Silence Of The Lambs

Genre & Semiotic Analysis

 

‘Silence Of The Lambs’ opens up with bold black titles with a white under glow, shown over establishing shots of a forest. A slow song is played along with the titles and gives a very strange mysterious feel to the whole opening, this immediately re-enforces the genre of the film with the viewer. As soon as the title of the film is shown we see a woman running through the woods which is normally linked with horror films.

This film also uses a lot of POV shots to make the audience feel as though they are watching something through someone else’s eyes during the film. This can give a very voyeuristic effect to the scene. For example when Buffalo Bill is stalking Clarice towards the end of the film, we the scene through his eyes. He is wearing night vision goggles and following her around his basement, so he is watching her without her knowing.

Darkness is used very heavily in this film, as it is in most horror films, for example almost every time we see Hannibal Lecter the scene is very dark. This re-enforces the genre within the film and also shows us the Hannibal is a very dark character, the same applies to Buffalo Bill, almost every time we see him he is in a very dark environment.

The cinematography in this film really helps convey the genre. For example throughout the film Dutch angles are used, this makes the viewer feel very uneasy as the whole scene is at a peculiar angle. This helps convey when something bad could be about to happen or when the viewer should be unsure of something that is about to happen. Towards the end of the film they also use a crash zoom to show that Jack Crawford has just realised that Clarice is dealing with Buffalo Bill on her own while they are over the other side of the country. This helps show the emotion and realisation in Crawfords face.

When Clarice first goes to visit Hannibal in prison there is great use of mise-en-scene to communicate the genre and situation the Clarice is in. Some shots used in these scenes make it look like Clarice is behind bars instead of Hannibal this could be seen as showing Clarice is feeling like she’s trapped or being interviewed by Hannibal instead of her interviewing Hannibal. The prison also contains a lot of red lighting which could be representing blood or rage in this film. Horror films will commonly use red lighting to communicate the genre.

Feminism

This film has a strong feminist view. The main character is a female FBI officer tracking down a male serial killer,  FBI officers are generally portrayed by males. By having the main character as a female it goes against the expectations that people have. It is also referenced throughout the film, for example when Clarice first gets the call to go and meet Jack Crawford she enters a lift full of male FBI agents who all stare at her like she is out of place.

When Clarice first meets Crawford on screen their interactions show the audience that they have a very father-daughter esque relationship. We can see this from a few different aspects of their exchanges, for example when Crawford enters he appears in the background while Clarice is looking at the Buffalo Bill case pictures, we immediatley can see that Crawford is much taller than Clarice and when they talk she has to look up towards him. Clarice also address him as Mr. Crawford, which also shows that their is a heirarchy in their releationship.

Another strong feminist scene is when Clarice leaves the prison after visiting Lecter for the first time. As she leaves she is tearing up, trying her best to be strong and not cry, but as she finnaly reaches her car she breaks down and we see her crying. This cuts straight to Clarice shooting a gun down the range. This renforces her character as a strong independent female and supports the feminist theory within this film.

The male gaze is also used quite heavily in this film. As Clarice is working in a male dominated field she is looked at in a sexual way. The men she works with don’t seem to respect her as an equal and let her know this throughout the film. Another example of the male gaze being used in this film is when Clarice enters the prison to meet Lecter. As she walks towards the cell she has to pass the other inmates in the cells next to Lecter. She is met by strong gazes from the male inmates.

Queer Theory

The films main antagonist, Buffalo Bill, is shown throughout the film skinning his victims in order to build a female skin suit. He is doing this to complete his ‘metamorphisis’ into becoming a female. Throughout the film he is represented in a negative light, being the antagonist, this makes the viewer see a link between mental illness and transgenderisim. We see him during the film dressing up in drag to impersonate a female before his skin suit is finished.

Buffallo Bills calling card he leaves with his victims are Deaths head moths. He uses these as they change from larvae into the full moth. This could be seen as symbolising his own change from a male into a female.