50 greatest villains and Hannibal Lecter topped the list of villains. I can tell you this, I completely disagree with that choice; he isn't even the better villain IN THIS MOVIE!!! I've never appreciated the lack of respect Buffalo Bill and Ted Levine, the actor who played him, get. Without Hannibal Lecter, we could still have a movie about an agent tracking a serial killer; without Buffalo Bill, there would be no movie. 

     Horror fans take a lot of pride in this movie because, for the most part, the genre gets disrespected by non-fans. It is like this movie sneaks in through the back door disguised as a crime thriller, making audiences forget about the gruesome undertones. Also, look for Night of the Living Dead and Dawn of the Dead creator George Romero in a cameo. It has been nearly a quarter century since Silence of the Lambs won the Oscar. It is about time another horror picture is made that is worthy of winning a second one. 

--Note: Horror movies I think legitimately should have won best picture--Frankenstein (1931), Freaks (1932), King Kong (1933), Bride of Frankenstein (1935), Cat People (1942), Psycho (1960),  Rosemary's Baby (1968),  The Exorcist (1973), The Sixth Sense (1999), Shadow of the Vampire (2000), King Kong (2005), Let the Right One In (2008),