  The Lingering Terror of Silence of the Lambs When the credits rolled on The Silence of the Lambs at the end of its first screening, in October 1990, the audience at the annual ShowEast convention fell silent. No gasps. No uncomfortable chuckles. No applause. Silence. The reaction was unnerving for Ted Tally, the film's screenwriter, who whispered to director Jonathan Demme, "Do you think it's possible this movie is too scary?"
"Could be," Demme said. As the hours and days passed, however, a buzz began to emanate from the people who'd seen it. This pitch-black story about a serial killer had struck a critical chord. The silence, it turned out, was golden.
Somewhat perversely, the movie was released on February 14, 1991—Valentine's Day—and would eventually scare up $273 million at the box office. It was a smash that became the first horror film to win a Best Picture Oscar. Not only is it the greatest—and most bone-chilling—blockbuster of the '90s, it's also the rare movie adaptation that's better than the (very good) book. Jodie Foster gave audiences a new kind of onscreen heroine with Clarice Starling, while Anthony Hopkins delivered the calm menace of Dr. Hannibal Lecter, an all-too-human monster who set the archetype for brilliant serial killers on camera.
But the making of this modern classic was anything but smooth. Like the film itself, it was a nightmare—a string of false starts, fiscal crises, and furious calls for boycotts. As The Silence of the Lambs marks its 30th anniversary, it's a reminder of a time when studios still fearlessly gambled millions of dollars on dark, provocative projects that weren't about superheroes, special effects, or theme-park tie-ins.   The Charm (and Grit) of Tom Holland Can your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man convince movie audiences he's a heroin-addicted bank robber? To his mum's horror, the answer is yes. For Esquire's March 2021 cover story, the 24-year-old superstar talks taking a dark turn for Cherry, life inside the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and why he's hesitant to wade into politics like some of his Marvel colleagues.
 The Best Movies of 2021 (So Far) When it comes to movies, it still feels a bit like 2020, largely because pushed-back award-season deadlines have allowed early 2021 releases to qualify for the upcoming Oscars. Nonetheless, for the purposes of this annual rundown, it's a brand new year, and we've already been blessed with a handful of great fiction and non-fiction efforts, including a star-studded period piece, two mesmerizing documentaries, and a Mexican thriller that seems destined to remain near the top of this list for the foreseeable future. It may be cold and the pandemic may still be raging, but these features suggest that it won't be a long cinematic winter. Kicking off what will undoubtedly be a fascinating twelve months, these are our picks for the best movies of 2021 to date.  We Wanted You to Have the Perfect Field Jacket. So We Made One With Anderson & Sheppard. At Esquire, it goes without saying that we're always thrilled to pore over the handiwork of our favorite brands. Hey, it's our job. But it's exceedingly rare that we get to have a say in how they are made in the first place. In a thrilling departure from the norm on The Investment, we're excited to unveil the first high-end fashion collaboration in living memory for Esquire. It's a singular distinction—but we think this Anderson & Sheppard x Esquire moleskin winter safari jacket is more than worthy.
 16 Valentine's Day Drinks That Give a Nice Nod to Romance First, a hat tip. If your Valentine's Day plans include the researching, prepping, and executing of an on-theme cocktail, truly, you are going above and beyond the call of duty. Most people settle for grocery-store flowers. Some reach higher with a gift intended to impress. But few dabble with pink-hued refreshments. Really, well done. Considering we've all flexed our cocktailing muscles at home this year—had to if we wanted a drink in isolation—you are more than ready to pull off one of the following. They are, with a few exceptions, pink. Or red. Since there isn't really a flavor palate assigned to Valentine's Day other than sweet, and loads of cocktails incorporate sweetness, the only sure sign of a Valentine's Day cocktail is thematic coloring. So, pink and red. The colors of love. Or, you know, the colors of maybe-it's-love-but-this-is-also-only-our-third-date. With that, here are 14 cocktail recipes, plus wine and beer recommendations, that embody all that gooey romantic stuff that you outwardly roll your eyes at but inwardly kinda like. If nothing else, they'll take the edge off.  Republicans Failed the Country on Trump's Impeachment. Did Democrats Make it Easier for Them? After a period of chaos that slipped into Saturday afternoon, Democrats folded on the witness question and accepted a compromise wherein the statement from Herrera Beutler was read into the record. Surely that would make a difference after Trump's counsel spent the entire trial yelling that "reports" were by-definition inadmissible and irrelevant, an ideal copout for queasy Republican senators terrified of The Base. The move also flew in the face of what House managers demonstrated early on in the trial: this is a TV Nation that wants its info delivered on video. And thus was it confirmed that the Senate trial would reach its stage-managed conclusion. Instead of witnesses, the lawyers turned to speechifying on Saturday afternoon, rehashing the same arguments we've already heard six times. Those ought to have been enough, considering we all watched this damn thing happen on television and Trump kept issuing public proclamations about how much he loved the mob. But we knew it wouldn't be, and it wasn't. By mid-afternoon, the Senate had failed to convict at a vote of 57 to 43.
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Sunday, February 14, 2021
30 Years of Silence
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