The Silence of the Lambs, if you've only seen the movies and not the novels, that's a shame. The movie is naturally good, but compared to the novel, it still looks pale and sloppy.
The master of suspense literature Thomas Harris has 5 novels in his lifetime, four of which are related to the ogre Hannibal. Including "The Red Dragon" (1981), "The Silence of the Lambs" (1988), "Hannibal" (1999), "Young Hannibal" (2006), all of which were adapted into movies and became very popular. One of the most classics is naturally "The Silence of the Lambs", so it is generally called the "Silence of the Lambs" series.
Why is the novel "The Silence of the Lambs" far better than the movie? Because of this story, it appears to be intern agent Clarice Starling and the ogre Hannibal Lechter in prison, but in reality it is human nature confronting the soul, or silent communication. As a lens language, the film can only point to the end, and it is impossible to present and discuss in depth and detail. The novel, on the other hand, can almost exhilarately present and dissect two unique souls.
One wants to make a difference, get ahead, save the screaming lamb, one wants to show his ingenuity and escape. They consulted each other, admired and sympathized with each other, and almost had wonderful feelings, or like father and daughter, or like brothers and sisters, or like lovers, maybe nothing, but everything was in silence. To present such a feeling, only words can do it.
It's not that movies are bad, it's that novels are more interesting. "The Silence of the Lambs" film is also a classic, which has directly won the 64th Academy Awards for Best Picture, Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Director, and Best Adapted Screenplay, which is an unsurpassable peak of crime thrillers.
Truly brilliant literature is the work that makes the popular elements and literary depth fit into the best. "The Silence of the Lambs" is first and foremost a novel that feels thrilling to read, which is an essential element of popular fiction. Thrilling serial murders, skinned perverted "Bison Bill", ogre criminals, fledgling beauty agents, super-high IQ detective reasoning... Each element is enough to ignite the reader's curiosity and grab you by the moment.
Novels that do not allow readers to find the pleasure of reading are all hooligans.
However, this is not enough. Another gripping aspect of "The Silence of the Lambs" is the meticulous exploration of the subtleties of human nature. As a psychiatrist, Hannibal Lecter himself has long been on the path of killing and then eating, and his deep understanding of the evil of human nature is even more admirable. It is precisely because of such a deep understanding that we can have a clear understanding of the facts of the case.
The evil of human nature is often not that we cannot understand, but we dare not imagine and do not want to imagine. The psychiatrist Hannibal, on the other hand, had already seen and seen through everything.
However, he has clearly gone beyond the level of crime and looked down on the world with his own sobriety and high intelligence. He chooses things not based on good and evil, but on whether the thing is interesting or not. He himself is a murderous demon who does not blink, but he is also extremely concerned about Starling's immersion in the anxiety of "saving the lamb", which actually arouses his desire to help Starling - it will be more interesting to have you in the world.
Starling finally succeeded in killing "Bill the Buffalo" and rescued the hostages, and the "Scream of the Lamb" finally quieted down and everything was at peace. Hannibal, on the other hand, used his high intelligence and relentless cruelty to escape from prison and disappear among all sentient beings.
Put down the book, reminisce about the ups and downs of the novel, wonderful psychological analysis, classic witty dialogue, and the subtlety of good and evil in human nature, and between satisfaction, there is some emptiness and powerlessness.
It is said that Thomas Harris never gives interviews and loves to cook. At the beginning of "Red Dragon", Hannibal Lecter also likes to cook, and the variety of dishes served makes the guests crazy. But after learning the truth about the ingredients, they directly fainted on the ground...