Stars: Ingrid Thulin, Gunnel Lindblom, Birger Malmsten, Hakan Jahnberg, Jrgen Lindstrm

Director: Ingmar Bergman

Summary: The third film in Ingmar Bergman's religious trilogy which depicts a world in which God is silent, a world of despair. United since childhood in apparent incest, two sisters struggle and part as the younger seeks her freedom in a heterosexual affair. Swedish dialogue.

In THE SILENCE, sisters Anna and Ester (Gunnel Lindblom and Ingrid Thulin, respectively) are passing through an unspecified European country on their way home from a trip, accompanied by Anna's young son, Johan (Jorgen Lindstrom). They check into a hotel, where the kindly old maitre d' (Hakan Jahnberg) ministers to the ailing, alcoholic Ester and attempts to befriend Johan, who has been exploring the empty halls of the stately building alone. It soon becomes apparent that the sisters are engaged in a strange, oppressive love-hate relationship, and the younger, livelier Anna attempts to escape her terminally ill sister by pursuing an affair with a stranger. The silence of the title refers to the impossibility of communication between the sisters but also between the three travelers and everyone they encounter in the foreign city, whose language they don't speak--as well as the devastating silence of God in the face of human despair. The third chapter of Ingmar Bergman's faith trilogy, THE SILENCE was considered extremely controversial at the time of its release because of its frank depiction of sexuality and hints at incest and lesbianism; at the same time Bergman was praised for his level of cinematic sophistication, and the media attention helped make the film a box-office success in Sweden.

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Based on Thomas Harris's novel, Jonathan Demme's terrifying adaptation of Silence of the Lambscontains only a couple of genuinely shocking moments (one involving an autopsy, the other a prison break). The rest of the film is a splatter-free visual and psychological descent into the hell of madness, redeemed astonishingly by an unlikely connection between a monster and a haunted young woman.

Anthony Hopkins is extraordinary as the cannibalistic psychiatrist Dr Hannibal Lecter, virtually entombed in a subterranean prison for the criminally insane. At the behest of the FBI, agent-in-training Clarice Starling (Jodie Foster) approaches Lecter, requesting his insights into the identity and methods of a serial killer named Buffalo Bill (Ted Levine). In exchange, Lecter demands the right to penetrate Starling's most painful memories, creating a bizarre but palpable intimacy that liberates them both under separate but equally horrific circumstances.

Demme, a filmmaker with a uniquely populist vision (Melvin and Howard, Something Wild), also spent his early years making pulp for Roger Corman (Caged Heat) and he hasn't forgotten the significance of tone, atmosphere and the unsettling nature of a crudely effective close-up. Much of the film, in fact, consists of actors staring straight into the camera (usually from Clarice's point of view), making every bridge between one set of eyes to another seem terribly dangerous. --Tom Keogh, Amazon.com

On the DVD: On disc one, the film itself looks clinically sharp in a faultless widescreen (1.85:1) anamorphic transfer, while the Dolby 5.1 soundtrack makes the most of the chilling sound effects and Howard Shore's masterfully understated score. Unlike the Region 1 Criterion Collection, however, there is no audio commentary at all. On the second disc, the all-new hour-long "making-of" documentary features contributions from the screenwriter, producer, composer, costume designer, make-up effects people and even the moth wrangler ("There were no moths harmed in the filming!") as well as Ted Levine (Buffalo Bill) and Anthony Hopkins, who talks at length about creating Lecter. Conspicuous by their absence are Jonathan Demme and Jodie Foster. Aside from the usual trailers and stills gallery there are 21 deleted scenes, many of which are not whole scenes but deleted excerpts, a promotional featurette made in 1991 and an outtakes reel that proves the cast really did have fun making this scary picture. For those who want to scare all their friends, there's also an answerphone message from Anthony Hopkins "in character". --Mark Walker

Main Language:	Swedish
Region:	Region 0
Special Features:	Star And Director Filmographies, Scene Selection, Philip Strick Film Notes, Extract From Bergmans Book Images My Life In Film, The Bergman Collection Trailer
Subtitles:	English
Year:	1963
Release Date:	November 19, 2001
Runtime:	91 minutes
Certification:
Catalogue Number:	T V D 3348
Label:	The Bergman Collection
Keywords:	Swedish, Subtitled, Silence, General, Drama, Tystnaden
Genre:	Drama