How we cite our quotes: All quotations are from The Silence of the Lambs.
Quote #4
LECTER: You think you can dissect me with this blunt little tool?
Clarice is doing a good job at convincing Lecter to talk to her, but she blows it when she hands him the FBI questionnaire. Lecter requires skill and subtlety. The FBI questionnaire is too blatant a move.
Quote #5
CRAWFORD: The orderly heard Lecter whispering to him all afternoon and Miggs crying. They found him at bed check. He'd swallowed his own tongue.
Lecter is so good at manipulating people, he convinces Miggs to kill himself, without even touching the man. That's so crazy, we want to know what he said to him. Or maybe we don't…
Quote #6
[Dr. Chilton takes away Lecter's drawings, turns off the lights, and puts a televangelist show on the TV.]
Dr. Chilton uses psychiatry as punishment. In this way, he and Lecter are kindred spirits. If they weren't on different sides of the bars, and if they played nice with others, they might make a diabolical team. The filmmakers are geniuses at manipulating us to the extent that we're almost happy at the end to see Chilton being Lecter's next victim.