Hi, I’m Michael.
This is Lessons from the Screenplay.
"The Silence of the Lambs" is a thrilling film in many respects,
but we tend to remember it for one particular thing...
“A census taker once tried to test me.
I ate his liver with some fava beans and a nice Chianti.”
...the tense, fascinating scenes between Clarice Starling and Dr. Hannibal Lecter.
According to Syd Field, author of "Screenplay,”
this should come as no surprise.
“Good scenes make good movies.
The scene is the single most important element in your screenplay.
It is where something happens—where something specific happens...
the place in which you tell your story.”
Each of the four face-to-face interactions between Clarice and Dr. Lecter
are not only pieces of a larger narrative…
“I’ll help you catch him, Clarice.”
…they are stories unto themselves.
So today, I want to look at the anatomy of one specific scene—
the third interaction between Clarice and Dr. Lecter...
To examine how this scene follows the same three-act structure found
in most Hollywood screenplays...
And to explore how this structure ensures that the scene is fulfilling its greater purpose
in the narrative.
Let’s take a look at "The Silence of the Lambs.”
In his book, "Into the Woods,” John Yorke writes:
“Scenes, like acts and like stories, have their own three-act structure,
and mimic exactly an archetypal story shape.”
In a conventional screenplay,
the first act is where we’re introduced to the protagonist,
usually meet the antagonist,
and learn the information we need to follow the story.
The same is true for the first act of a scene—
it’s all about establishing the information we need to follow the story of this scene.
But by the third scene between Clarice and Dr. Lecter,
we’ve already met the protagonist and antagonist of the scene.
So rather than serving as an introduction to the characters themselves,
the set-up is an introduction to their desire.
Desire is the driving force behind every dramatic scene.
In this scene,
Clarice wants Lecter to share his insight on the serial killer
she’s trying to track down.
“If your profile helps us find Buffalo Bill in time to save Catherine Martin,
the Senator promises you a transfer to the V.A. hospital at Oneida Park, New York,
with a view of the woods nearby.
Maximum security still applies, of course.”
Lecter is tempted by the offer, and Clarice feels like she has the upper hand.
“If Catherine dies you get nothing.”
But if he simply agreed, the scene would be boring.
The drama of the scene comes from the obstacle standing in the protagonist’s way.
In this instance, the obstacle comes as Lecter makes a counter-demand—
an interruption to her plan that creates the inciting incident of the scene.
“If I help you, Clarice, it will be "turns" with us, too.
Quid pro quo.
I tell you things, you tell me things.
Not about this case, though - about yourself.
Quid pro quo.
Yes or no?”
Now there's drama.
“Yes or no, Clarice?
Poor little Catherine is waiting.”
Part of what makes this a scary proposition are the antecedents of the scene—
all the information the audience has been given about how dangerous Dr. Lecter is.
Clarice has seen the precautions the asylum staff take when dealing with Dr. Lecter,
and she’s been warned outright not to engage him on a personal level.
“Be very careful with Hannibal Lecter.
You’re to tell him nothing personal, Starling.
Believe me, you don’t want Hannibal Lecter inside your head.”
In fact, we’ve heard that Dr. Lecter caused one of his fellow inmates to kill himself
simply by talking to him.
“The orderly heard Lecter whispering to him, all afternoon, and Miggs crying.
They found him at bed check. He’d swallowed his own tongue.”
So now protagonist must make a choice:
follow the rules and protect herself,
or volunteer personal information to a sophisticated, manipulative serial killer.
“Go, Doctor.”
And with that, the scene launches into Act Two: Confrontation.
Act Two is where the protagonist and antagonist come into direct conflict.
Clarice simply wants information to help her catch Buffalo Bill,
but now she encounters her first obstacle.
“What is your worst memory of childhood?”
“The death of my father.”
In the first half of act two,
Lecter relentlessly asks Clarice questions about one of her most painful memories.
“Tell me about it and don't lie, or I’ll know.”
“He was a town marshal and
one night he surprised two burglars, coming out the back of a drugstore...
They shot him.”
This continues until it seems like he's satisfied...
“You're very frank, Clarice.
I think it would be quite something to know you in private life.”
...and she makes a move toward her desire.
“Quid pro quo, Doctor.”
Here, the scene reaches its midpoint,
as Lecter starts to provide her with useful information about Buffalo Bill.
“The significance of the moth is change.
Caterpillar into chrysalis, or pupa,
From thence into beauty.
Our Billy wants to change, too.”
Clarice is beginning to get what she wants, but the scene isn't over.
This was just a tease…
“You're so close to the way you're going to catch him - do you realize that?”
“No. Tell me why.”
..and if she wants to hear the rest, she'll have to continue to play Lecter’s game.
“After your father's death, you were orphaned.
What happened next?”
In the second half of act two,
overcoming the obstacle gets harder and as a result, the tension increases.
“I don't imagine the answer's on those second-rate shoes, Clarice.”
Lecter zeroes in on what seems to be the most painful memory Clarice has...
“I went to live with my mother's cousin and her husband in Montana.
They had a ranch.”
“Was it a cattle ranch?”
“Sheep and horses.”
...and pushes until the scene reaches its crisis.
Lecter is now inside Clarice’s head.
Clarice must choose if she is willing to share these details with Hannibal Lecter.
“How long did you live there?”
“Two months.”
“Why so briefly?”
“I ran away.”
"Why, Clarice?"
Although Clarice doesn't reveal all the details of this traumatic event in this scene,
she's taken a big risk and allowed herself to be vulnerable with Lecter.
“Quid pro quo, Doctor.”
And as a result of this choice, the scene moves on to Act Three: Resolution.
A scene is resolved when a character either achieves—
or fails to achieve—their desire.
But beyond simply resolving the goal of a character,
a scene must serve a greater function in the narrative,
and here at the end of the scene it’s easiest to determine if it has.
In "Screenplay," Syd Field writes:
“The purpose of the scene is twofold:
Either it moves the story forward
or it reveals information about the character.”
This scene between Clarice and Lecter has revealed character in two ways.
The most obvious way is how Clarice is forced to share part of her traumatic backstory
via dialogue.
But deeper character is revealed through the choices that both Clarice and Lecter make.
When presented with an appealing offer,
Lecter was more intrigued by learning about Clarice.
And each turning point in the scene—
the inciting incident, the midpoint, and the crisis—
essentially asks her: “What are you willing to do to get what you want?”
And her decisions reveal her character.
The scene moves the story forward as well.
In act three, Clarice is rewarded for overcoming the obstacles,
as the scene reaches its climax and Lecter finally tells her what she needs to know.
“Now you said that I was very close to the way we’d catch him.
What did you mean, doctor?”
“There are three major centers for transsexual surgery.
Johns Hopkins, The University of Minnesota, and Columbus Medical center.
I wouldn’t surprised if Billy had applied for sex reassignment at one or all of them,
And been rejected.”
Clarice has the next clue she needs to continue her hunt for Buffalo Bill.
And in the final moments of the scene, we see that the psychiatrist, Dr. Chilton, has
been monitoring their conversations.
He has an agenda of his own.
By the end of act three,
the protagonist has resolved her desire,
we’ve learned more about each of the characters,
and the story has been moved forward.
Every interaction between Clarice and Dr. Lecter is a story in miniature,
following their struggles to obtain their desires.
Some scenes come in late, some get out early,
but they all ultimately follow a three-act structure.
And each moves the story forward,
revealing character and following Clarice’s journey…
“Well Clarice, have the lambs stopped screaming?”
…toward the silence of the lambs.
In the case of The Silence of the Lambs,
there are a few interesting differences between the book and the film.
In the book, the story is told from a more omniscient point of view,
but for the film screenwriter Ted Tally chose to focus on Clarice as the protagonist.
If you want to check out the book,
I recommend listening to the audiobook on Audible.
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Once again that’s audible.com/lfts, or text “lfts” to 500500.
Thanks to Audible for sponsoring this video,
and for helping me get over my cold a little bit quicker.
Hey guys, hope you enjoyed the video!
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