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Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed movies.
Silence of the Lambs, The
EMAILPRINTOrion Pictures Corporation
Universal acclaim
Based on 17 critic reviews
How did we calculate this?
Based on 52 votes
Read user comments
Rate this movie >
Movie Info
Genre(s): Suspense/Thriller
Written by:
Thomas Harris (novel)
Ted Tally
Directed by: Jonathan Demme
Release Date:
Theatrical: February 13, 1991
DVD: July 15, 1998
Running Time: 118 minutes, Color
Origin: USA
Summary
RATING: R
Starring Anthony Hopkins, Jodie Foster, Ted Levine, Scott Glenn, and Anthony Heald
In pursuit of one serial killer, ambitious FBI student Clarice Starling (Foster) is forced to enlist the aid of another notorious killer, the incarcerated ex-psychiatrist known as "Hannibal the Cannibal" Lecter (Hopkins).
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Also On The Web: Internet Movie Database
What The Critics Said
All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...
Variety Staff [not credited]
A mesmerizing thriller that will grip audiences from first scene to last.
Read Full Review >San Francisco Chronicle Judy Stone
The interplay between Starling and Lector as they share an indefinable, dark understanding gives the film its unforgettable and unsettling power. [14 February 1991, Daily Notebook, p.E1]
Rolling Stone Peter Travers
The superbly crafted suspense thriller…slams you like a sudden blast of bone-chilling, pulse-pounding terror.
Read Full Review >USA Today Susan Wloszczyna
A movie with this kind of haunting power comes along only once every decade or so. [20 February 1991, Life, p.11D]
Los Angeles Times Sheila Benson
Hopkins' insinuating performance puts him right up there with the screen's great bogymen. [13 February 1991, Calendar, p.F-1}
Washington Post Rita Kempley
Delicious with foreboding, a masterly suspense thriller that toys with our anticipation like a well-fed cat.
Read Full Review >Mr. Showbiz Jean Oppenheimer
Though the film's subject matter is grisly, the electricity between Foster and Hopkins during their prison tête-à-têtes could power every maximum-security prison in this country.
Read Full Review >The New York Times Vincent Canby
All sorts of macabre things have gone on, and are still going on just offscreen, in Jonahan Demme's swift, witty new suspence thriller.[14 February 1991]
TV Guide Staff [not credited]
Hopkins plays the cannibalistic doctor with a quiet, controlled erudition, lacing his performance with moments of black humor. His Lecter is a sort of satanic Sherlock Holmes whose spasms of violence are all the more terrifying because they erupt from beneath such an intelligent and refined mask.
Read Full Review >Washington Post Desson Thomson
A smart, restrained entertainment, it doesn't splash around in blood and hysteria. It doesn't have to.
Read Full Review >Chicago Sun-Times Roger Ebert
It has been a good long while since I have felt the presence of Evil so manifestly demonstrated as in the first appearance of Anthony Hopkins in The Silence of the Lambs.
Read Full Review >ReelViews James Berardinelli
Chilling and creepy, and there's no denying that the most celebrated aspect of the film -- the Clarice/Hannibal connection -- could not have been accomplished with greater skill.
Read Full Review >Chicago Reader Jonathan Rosenbaum
An accomplished, effective, grisly, and exceptionally sick slasher film that I can't with any conscience recommend, because the purposes to which it places its considerable ingenuity are ultimately rather foul.
Read Full Review >The New Republic Stanley Kauffmann
Demme's pacing is tight throughout, marred only by some low-angle close-ups of the cannibal that are right out of old Vincent Price thrillers. [Feb 18, 1991]
Chicago Tribune Gene Siskel
Billed as one of the most frightening, depraved films ever made. Would that it were so. Instead, this is a case of much ado about nothing. [15 February 1991, Friday, p.C]
The Globe and Mail (Toronto) Jay Scott
The plot is squeezed dry in this bloody Valentine from Hollywood and becomes annoyingly predictable. Thriller stumbles on its own success
Read Full Review >What Our Users Said
The average user rating for this movie is 8.8 (out of 10) based on 52 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.
Gavin C gave it a9:
This is a near-perfect film because it chooses to get inside the viewer's head instead of displaying blood and carnage every 5 minutes.
J M gave it a9:
This is a classic movie and todays horror movies should take some notes. No this movie is not the scariest movie but it still makes you think about it well after it is over. In my opinion there is not enough credit given to the author of the novel, with too much credit being given to the director. The story is what makes the movie so chilling, while the direction was an important component. As for the person who said it was stupid for Clarice to go downstairs, I would suggest you read the book as it describes whats going on in her head at the time. She knew that if she waited till she got backup Catherine would be dead. It is a tough decision, risk your life or let someone else get killed, but I wouldn't call it a stupid decision. Like I said, I would check out the book if you liked the movie, it is obviously much more detailed than the movie and it's very fast paced. That being said, the movie is a classic and thats coming from someone who doesn't like horror movies. Amazing job by Anthony Hopkins.
[Anonymous] gave it a10:
One of the best movies of all time. If you are a fan of the cinemas, you have to see this movie! If only i could say the same for some of its sequels.
Ted K. gave it a2:
Anthony Hopkins gives the most overrated performance of all time. He way overplayed it. Aside from that, the movie is really quite dull and unexceptional. I'm mystified by the positive reviews and never understood this movie's appeal.
Tyler G. gave it a10:
One of the best movies I have ever seen, and I've seen a lot of movies. From the acting to the story this movie was a 10 in every category. Go buyh this DVD right now!
Kelly B. gave it a10:
Love it, love it, love it. Hopkins is amazing - some of the best acting every put on film. And Foster is breathtaking as Clarice. It gives me chills every time I watch it.
Jim D gave it a10:
This was the best movie I have ever seen.
