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Character Role Analysis

Hannibal Lecter/Buffalo Bill

With Hannibal Lecter's popularity (voted Best Serial Killer 1990), it's easy to forget that there are two serial killers in this movie. But not all serial killers are created equal. For as much as Lecter and Buffalo Bill have in common, they have just as many differences.

Yes, they like to kill people, and sometimes kill people close to them. Lecter, a psychiatrist, has killed patients before, and Bill's first victim was his friend. Yes, they do weird things with human flesh. Lecter eats it. Bill wears it.

But Lecter is educated and refined. Well, as refined as a crazy killer can be. The crazy part about Lecter is that he doesn't seem crazy. Buffalo Bill on the other hand looks and acts like a total nutcase. Lecter, with his skewed views and morals (hey, at least he has morals of a sort) would find Bill crude and rude.