Jonathan Demme makes looking and listening feel urgent. We value his affection for outsiders and his attention to women under pressure; The Silence of the Lambs shows how frightening that concern for people can make a thriller.
Fi1m perspective
In The Silence of the Lambs (1991), a conversation brings us uncomfortably close to the people having it. Jonathan Demme and cinematographer Tak Fujimoto keep faces near enough for a small change of expression to matter. We were unnerved because Anthony Hopkins's scrutiny seemed directed at us as well as Jodie Foster's Clarice Starling. Demme also notices the men looking at Clarice while she tries to do her job. Her practical intelligence gives us someone to follow through the cruelty.
His first feature, Caged Heat (1974), was a women-in-prison film for Roger Corman. By Melvin and Howard (1980), his affection for ordinary Americans and eccentric lives was central to the work. Music had a place of its own in the Talking Heads concert film Stop Making Sense (1984). His use of songs to establish mood and character also made music a continuing part of his storytelling outside the concert films.
In The Silence of the Lambs, that care for the person survives material that could easily have reduced everyone to a suspect or a victim. Demme lets Foster make the investigation feel like difficult work, while Hopkins makes the simple act of listening dangerous. Kristi Zea's oppressive production design and Howard Shore's music increase the pressure without crowding out the voices. Hopkins's relish occasionally makes us too aware of the acting. The quieter exchanges give Demme all the tension he needs.
The move to mainstream films continued with Philadelphia (1993), but his later work also included documentaries and remakes. Some later remakes, including The Truth About Charlie (2002), drew criticism for being less distinctive. Rachel Getting Married (2008) brought him back to intimate family drama and handheld filming. For a first encounter, we would choose The Silence of the Lambs, with a warning about how cruel it can be.
Biography
Jonathan Demme was an American film director, producer and screenwriter. He directed The Silence of the Lambs (1991) and directed and produced Philadelphia (1993).
Demme was born Robert Jonathan Demme on 22 February 1944 in Baldwin, New York, and died on 26 April 2017 in New York City. He began his career in film publicity before directing features from the mid-1970s. Among his other credits are Something Wild (1986), Married to the Mob (1988), The Manchurian Candidate (2004) and Rachel Getting Married (2008), as well as the concert film Stop Making Sense (1984). He received the Academy Award for Best Director for The Silence of the Lambs.
