“After all it was a great big world… With lots of places to run to.”
Release in 1991, Jonathan Demme’s The Silence of the Lambs is unquestionably one of the most important horror films ever made. The movie swept the Academy Awards in 1992, winning five Oscars for Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Director, Best Screenplay and, most importantly, Best Picture.
To date, The Silence of the Lambs is still the *only* horror film to win Best Picture. It’s also the only horror film to prominently feature the music of Tom Petty.
I have a very vague memory of the first time I watched The Silence of the Lambs. I must’ve been around 10 years old at the time, and I was at a friend’s house. Honestly, I remember nothing of that particular viewing save for one scene, which still to this day sticks out in my mind as one of horror’s most chilling.
I’m referring to the abduction of young Catherine Martin at the hands of Buffalo Bill, which takes place literally right outside the comfort of her apartment. At night, Martin sees Bill loading a couch into the back of his van, and she kindly offers to help. Somewhat reluctantly, she gets inside the van to help load it in… and she never comes out.
What happens to Catherine from there, well, you’ve probably never looked at lotion, wells, or fluffy little white dogs the same way again.
How does Tom Petty play into all this? Well, before Catherine is abducted, she rocks out to Petty’s “American Girl” on the way to her apartment. Looking back today, in the wake of Petty’s passing, it strikes me that the scene was likely my very first introduction to the iconic song, which has been a regular listen in my home for many years now.
And I can’t listen to it without thinking of Catherine Martin and the horrifying abduction that chilled me as a child. The power of a movie putting a great song to good use.
Rest in Peace, Tom Petty.