As it turns 35, Hasitha Fernando looks at the story behind The Silence of the Lambs…
The Silence of the Lambs is one of those films that leaves a lasting impression on anyone who has viewed it. Anthony Hopkins’ chilling turn as the calculating psychopath Dr. Hannibal Lecter and Jodie Foster’s brilliantly nuanced performance as FBI agent Clarice Starling coupled with excellent direction by Jonathan Demme certainly makes the movie one of the greatest films of the 1990s. As the unforgettable genre film celebrates its 35th anniversary we look back at what went on behind-the-scenes during the making of this landmark psychological horror feature…
The rights to Hannibal Lecter’s character were given for free
Many forget that the first adaptation and the first take on the Hannibal Lecter’s character took place in an oft overlooked Michael Mann film called Manhunter. This 1986 effort was based on Thomas Harris’s first novel in the Lecter series – Red Dragon – and saw the psychopathic doctor embodied by Brian Cox and FBI profiler Will Graham brought to life by William Petersen. Although it struck a chord with critics the film was a financial disappointment, and this naturally didn’t sit well with producer Dino De Laurentiis. At this time period, Orion Pictures were gearing up to partner with Gene Hackman with the objective of adapting Red Dragon’s sequel, The Silence of the Lambs, and the producers were looking to acquire the rights to Lecter’s character from De Laurentiis. The veteran producer, however, surprised all by lending the rights to Orion for free owing to the box-office failure of Manhunter.
The project was in a state of uncertainty until Jonathan Demme signed on
After snagging the rights from De Laurentiis, the producers hired playwright cum screenwriter Ted Tally to craft an adaptation of the source material. Since Tally was an acquaintance of Thomas Harris, the writer sent across an advance copy for him to work on but half way through pre-production Gene Hackman parted ways with the project as he was being pressured by his children to not be part of more violent movies. Nevertheless, Orion Pictures co-founder Mike Medavoy encouraged Tally to keep writing the screenplay, while they started looking for a replacement for Hackman. Orion was keen on hiring Jonathan Demme, having previously worked with him on Something Wild and Married to the Mob. Although Tally hadn’t still completed work on his screenplay, Demme signed on after reading the novel and things started moving forward from there.
Anthony Hopkins assumed The Silence of the Lambs was a children’s film, based on its title
Veteran actor Anthony Hopkins remains one of the most well-respected and critically acclaimed performers in Hollywood. But things weren’t always hunky dory when Hopkins was starting off in the industry, having had his start in British theater, the actor moved to USA where he received acclaim for playing character driven roles in The Lion in Winter, The Elephant Man and The Bounty. Frustratingly though, most of his movies didn’t perform well at the box-office and The Silence of the Lambs was more or less a last ditch attempt at making a commercially viable venture. After that Hopkins was considering retiring from the Hollywood scene and moving back to the UK, but fate had other plans for the uber-talented actor.
When Hopkins’ agent informed him that he’d be sending over a scrip titled “The Silence of the Lambs”, the performer genuinely assumed that it was a children’s film but after reading the first 10 pages Hopkins called his agent back and said, “This is the best part I’ve read”. Subsequently he accepted the role over dinner with Demme, when the filmmaker decided Hopkins was the right choice to play Lecter. Sean Connery was originally approached for the role but the former James Bond star turned it down. Other actors considered for the part were Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, Jeremy Iron, Daniel Day-Lewis and Derek Jacobi.
Michelle Pfieffer was the first choice to play Clarice Starling
Jodie Foster had previously expressed interest in adapting and starring in The Silence of the Lambs, prior to Jonathan Demme’s involvement. Because of this Foster, was determined to nab the part now that the project was officially moving forward at Orion Pictures. However, the director was unsure if the young actress was up to the task of playing FBI agent Clarice Starling, despite her winning the Oscar for Best Actress the year prior for 1988’s The Accused. Therefore, Demme first approached Michelle Pfieffer for the role but the actress declined due to the violent subject matter of The Silence of the Lambs. Meg Ryan, too, was approached but she too turned it down due to the violence in the movie. Laura Dern was another choice of Demme’s but the studio didn’t find her a bankable actress.
In the end, Jodie Foster was offered the part because of the passion she had for the role and suffice it to say, she knocked it out of the park and then some. Foster spent a considerable amount of time with FBI agent Mary Ann Krause before shooting; to get an idea about FBI related work and it was Krause who suggested to have Clarice Starling stand by her car and cry because somedays work tended to be so overwhelming that that was the only way she could get an emotional release.
Scott Glenn prepared for the role by studying real-life FBI cases
In The Silence of the Lambs Scott Glenn played Jack Crawford, the head of the Behavioral Science Unit of FBI in Quantico, Virginia. In preparation for his role the actor met with a pioneer in criminal profiling called John E. Douglas, who was also the real-life unit chief of the Behavioral Science Unit. Glenn was quite thankful that Douglas familiarized him regarding the inner workings and procedural work of the FBI. And since the actor was fascinated by his world Douglas decided to make him listen to audio tapes made by serial killers Lawrence Bittaker and Roy Norris, who had made taped recordings of them torturing and raping a 16-year-old girl. This experience left a lasting impression on the actor, so much so, that he changed his stance on the death sentence from then on.
Anthony Hopkins underwent an intense period of preparation for the film
As with all legendary performers, Anthony Hopkins also prepared intensely for his role prior to the commencement of shooting. The actor studied case files of past serial killers and even went to the extent of visiting prisons to study convicted murderers and was present during some of their court hearings as well. Hopkins found parallels between Hannibal Lecter and 2001: A Space Odyssey’s emotionally sterile H.A.L 9000. The artificial intelligence computer featured in Stanley Kubrick’s magnum opus too was a highly intelligent, coldly calculating killing machine that knows all, and Hopkins saw much he could integrate to Lecter’s persona from H.A.L 9000. The actor also borrowed real-life inspiration from one of his friend in London who rarely blinked when speaking and reptiles in general who blink consciously. Therefore, in the film Hannibal Lecter also blinks in special instances and consciously, making the performance a truly unnerving experience for the viewer.
Many cast members actively contributed to the story with their ideas
Many cast members involved with The Silence of the Lambs actively contributed with their ideas to improve the film from a visual as well as narrative perspectives. During one instance, Hopkins convinced the director and costume designer Colleen Atwood to have Lecter wear a pure white jumpsuit instead of the conventional orange one, as the actor thought that it would be more unsettling. Hopkins later said he got the idea from his morbid fear of dentists. In another instance the film was supposed to open in an all too familiar sequence of an active drug bust involving Starling and her team. But Foster argued that this would be too cliché and suggested the movie open with her running through the forest instead, and this ended up being the opening credit sequence of the film.
Ted Levine was half-drunk on tequila while filming some of the scenes
That’s right. Ted Levine was actually half-drunk while filming some of the scenes in The Silence of the Lambs, in order to get in to his character better. After nailing his audition with an electrifying performance, Levine studied some of the most infamous serial killers in American history to gain more insight in to his character James Gumb a.k.a Buffalo Bill. Because Levine’s character in the movie was also a crossdresser the actor even went to a few transgender-specific bars to interview some of their patrons. The inclusion of the creepy dance performed by James Gumb was also one of Levine’s ideas as it was not originally in the script.
Thomas Harris loved the adaptation of his source material
Contrary to popular opinion, Thomas Harris did indeed watch The Silence of the Lambs when it premiered back in 1991. And what’s more the writer thoroughly enjoyed his experience as well. According to a New York magazine profile on the prolific writer by Pheobe Hoban titled “The Silence of the Writer”, Harris described the effort as “A great movie.” The reclusive novelist even sent all the Oscar recipients in The Silence of the Lambs a case of wine following the conclusion of the 64th Academy Awards ceremony.
Rave reviews, awards glory, controversy & an enduring legacy
Made on a production budget of $19 million The Silence of the Lambs scared up a whopping $272.7 million at the worldwide box-office, by the conclusion of its theatrical run. Within its first week alone the film had recouped its entire production budget, which was certainly impressive for an R-rated flick. The movie received universal critical acclaim with Anthony Hopkins, Jodie Foster and Ted Levine given high-praise for each of their phenomenal performances.
As of writing The Silence of the Lambs boasts an impressive 95% on review aggregator site Rotten Tomatoes whose critic consensus reads thus, “Director Jonathan Demme’s smart, taut thriller teeters on the edge between psychological study and all-out horror, and benefits greatly from stellar performances by Anthony Hopkins and Jodie Foster.” World famous film critic Roger Ebert made a special mention of the “terrifying qualities” of Hopkins’ iconic villain in his review and later included the movie in his list of Great Movies along with such classics as Nosferatu, Halloween and Psycho. An area where criticism have been levelled in the film was for its portrayal of Buffalo Bill. Some critics argue that it negatively affected the LGBTQ+ community but in the story the character’s sexual orientation was never explicitly revealed.
To say The Silence of the Lambs swept the awards season would be an understatement, as the film went on to win the “Big Five” categories namely: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Actress and Best Adapted Screenplay at the 64th Academy Awards ceremony. To date, it is the third movie to achieve this rare feat along with It Happened One Night (1934) and One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (1975). Other award wins of note are Jonathan Demme nabbing Outstanding Directorial Achievement at the DGAs and winning the Silver Bear for Best Director at the Berlin International Film Festival. Since its release the movie has been included in innumerable “Best Of” lists including in 1998’s 100 great films in the past 100 years by AFI and the same institution naming Hannibal Lecter as the number one film villain of all time and Clarice Starling being named the sixth-greatest film hero of all time.
The critical and commercial success of The Silence of the Lambs inevitably led to the launch of a franchise with the release of Hannibal (2001) and Red Dragon (2002) along with the prequel film Hannibal Rising (2007) which saw Gaspard Ulliel portraying a young Hannibal Lecter. Another prequel series developed by Bryan Fuller for NBC titled Hannibal which ran for three seasons also received much acclaim, but sadly the show was axed prematurely. 35 years after its release The Silence of the Lambs still gets talked about as one of the few genre films to achieve true greatness in terms of critical and commercial viability. The undeniable influence it had on filmmakers, artists and pop-culture in general makes the effort a bona fide landmark achievement in American cinema and that’s certainly saying something.
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Hasitha Fernando is a part-time medical practitioner and full-time cinephile. Follow him on Twitter via @DoctorCinephile for regular updates on the world of entertainment.
