Silence of the Lambs, The (UK Import) (4K UHD Review)
- Review Date: Aug 28, 2024
- Format: 4K Ultra HD
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Director
Jonathan DemmeRelease Date(s)
1991 (August 26, 2024)Studio(s)
Orion Pictures (Arrow Video)- Film/Program Grade: A+
- Video Grade: A+
- Audio Grade: A
- Extras Grade: A-
Review
[Editor’s Note: This is a Limited Edition 4K Ultra HD UK import.]
Few things can be said about The Silence of the Lambs that haven’t already been expressed elsewhere ad infinitum. It’s everything that all of the critical praise laid upon it says it is, perhaps even more so. A tight and engaging thriller bordering on the verge of horror, it’s one of the finest films of its kind. While it’s often overshadowed by the impact that it had on popular culture for many years after (and continues to do so), it’s easy to take for granted the quality of the film itself. Debates have raged for decades over the varying degrees of quality of and preference points for the other Thomas Harris-penned adaptations: Manhunter, Hannibal, Red Dragon, Hannibal Rising, and both the Hannibal and Clarice TV series. However, none of those projects won as many awards or exerted as much long-lasting influence as The Silence of the Lambs since it hit theaters in February of 1991, or when it came to home video later that same year.
Revisiting The Silence of the Lambs today, which is a frequent re-occurrence for me, there are often small details in its design and execution that come more to the forefront as the film ages. Overlooked items of interest in the background of a scene, whether it be a performance or an object, help renew the film’s shelf-life and further cement its verisimilitude. It’s also amazing that a film perceived by many as a straight horror film about a sexually complex serial killer who slays and skins his female victims in order to construct a woman’s suit, is also a feministic war cry, reinforced at every possible opportunity by both Jodie Foster’s performance and Jonathan Demme’s framing and design.
As the film progresses, this theme slowly builds as Clarice Starling begins to take control in her world and conquer the obstacles and monsters within it. She becomes both a survivor and a hero in a typically male-driven profession. Her relationship with Anthony Hopkins’ Hannibal Lecter is also one of cinema’s great verbal dances between two characters. Lecter is obviously the intellectual superior but, despite his constant needling of Starling, he does respect her. Starling, conversely, is both driven and curious, making Lecter somewhat alluring to her, whether she’ll admit it out loud or not.
On the less academic side of things, The Silence of the Lambs is simply an intriguing tale, well-shot by Tak Fujimoto and thoroughly-well directed by the late, great Jonathan Demme. The performances are memorable and effective across the board. Hopkins and Foster are the obvious standouts and continue to be lauded, but the supporting players also offer strong backing for their stars, including Ted Levine and Scott Glenn, among many others. The film also lacks any strong negative criticism, other than the homophobic and transphobic accusations made against it, which in this reviewer’s personal opinion, was more of a larger problem than a single film’s problem. All of that aside, The Silence of the Lambs leaves little to no wiggle room for complaint as a piece of entertainment and continues to be a potent film 33 years on.
The Silence of the Lambs was shot by cinematographer Tak Fujimoto on 35mm film using Panavision Panaflex cameras and Panavision spherical lenses, finished photochemically, and presented in the aspect ratio of 1.85:1. Arrow Video debuts the second Ultra HD outing for the film utilizing the same 4K scan and restoration of the original camera negative performed by MGM that was included on the Kino Lorber Studio Classics UHD release in 2021. High Dynamic Range color grades, reviewed and approved by Tak Fujimoto, are included in HDR10 and Dolby Vision. Encoding services have been handled by David MacKenzie of Fidelity in Motion, and the final results are presented on a triple-layered 100GB disc.
Because The Silence of the Lambs came to 4K Ultra HD in 2021 with obvious color grade deficiencies, the big question was whether or not Arrow would be up to the task of correcting them. The primary concern was the first reel, or first 20 minutes of the film, which in HDR, was very desaturated, sucking some of the life out of the film’s palette. Thankfully, those fears are grounded as Arrow has indeed fixed these issues for what will surely be touted as the definitive home video release of The Silence of the Lambs currently available. Bitrates sit primarily between 80 to 100Mbps, spiking well above that, with a medium but stable and well-attenuated layer of grain. The overall presentation is clean with nary a speck of wear or tear to be seen. The HDR color grades, as previously mentioned, have been adjusted within the proper color space. It’s a rich and textured presentation with the proper amount of saturation and contrast. The HDR10 grade boosts things dutifully, but the Dolby Vision pass is even better in terms of blacks and consistency in the contrast. The only visual flaws are those built in organically, which boil down to optical title overlays. However, these shots don’t appear as intrusive as many other films. Everything appears sharp and well-delineated, with even minor flaws, such as the string attached to one of the death’s head hawkmoths, being more clearly visible. On the whole, this takes what Kino had done with their 4K release and improves upon it masterfully. Going forward, this is the apex for this film visually on home video as there’s little that can be done to improve it further.
Audio for the film is included in a “restored” English 2.0 DTS-HD Master Audio track, with a 5.1 alternative, and optional subtitles in English SDH. More so than the video portion, the audio for The Silence of the Lambs on home video over the years has seen its share of criticisms. The original theatrical audio, Dolby SR, has come and gone between various releases. The Criterion Blu-ray carried it while the Kino 4K did not, instead featuring a 5.1 track with a 2.0 fold-down option. Arrow appears to have sourced the proper original matrixed stereo soundtrack for the film... but this comes with a minor caveat, if you’ll allow me to explain.
Flipping back and forth between releases, the Arrow track seems to be similar to the track included on Criterion’s Blu-ray, but with less compression, which ultimately boosted LFE and heightened sound effects. Many have assumed that Criterion’s audio has always been the true original because it’s so bass-heavy and similar to the film’s LaserDisc release, but comparing it to the track included with Arrow’s new 4K reveals a much more balanced experience with less overt bass and sound effects that aren’t quite as elevated alongside the other elements. The question now is: Does the Arrow 4K include, for the first time, the true theatrical audio? Well, having nothing to compare it to and merely drawing a comparative conclusion, this does seem to be the case. However, some may find the extra bass on Criterion’s release more ideal. Moments have more obvious aural impact on that track, such as when Clarice and Lecter slam the passing tray between them in Lecter’s cell. On the Arrow track, those scenes do have have less overall impact in the lower registers, but they feel more organic than bombastic, which seems appropriate for a film that’s more about texture than cacophony. For my taste, this is the correct balance of the various elements. The stereo fold-out is gorgeous, with various wisps of sound effects happening all around, sometimes in the farthest left and right registers, while dialogue is clear and not fully anchored dead-center. One’s mileage may vary on this depending upon their familiarity with the film (I’ve personally seen it countless times on a number of different formats), but be rest assured that nothing is amiss technically. And if you so prefer, there’s the 5.1 alternative.
The Limited Edition 4K Ultra HD release of The Silence of the Lambs sits in a black Amaray case alongside 6 double-sided, postcard-sized lobby card reproductions, as well as a double-sided insert and poster, both featuring different theatrical poster artworks on either side. Also included is a 40-page booklet containing cast and crew information, the essays Seen and Unseen: Surveillance in The Silence of the Lambs by Alexandra West, The Skin I Live In by Sam Moore, The Violence of the Lambs by Josh Nelson, Won’t You Listen to Me? by Alexandra Heller-Nicholas, various posters, restoration information, and production credits. All of this is housed in a rigid slipcase surrounded by a thin slipcover. Two artwork choices are available: Cover A features the main theatrical artwork, while Cover B features alternative theatrical artwork, the latter being an Arrow Store exclusive. The following disc-based extras are included:
- NEW Audio Commentary by Elizabeth Purchell and Caden Mark Gardner
- Audio Commentary by Tim Lucas
- NEW Through Her Eyes: The Silence of the Lambs and the Pygmalion Myth (HD – 8:19)
- NEW Healing Humanity: Point of View and Personalization in The Silence of the Lambs (HD – 16:16)
- Breaking the Silence (Upscaled SD – 118:37)
- Page to Screen (Upscaled SD – 41:17)
- Scoring The Silence (HD – 16:00)
- Jonathan Demme & Jodie Foster (HD – 51:40):
- The Beginning (HD – 16:11)
- Making The Silence of the Lambs (HD – 27:06)
- Breaking the Silence (HD – 9:12)
- Understanding the Madness (HD – 19:32)
- 1991 “Making Of” Featurette (Upscaled SD – 8:07)
- Deleted Scenes (Upscaled SD – 22 in all – 20:31):
- Clarice Meets Lecter (Excerpts) (Upscaled SD – 1:16)
- Clarice of the Firing Range (Upscaled SD – 1:00)
- Ardelia Finds a Newspaper Article (Upscaled SD – :07)
- Clarice at Storage Unit (Extras) (Upscaled SD – 1:56)
- John Douglas at Quantico (Upscaled SD – :16)
- Second Meeting (Excerpts) (Upscaled SD – 1:27)
- Clarice Gets Her Gun (Upscaled SD – :32)
- Crawford and Clarice (Excerpts) (Upscaled SD – 1:31)
- Clarice Reviews Phony Deal (Upscaled SD – :38)
- Third Meeting (Excerpts) (Upscaled SD – 2:48)
- Buffalo Bill Sews (Excerpts) (Upscaled SD – :08)
- Chilton Taunts Lecter (Excerpts) (Upscaled SD – :21)
- Jack Crawford at Johns Hopkins (Upscaled SD – 1:53)
- Krendler Discovers Phony Deal (Upscaled SD – 1:28)
- Clarice Meets Barney (Upscaled SD – :21)
- Lecter’s Escape (Upscaled SD – :48)
- Clarice Gets Suspended (Upscaled SD – 1:10)
- Clarice’s Decision (Upscaled SD – 1:01)
- Inside Buffalo Bill’s Lair (Upscaled SD – :38)
- Mr. Bimmel and the Birds (Upscaled SD – :12)
- Buffalo Bill and Clarice (Excerpts) (Upscaled SD – :20)
- Lecter’s Phone Call (Upscaled SD – :29)
- Additional Deleted Scenes (Upscaled SD – 7 in all – 20:54):
- Your-Self Mini Storage (Upscaled SD – 7:12)
- The Preacher (Upscaled SD – 7:27)
- Clarice Checks Out a Gun (Upscaled SD – :40)
- Clarice Is Learning (Upscaled SD – 1:35)
- Eavesdropping (Upscaled SD – 2:10)
- Crawford Explains (Upscaled SD – :44)
- Suspended (Upscaled SD – 1:06)
- Outtakes (Upscaled SD – 1:45)
- Anthony Hopkins Phone Message (HD – :35)
- Theatrical Trailer (HD – 1:51)
- Teaser Trailer (Upscaled SD – 1:05)
- TV Spots (Upscaled SD – 11 in all – 5:55):
- Mind Against Mind (Upscaled SD – :31)
- Clue for Clue (Upscaled SD – :33)
- Only Hope (Upscaled SD – :31)
- Hangs in the Balance (Upscaled SD – :32)
- Teacher (Upscaled SD – :32)
- FBI (Upscaled SD – :31)
- Rookie (Upscaled SD – :32)
- Bookwing Flap Teaser (Upscaled SD – :32)
- Shattered by Silence (Upscaled SD – :32)
- Reviews Trailer (Upscaled SD – :32)
- The Word Is Out (Upscaled SD – :32)
- Image Gallery (HD – 20 in all)
The first audio commentary features queer film historian and programmer Elizabeth Purchell and trans film critic and researcher Caden Mark Gardner, both of whom admittedly were incredibly young when the film was originally released and offer their personal point of view about the film today from a trans perspective. This commentary is unique in its approach to the controversy that surrounded the film’s portrayal of the antagonist as someone with an identity crisis when it was released. It’s an excellent conversation and one that’s far overdue for any release of the film on home video. Next is film critic and historian Tim Lucas’ audio commentary from the Kino Lorber UHD release, which is terrific in its own right, even though it operates as a more traditional analytical and historical commentary. Both are well worth a listen.
Through Her Eyes is a new visual essay by critic Justine Peres Smith about the Pygmalion myth and how it relates to Clarice as a character. Healing Humanity is also new, this time featuring critic Willow Catelyn Maclay, and exploring how point of view and personalization play roles within the film’s characters. Breaking the Silence is an entire alternate version of the film containing picture-in-picture interviews and trivia, which was included on MGM’s 2009 Blu-ray release, but hasn’t been seen in its full form since, until now. Page to Screen features the Bravo TV series in two parts, The Silence of the Lambs: A Wealth of Talent and The Silence of the Lambs: Preparation & Authenticity, both hosted by Peter Gallagher and featuring interviews with the cast and crew. Scoring The Silence speaks to composer Howard Shore about the film’s score. Jonathan Demme & Jodie Foster is a 3-part documentary by Laurent Bouzereau, which features the titular director and actor talking about their collaboration together, albeit separately. Understanding the Madness discusses the profiling of serial killers with retired FBI agents Richard L. Ault, Jr., Roger L. Depue, James R. Fitzgerald, Robert R. Hazelwood, R. Stephen Mardigian, and Michael R. Napier. Also included is the film’s promotional 1991 “Making Of” Featurette.
Next is what appears to be a complete archive of all of the film’s Deleted Scenes. The first 22 surfaced on MGM’s Special Edition DVD release in 2001. The other 7 were first included on Criterion’s LaserDisc release in 1994, and have remained staples of their subsequent releases of the film ever since. Most of the excised material is connective tissue and extensions of scenes already present, but there are few genuine deleted bits to be had. Last is a set of Outtakes, the humorous Anthony Hopkins’ answering machine message, the theatrical and teaser trailers, 11 TV spots, and an Image Gallery containing 20 stills of behind-the-scenes photos and posters.
Despite how stuffed this release is, there’s obviously material missing from previous releases. Criterion’s 1994 audio commentary with Jonathan Demme, Jodie Foster, Anthony Hopkins, Ted Tally, and John Douglas is absent. So is the 2017 interview with critic Maitland McDonagh, the Inside the Labyrinth: Making of The Silence of the Lambs 2001 documentary, 4 minutes’ worth of animated storyboards, and the text-based material found in their insert booklet. The 2009 MGM Blu-ray also included 8 photo galleries and a set of Hannibal Lecter recipe card inserts. Also missing from the Criterion LaserDisc and DVD releases are a set of production photos, a film-to-storyboard comparison, 7 separate storyboard sequences, and the text-based FBI Crime Classification Manual and Voices of Death quotes from real-life serial killers. Some of this material can be overlooked, but the 1994 commentary and Inside the Labyrinth documentary are glaring omissions. Criterion tends to not share their extras with other companies, and according to one of the folks who helped produce this disc, Arrow was instructed not to include the MGM-produced documentary. It’s a shame because it would have made for a more appropriate supplement than the two new, and admittedly rather dull by comparison, visual essays. Regardless, it can still be found on previous DVD and Blu-ray releases.
As evidenced by the extras, both accounted for and otherwise, The Silence of the Lambs has had its fair share of home video releases since 1991, as it’s surely a guaranteed seller for anyone who distributes it. Arrow Video’s 4K UHD UK import blows its predecessors away in terms of video and audio, even if the extras aren’t quite as complete as they could be. And since UHDs are Region Free, this release is an easy choice for long-time fans. Highly recommended.
- Tim Salmons
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